How do you articulate the value you bring when representing a homebuyer in a real estate transaction? You know what you do, but how do you explain it in such a way that a buyer understands your value, the required agency forms and everything involved to make it to the closing table?
Ultimately, every homebuyer prospect, every contract and every negotiation is different, but your value should be consistent for all situations and clients. How you conduct yourself and how you present to each buyer prospect should not vary by situation.
Follow the same best practices for all prospects in all situations, and you’ll have nothing to worry about. In fact, you will become known as a true professional and receive repeat and referral business as a result of doing the best job possible for your clients.
1. Know their needs
Do a real drill-down by using a buyer prequalification questionnaire, you’ll discover exactly what your buyers are looking for, what they qualify for, where they need to move geographically, what their other requirements are and any other important criteria. The more you know, the better job you’ll do finding them exactly what they’re looking for.
2. Educate your clients about financing
While many homebuyers can benefit from a 30-year, fixed-rate conventional mortgage, other borrowers might need access to other loan programs with more lenient guidelines.
Know the basics about each major home loan program and financing terms/options, and connect them with a trusted mortgage professional who can help them find the best mortgage solution for their specific needs.
Make sure your buyers understand the difference between being prequalified, preapproved and loan-committed. In today’s market, having a preapproval, at the minimum, is a must. What steps must they take to achieve loan commitment?
3. Strategize for the win
Explore all of the potential scenarios so you can serve buyers accordingly. For instance, are your buyer clients also listing clients? Are they relocating? Are they in a situation where they can compete for a home if necessary?
Should they buy first or sell first? Do they have realistic expectations? Are they looking in an area that actually has what they want? Should they consider new construction? Asking these questions will help inform the strategies you recommend to help them achieve their homeownership goals.
4. Find them the right home
Inventory is scarce, and will likely stay that way for a while. One of your most important value propositions is your ability to match them with the right property. To do that, you need to use more than just Realtor.com, Homes.com and Zillow.
Online and offline resources are at your fingertips. There are other ways to find inventory rather than just using your MLS. You can also be more creative in your MLS searches in ways that net you more inventory to choose from for your clients.
5. Advise your buyer clients based on market knowledge
Find out everything you can about the subject property,