“What we believe to be true, isn’t always the truth.”
As ‘Mark & Angel’ recently put it:
The truth is, no matter how smart or educated you are, your subconscious mind will sometimes attach itself to beliefs that habitually push you farther and farther away from where you want to be in life.
This is good news.
It means we can improve our tomorrows. Since they are shaped by our decisions today, based on what we believe to be true.
The problem is, we don’t know what we don’t know. If we are unaware of our limiting beliefs, then they continue to push us farther and farther away from where we want to be in life.
When it comes to real estate, I see one false belief that strips home-sellers of more equity, than any other. Keeping them stuck dealing with the way the traditional real estate industry works, and ultimately leading them to bank less than they should have.
Just consider how sellers agree to pay the agent a percentage of their property’s value — a large share of their equity — which we all know, has nothing to do with the amount of work needed to facilitate the sale on the clients’ behalf.
Why would anyone do this? They wouldn’t dream of gifting their legal advisor or accountant a share of their biggest asset. But they do with real estate agents, and it costs them.
So if you want to bank more from your home sale…
Stop believing that ‘Real estate agents ‘SELL’ houses’.
By ‘Sell’ I mean convince, persuade, sweet talk buyers into buying your property.
Many homeowners seem to believe that real estate agents:
- Have this mystical power to conjure buyers out of thin air.
- Magically control the buyers’ actions.
- Have more buyers under their spell than others.
Why do sellers believe this?
Because this is what they’ve been taught to believe by those controlling the strings of the industry… The ‘Sales Party’… made up of the Franchise owners, the coaches, the trainers… all the way down to the agents themselves.
It’s what they want you to believe. Need you to believe.
The entire industry is structured around this belief. Even the big commissions are based upon it.
Just look at all the messaging… The self-promotion… The superstar photos plastered all over the place… Saying they’re the biggest… Have the largest pack of salespeople… Do the most advertising … Boasting about how many sales they make or the awards they’ve won for being the so-called ‘top salesperson’… need I go on?
It’s just sad that many homeowners fall for it, and in turn, adopt beliefs that kill their profit.
Although it’s not surprising. I mean where’s the contrary voice of reason, questioning ‘the way it is’? Putting forth a different reality? Giving you the choice to decide which doctrine is right for you to base your decisions on?
If we’re only ever exposed to one way of thinking, then our options for choosing our own destiny are limited. This is why over history, control of the messaging — propaganda — has been used to control the thinking of the masses.
So let’s shine the light.
Do agents sell houses?
For a moment think back to your experiences, as a buyer, when you bought the home you own now. The emotional up’s and downs, the searching, the looking, all the different agents you met, the negotiating…
Did you only buy the home you currently own because the salesperson talked you into it? Or because you wanted to buy it?
If it had been a different salesperson standing at the open home — you would’ve still liked it, wouldn’t you?
If you found the perfect home for your family, would you walk away from it — refuse to buy it — just because it wasn’t listed with your favourite agent?
I think not, because finding the right home is more important than who you buy it from.
So as a seller, it’s important to understand that salespeople don’t control the buyers. They don’t have them under some spell.
Buyers are attracted to your property — not the agent. They just want the best home they can find and couldn’t care less who’s sign is on your fence. Meaning any genuine buyers, looking for a property like yours, are going to view it regardless of who it’s listed with.
But don’t salespeople ‘close’ the buyers? Don’t they convince the buyer to make an offer?
Consider this:
If, as a buyer, a salesperson showed you through a property that didn’t suit your needs or feel right, would it matter how smooth-talking they were… are they going to persuade you — are they going to ‘close’ you on buying a home you simply don’t like or want?
Sure, when you bought, the salesperson may have been helpful and informative. Maybe they negotiated hard for their client (the seller), or not.
But the fact remains, they didn’t sell you a home. You bought a home.
Agents don’t sell houses. Buyers buy houses.
What agents do is facilitate the process.
So what exactly is the ‘sales job’ in real estate? Who is really being ‘sold to’ here?
Sellers are.
The first sales target in real estate is securing your listing.
Most of a salespersons training, time and effort are focused on finding potential sellers and then winning the rights to sell it.
Once listed, the buyers are attracted to the property — like bears to the honeypot — and the focus shifts to persuading the seller to accept what is being offered.
Because think about it … If you don’t accept an offer — there’s no sale — meaning no commission.
Just pick up any typical industry training manual. Be a fly on the wall in the majority of real estate offices anywhere in the world, and you will see:
The real ‘sale’ — in commission-only real estate — is not persuading buyers to buy…
It’s convincing sellers to sell.
Further, as a third generation agent, with over 26 yrs personal experience, I’ve found that the degree of difficulty in selling a home is mostly about two things:
- How well you, as the owner, have it presented.
- How realistic your price expectations are.
Simple as that.
Yes, there’s no doubt smart marketing, the right strategy, approach to the market, and a skilled negotiator in your court — will help you achieve a better result.
But bottom line, if you have those first two right, then your home will sell regardless of which agent you list with, or even if you choose to sell it yourself.
On the other hand, if you present it poorly and overprice it… no amount of fancy advertising will help, and even the slickest salesperson in the world will struggle.
In other words, YOU are in control of your home sale. Nobody else.
In the introduction to my book — The Common Sense Approach To Sell Real Estate — I encourage you to take the reins of your sale back into your own hands.
Like anything in life, believing that other people are responsible for your happiness, your results, or your outcomes… is a false belief that strips your personal power.
After seeing this false belief, the next step to breaking through is accepting responsibility.
Once you, as a seller, understand that you hold the power — that you are responsible — then you can look at the sale of your home from a different angle.
You can question what is truly important.
Question what you are really engaging an agent to do for you … To sell you? Or to serve you?
You can question if a commission — giving away a share of your equity — is the best way to engage them?
Are you hiring them to just sell your property? Or to use their specialist knowledge and experience to: Protect your interests and Maximise how much you bank (keep) at the end of the transaction?
If it’s the latter, then you’ll come to realise, that the true value in a good agent is to:
1. Help you avoid costly mistakes that erode your equity.
2. Help you maximise your sale price.
3. Help you reduce your selling expenses.
That, my friends, is How To Keep The Most From The Sale Of Your Property.
So if you’re frustrated with the current real estate reality. If you want to have more control over your outcomes. Want the power to create a better tomorrow — by keeping more of your equity at the end of the day…
Then question the status quo. Question what you’ve been led to believe by the ‘Sales Party’… that real estate agent’s sell houses…
Because what we believe to be true, isn’t always the truth.
