Indicators You're Relationship Has Gone Sour
(at least with your clients)
Even in my frenzied pace during a rapid fire real estate summer like the one we're having now, I manage to stumble on an article with crucial wisdom applicable to real estate practice. Sometimes, as is the case for the source material I was inspired to use for this blog as well as the one forthcoming, I discover an article that is of equal importance to both real estate professionals and would-be clients. While the points discussed were written as a caution to professionals as to how they treat their clients and the business implications thereof, they can easily be criteria for the would-be client as a barometer for their relationship with any service provider. For real estate clients, buyers or sellers, most of these points I am about to discuss can help you determine whether or not to even engage in a long term relationship with the real estate agent with whom you've begun your interaction.
A word of caution for a real estate professional and their potential clients
Joseph and JoAnn Callaway, co-authors of the amazing book Clients First: The Two-Word Miracle, outline ten bad habits professionals can slip into if they are not careful. As I mentioned, I not only find these very relevant warnings for real estate people (for which I will paraphrase specifically), but for their potential clients who will be considering the future of their professional relationship. I will begin with the first and arguably most common bad habit found among real estate practitioners.
It's NOT about you, Mr./Mrs./Ms Real Estate Agent
The Calloways very accurately observe the necessity to have a strong ego, or 'sense of self' in business, to protect you from being taken advantage of by competitors, vendors and even clients. One doesn't need to notice how fond real estate people are of their name and their picture to recognize how applicable the Calloway observation is for my profession. But a big ego can weigh you down into a dangerous pitfall if you're not careful. If you start to believe professional victories and the 'glory' which goes with them are the reason you are in the business and the end goal of your profession, you may be setting a trap for yourself. Before you know it, and whether you can connect the behavior initially or not, you will run the risk of putting the interest of your clients behind your own and giving into further moral and ethical ambiguities. A minefield of potentially serious and reputation-harming (not enhancing) disaster awaits.
Check yourself; specifically what you talk about with your clients
Building rapport does not mean finding common interests and subsequently working those interests back into a conversation about yourself. This kind of arrogance is client-repellent and an indicator that you are engaging in a very bad habit. Would-be clients who are my readers, you know instinctively when the person you are speaking with has this habit and whether you recognize it or not, a 'red flag' has been raised in your mind. More on these habits to come in my next blog!
Friday, July 19, 2013
Sunday, July 14, 2013
Realtor Code of Ethics Turns 100
Not A Coincidence Real Estate Ethics is Turning 100
When Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, and the Founding Fathers decided to "dissolve the political bands" and become the United States of America, it's a safe bet they did not intend to rent the land the former British colonies were sitting on. Land ownership, like home ownership, held the real life embodiment of the English Magna Carta-era sentiment "every Englishman's home is his castle" and all the promise of personal financial stability which goes with it. Specialists in the creation and transfer of ownership of privately held real property (a rather new phenomenon in the 1700's) become welcome fixtures of the new free society emerging out of the former colonies. The code of ethics for Realtors, established 100 years ago, sought to secure the honor of this tradition in the light of the industrial age.
How you can tell if your Realtor follows the code of ethics
There are at least a few more blogs worth of space which I will dedicate to the very worthy topic of Realtor-client relations, but for the purposes of this blog, I'll narrow some basic expectations outlined in the code of ethics turning 100 this year. Three points stand out which provide even the most skeptical potential client some assurances. Protect and promote your client's interest, but be honest with all parties. Be careful at all times to present a true picture in their advertising and representations to the public. Assure, whenever possible, that transactional details are in writing. All of these tenants are not only good indicators of an ethical real estate professional, but their absence is usually quickly noticeable.
So put your fears aside in favor of careful observation and healthy expectation; buyers and sellers alike. The time for Realtors to live up to their centenarian ethical code is now, while we are all called upon to restore what homeowners have lost and rebuild the economy itself one home at a time.
With a shaky economic recovery in effect, all eyes are on real estate professionals
As many Americans attempt to re-enter or enter the real estate market for the first time, after having been financially shaken for an extended period, fear and trepidation are understandable. However, now is also a time when an experienced real estate professional's expertise is urgently needed in spite of these fears. I've met enough would-be buyers and sellers in my recent travels to convince me it is time to drive a particular point home. Realtors have a code of ethics which is no less than 100 years old this year; let this fact stand as an assurance that generally speaking, if you are enlisting the aid of a (preferably experienced) real estate professional, you are in good hands.
Real Estate is an American tradition, not just a profession
How you can tell if your Realtor follows the code of ethics
There are at least a few more blogs worth of space which I will dedicate to the very worthy topic of Realtor-client relations, but for the purposes of this blog, I'll narrow some basic expectations outlined in the code of ethics turning 100 this year. Three points stand out which provide even the most skeptical potential client some assurances. Protect and promote your client's interest, but be honest with all parties. Be careful at all times to present a true picture in their advertising and representations to the public. Assure, whenever possible, that transactional details are in writing. All of these tenants are not only good indicators of an ethical real estate professional, but their absence is usually quickly noticeable.
So put your fears aside in favor of careful observation and healthy expectation; buyers and sellers alike. The time for Realtors to live up to their centenarian ethical code is now, while we are all called upon to restore what homeowners have lost and rebuild the economy itself one home at a time.
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