Week 4 Potential Questions for Owners of Expired Listings
Remember, asking questions will:
o help you find the problem so you can offer a solution o help you find the motivation that you need to rekindle if they are discouraged o keep the conversation going o shows that you care o help you prepare for your market presentation o control the direction of the conversation Questions:
Why do you think your property didn’t sell? How did you arrive at your previous price? What was the original list price? How often did you adjust the price? How often did the agent do an updated market analysis? When was the last adjustment? Why were you selling? What was your time frame for moving? What other impacts has it had on your plans? What do you think your previous agent should have done differently? How often was it shown? What kind of feedback did you get regarding those showing or about why it wasn’t selling? o What kind of written marketing plan did the previous agent design for you? o o o o o o o o o o o o
Prospecting Expired Listings
Expired Listing Tip: Often these prospects will have a lot of pent-up anger. You need to let them vent without taking offense or interrupting them. If you try to overcome anything they are saying at this time, the anger will be re-directed toward you. Advantages of allowing them to vent: o It shows them you care about how they feel. o They are telling you what is important to them. This is what you need to address in the listing presentation. o After they calm down they are much more likely to listen to you since you just listened to them. Don’t degrade your competition or even agree with the seller when they are complaining about them. Take the “High Road” Opening Talk Track
You say: “Hi, Mr. (Ms., Mrs.) _______________. I am _______________ with Century 21 ________________. Based on the Multiple Listing Service your marketing agreement with XYZ Company expired last night. Have you re-listed your property with anyone? No? Well, would you mind if I ask you a few questions about it?”
Handling “Expired” Sample Dialogue
Seller Says: o “We’re not interested in talking with agents”
You respond: o “I’m sorry you feel that way. May I ask why?” They answer: o “We were so upset that our previous agent did nothing to sell our house and they are all alike!” (You may want to ask a few more questions to determine what specifically the agent did or did not do) You respond: o “I can understand why you would feel that way. You would not have to worry about that with me. I’ll give you a written outline of everything I promise I will do. If I don’t perform as outlined, you can fire me regardless of our listing contract”. (Seller’s Service Pledge) Then you confirm with: o “Wouldn’t that make you feel better when signing with another agent?”
Renew Motivation Dialogue Seller Says: o “We’re not sure we are going to sell now”. You respond: o “Why were you selling?” They answer: o “We were going to buy something larger so the boys could have separate bedrooms.”
YOU NOW KNOW THE MOTIVATION You respond: o “How old are your boys? Oh, 10 and 14. I bet the teenager would really appreciate his space and would probably keep a little peace, right? Well, you know that is still very possible. There are usually only a couple of reasons why a property doesn’t sell. Why don’t I take a few minutes to walk through the property to gain some information? Then I can do some thorough research to help you determine why your house didn’t sell. I can then create a marketing plan that will get the property sold. We want to make sure those boys get their own rooms, don’t we?
How Did You Arrive At Your Price?” Dialogue
You Say: o “How did you arrive at your price?” Seller Says: o “The agent did some research and suggested a price. We chose to price it a little higher to allow for negotiating.” You respond: o “While it was listed did they update the research for you, or explain how more recently listed or recently sold houses could keep your property from selling? Seller Says: o No
Your respond: o “It is very important to keep an eye on both of these because they actually determine your market position. In our market plan, we have built- in timelines for doing that research and keeping you informed. When would it be convenient for me to do a current market analysis for you and explain our plan to you? I am available this afternoon at 4 or 6.
“Why You Didn’t Sell It Before?” Dialogue
Seller Says: o “Well, if you can sell it, why didn’t you do it when it was listed with XYZ Company?” You respond: o “Our first loyalty is always to the sellers who have hired us to market their property so we show those properties first. Plus, we may not always be the ones who bring the buyer. You are hiring us to give it the exposure that will cause it to sell. A major part of that marketing is to motivate other agents to sell your property. What type of marketing did your previous agent do?” Seller says: o Well, not much. If they did, I never saw it or heard about it. You respond: o “We always give our sellers a written marketing plan and we give you a written service pledge. When could I have a few minutes of your time to share these with you?”
Tip: You should always carry with you examples of a marketing plan and the service pledge with you. Use those to ask for a chance to show them what you would do for them.
Expanded Dialogue
Sales Associate:
Hello, my name is ____________ from CENTURY 21 (company name). I’m looking for ______________.
Prospect:
Yes, that’s me.
Sales Associate:
I’m calling to find out if you still plan on selling your home. I work with several buyers in this area. I was checking the Multiple List Service this morning and discovered your home is no longer listed.
Prospect:
Well, we’re not sure. We had a very bad experience with our last REALTOR®.
Sales Associate:
I’m so sorry to hear that. What went wrong? (Empathize and let them unload. You need to identify their sore spots)
Prospect:
They listed our house too high, didn’t market our home and never contacted us after we signed the listing agreement.
Sales Associate:
Well, I can understand why that would be frustrating and why you’re disappointed. What methods did they use to market your home?
Prospect:
Not very many that I can think of… off-hand.
Sales Associate:
That’s unfortunate. Again, I’m sorry to hear about your bad experience. CENTURY 21 (company name) has many effective marketing tools to market your property which you might be interested in.
Prospect:
Yeah, we’re sorry too! What were you saying?
Sales
Our CENTURY 21 (company name) marketing
Associate:
methods are designed to market listings quickly and obtain the best price for our clients. If you have some time today or tomorrow, I’d love to stop by for a few minutes to provide you with some information for when you begin your search for another real estate agent.
Prospect:
Hmmm. I’ll have to think about it.
Sales Associate:
Why don’t we set up a tentative appointment for tomorrow at 6:30 pm? I will call you tomorrow morning to confirm and we can take it from there. Would that be okay?
Prospect:
Sure. I think that would work.
Sales Associate:
Great. I look forward to speaking with you tomorrow (name) around 11:00 am.
Prospect:
Okay. Thanks.
This Week Wrap-Up o Make your 21 contacts per day (105 for the week) o Make sure you post your activities daily, but not later than_______________ o Listen to the recorded class “Working with FSBOs” o Calculate the Absorption Rate for your area o Complete your Expired Listing Presentation o Practice your Scripts –know your value o Our next meeting is ___________ at _____