How ethical is it if you go into a transaction trying to force all of your clients into one solution?
Trevor Mauch
Here at Carrot, we work with both real estate investors and real estate agents to generate leads by building market authority. There isn’t anyone better out there who brings in leads for both land and real property.
As such, I work with a lot of agents and investors who seem to be at a constant tug of war with one another. Each side seems to find fault with the other when in reality, they are working toward the same goal.
As I am driving today and preparing for our Market Leader Summit that we are hosting at the end of February, I got to thinking about how we can work together to resolve this divide.
How can agents and investors come together to serve their clients better? How can they adapt and learn from one another instead of the continuous opposition? I dive into this and more in today’s Truck Talk.
Read the Full Show Notes Below…
Are Real Estate Investors The Underbelly of the Real Estate Industry?
The relationship between real estate investors and real estate agents has often been a tumulous one. Both sides seem to find constant fault with what the other is doing. For many investors and agents, they believe that their solution is the best, end of story.
But is this really serving your clients?
The Industry Is Changing… Fast
For years we have been predicting the rise of iBuyers and how it would disrupt the industry. Four years ago we watched as Zillow put up it’s home buying page, then took it down. We saw all this before it was ever announced to the public. Technology is catching up to the real estate industry and in order to stay competitive, agents and investors must be willing to change too.
Ethical High Ground
I often hear agents say negative things about investors. That they are the underbelly of real estate, that they low-ball people, or that they are taking advantage of people who need to sell their homes quickly. While there are bad apples in every bunch, the same can be found with real estate agents too.
Many agents find themselves on an ethical high ground. Maybe because they are licensed and have gone through training, but more so, I think that realizing that there is more than one solution for their clients makes them defensive.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love real estate agents. I think everyone involved in real estate should become an agent. But the fact is, most sellers out there would prefer to NOT work with an agent at all. There aren’t many people out there who want to spend money on their house, deal with strangers walking through, wait for months for the property to sell, then pay out a hefty commission when all is said and done. Many sellers would prefer a convenient solution, that requires very little time and money.
So I ask you, how ethical is it if you go into a transaction trying to force all of your clients into one solution? I hear so many agents pass on potential leads because the homes aren’t pretty or because the seller isn’t in a place to sink money into the home before selling it. Now if the agent provided more than just one selling option, they would be able to help more people and close more deals.
The Mindset Shift
Both agents and investors need to make a major mindset shift or the competition is going to pass them up. The reality is, that instead of looking at each other as opposition, agents and investors should look at each other as two people with the same goal. Both want to close more deals and both want to help as many people as possible.
Investors aren’t bad and neither are agents. Both should go into a client meeting with the goal to help the house seller, no matter what the solution is. Imagine if an agent came to a home seller with multiple options instead of trying to fit everyone into the same box. They could offer…
- A fast and fair direct sale that will result in a lower sale price, but with a much more convenient process
- A traditional sale, which will require fixing up the property and putting it on the MLS
- Or… a fix and sale option where the agent/investor puts in the money to fix up the house and the additional profits earned when the home sells are split 50/50
When agents and investors come together or when someone is able to solve a problem using multiple solutions, the client wins, and isn’t that what should all be here for? Are you really serving home sellers in the best way possible if you are only giving them one option?
If you are an agent who doesn’t want to buy houses yourself, partner up with someone who does. If you Google “sell my house fast” in your particular city, page one will be dominated by Carrot clients who invest in local property. Get together, have a coffee, and find ways to serve clients better while bringing ethics back into real estate.
If you are an investor or agent I would love to hear more about your thoughts on this! Please share this podcast as we want to spread our message to more and more real estate professionals out there. Our Market Leader Summit at the end of February is FREE and will feature some of the best minds on these very subjects.