Prospecting – Private Sale By Owners
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- Why it is important to target owners selling their own homes and an outline of the system for doing so.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
Prospecting among private sellers
Vendor thinking
Most vendors that try selling privately do so for a short period of time.
There are two things they do not understand about the industry and the way the list and sell process works. These are time and price.
In terms of price, owners do not understand that a property must be priced within 5% of market value for it to generate offers.
These two basic failures in understanding mean they are unlikely to be successful on their own and will eventually be receptive to your help.
The system required
You need is a system for following up private ads. This can be computerised or manual.
Once they’re in your system, you send them information. Send anything you think is appropriate.
Suggestions include:
Personal profile
Company profile
Information on the market place
A private seller’s pack
How to buy at auction (if they are a buyer as well)
When is enough, enough
How to make your best offer
The “How to price your home” video
The “Making the right choices” video.
Contact the vendors and talk to them, using the scripts in the next sessions. When you find someone you are connecting with and believe will list with an agency, send them follow-up information as well.
This system can be run by a personal assistant. You make the calls and the assistant does the follow-up and the mailouts.
Prospecting –Private Sale By Owners
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- A demonstration on how to educate a person about the pitfalls of selling privately.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
Demonstration: Education Statement
“Well Peter, we have about decided that we want to try and sell it ourselves first.”
“I can appreciate that you might find this appealing but I’d like to make you aware of some of the problems you’re facing.
The first is whether you’re really going to save commission by selling it yourself.
In addition to the high costs you’re going to incur for advertising, most buyers will expect your home to be cheaper than other, comparable homes on the market – which is not a very positive start.
The second thing we find with private sales is that
when someone says ‘We really like it but we have a house to sell,’ then nothing happens. You can’t chase these people along. You just have to sit and wait and hope something happens. If the sale is done through us, we can move things along. We can help a buyer quickly get a marketing plan up and running, which is something you can’t do yourself.
Time is also something to consider.
We find private sellers waste a lot of time talking to and showing their home to the wrong buyers or people who aren’t in a financial position to buy. We very carefully qualify all our buyers and don’t waste your time or theirs taking people through who won’t like it or can’t afford it.
And finally, for many people, negotiating a price directly has its hazards.
Our experience is that most people, buyers and vendors alike, are not experienced negotiators. All too often, without professional guidance, things get side-tracked or bogged down in emotional issues that have little or nothing to do with the matters at hand.
I believe that with careful planning, we can design a market plan that fits your circumstances and what you want to achieve. We can take full advantage of that critical initial marketing period and get you the best possible price in the shortest possible time.”
Exercise:
Role play the education statement. Practice it several times until you are familiar with it.
Prospecting –Private Sale By Owners
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- A demonstration on the answers for an owner who think they can sell their house privately because some people have expressed an interest in it.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
Scenario 1: ‘Some People Have Expressed An Interest’
“We want to try and sell it ourselves because there are a few people who have expressed interest in buying it.”
“May I take a moment to suggest why you should give this some more thought?
You have a very nice home here, and you can ring those people and you may even find that they’re willing to make you an offer. The problem is, you’ve handed them the power because they know they’re the only ones you’re dealing with. Because your home hasn’t been promoted on the open market, they have no motivation to move quickly or to make a high offer. They don’t have the pressure of all the other potential buyers out there. Things can drag on and in most cases, this is exactly what happens. I believe there is too much at stake here to limit your opportunities by working only with a few people.
What I’d like you to be aware of is that if you list with us, these people who have expressed an interest will be included in our market planning. We can invite them to a special preview before the first ads hit. They’ll still have the opportunity to buy, but they’ll also know that we have buyers waiting and the house is going on the open market. This motivates them to make a decision and, if they do want to buy it, to make a good enough offer before other buyers can compete.
There are so many important factors here. Not only is there the issue of getting a sale, but also of getting you the best price possible. This will more than recover the commission costs, by getting you more money than you could get on your own. Does that make sense to you?
Exercise: Role play scenario 1
Practice the script several times until you are familiar with it.
Prospecting – Private Sale By Owners 2
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- How to contact a private seller who is already on the market.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
Scenario 2: private sellers already on the market
“Good morning. This is Peter Gilchrist, from Gilchrist Real Estate. I noticed in the paper that you have your home for sale. One of the reasons I’m ringing is that I do a lot of work helping people like yourselves who are selling privately. What I’ve found is that many people decide to try selling on their own for a while but if that doesn’t work, to list with an agent. I’m wondering if that’s something like what you have in mind?”
“Well actually, yes it is.”
“That’s fine. Given that you may eventually look at working with an agent, I’m wondering if I could talk to you a bit about how I might help you in the meantime. Then, with your permission, I’ll keep in touch from time to time. If it comes time that you feel you need some help, you may choose to list with me. Is that loop with you?”
“Well, yes, I suppose so.”
“Great. I’d like to make a time to come out and see you. I have some brochures and information that you may find helpful. Would you be free tomorrow afternoon, say, about 2 o’clock?”
“Yes, that would be fine.”
Alternative:-
“Good morning. I’m Peter Gilchrist. I’m with Gilchrist Real Estate. I was driving by yesterday and happened to notice that you have your home for sale. The reason I’m calling is that I do a lot of work in your area and I sometimes have buyers that I can’t satisfy. What I’m wondering is, if I have a buyer for your home, would you mind me recommending the person to you?”
“Well, I don’t know. I don’t understand why you’d want to do that. We are not interested in paying anyone commission. That’s why we decided to sell privately.”
“I understand that. It’s not a question of me charging you anything here. The reason I’d do something like this is that these buyers are my customers and my job is to look after them. Even if I can’t find them a home from our own listings, I still try to help. I’ve found that they really appreciate that kind of service and, as a result, they often recommend me to other people. In the same way, it may work that way with you. If I help you along the way, maybe you’ll recommend me in the future. Does that make sense to you?”
“loop, I guess that makes some sense.”
“Fine. Now, if it’s all right with you, I’d like to make a time to come out and see your home. I’d be happy to leave some material about selling and the market that may be helpful to you, if you like.”
“Yes, all right. How about 4 o’clock today?”
Exercise: Role play scenario 2
Practise the scripts several times until you are familiar with them.
Prospecting – Private Sale By Owners 3
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- How to contact a private seller who has indicated “No Agents” in their advertisement.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
Scenario 3: ‘No Agents!’
“Good morning. I’m Peter Gilchrist, from Gilchrist Real Estate. I’ve been looking at your ad in today’s newspaper and, of course, it says ‘absolutely no agents’. I’ve been sitting here thinking: ‘Should I ring this person or not? If I do, they might get very very upset that I’ve ignored a positive statement telling agents not to ring.’ And here I am making the call anyway. I’m just hoping that you will give me a few minutes to talk to you.”
“Well, I guess, since you’ve called. But I’m not interested in listing with an agent, if that’s what you have in mind.”
“That’s fine. I respect the fact that you’ve chosen to sell your own home. But I do a lot of work in this area and occasionally I have a buyer I can’t satisfy. What I’m wondering is, if that happens, would you object if I recommend the person to you?”
“That’s it? All you want to know is whether you can send me a buyer?”
“Yes, Ma’am. You see, these buyers are my customers and part of my job is to look after them. If I don’t have a suitable home and can help them in some way, then I hope that they’ll turn around and recommend someone else to me. In the same way, it may work that way with you as well. If I help you along the way, maybe you’ll recommend me to someone else in the future. Does that make sense to you?”
“Yes, I guess it does. But I want to make it clear, I’m not looking for an agent to sell my house.”
“Yes Ma’am, I understand that. Now, one of the things I do need to do is take a quick look around your home, so I know which of my buyers may be interested. If that’s loop, when would it be convenient for me to do that?”
“Well, how about this afternoon after lunch? Say, 2 o’clock?
Exercise: Role play scenario 3
Practice the script several times until you are familiar with it.
The additional material below contains helpful and extended information on today’s activities.
Although not required to be completed before proceeding to the next day we highly recommend them.
CLICK on each activity to begin
Additional Resources:
More Information on private seller prospecting
Scripts and dialogues for private sellers