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Have you tried Qualifying the seller by your own way, I did. It works.
By arlene | June 8, 2008
You begin qualifying the seller at your first interview. This continues in your follow-up interview with him. The seller of a commercial or industrial property is qualified in much the same way as the seller of a residential property. Typical questions used to qualify the seller fall under the following headings.
(i) Level of achievement
- How did you come to own this property?
- How long has the property been on the market?
- How long have you been trying to sell it yourself?
- Why do you think it has not yet been sold?
- How have you gone about selling the property?
- What kind of offers have you had?
- Have you asked an agent to market the property for you?
- What other properties do you own?
(ii) Attributes of the property
- What are the best features of your property?
- What benefits does the property offer to potential buyers?
- Are there any negative aspects of the property that will have to be overcome before it is to be offered for sale, e.g. repairs?
- Are there any negative aspects of the property which cannot be overcome,
such as, poor layout, which would complicate the sale of the property?
(iii) Urgency
- How much time do you have to sell the property?
(iv) Decision-making
- Are you the sole owner?
- Do you own the property in your own name or in the name of a company?
- Who would have to take the final decision to sell the property?
(v) Motivation
- Is there any particular reason why you wish to sell the property?
- Do you have a reason for marketing the property yourself?
(vi) Cooperation
- Do you still owe anything on the property?
- Is there an existing mortgage loan over the property?
- Can the existing loan be “taken over”?
- Are you prepared to grant a first mortgage loan over the property?
- In what way will you be able to help in financing the purchase of the property?
- Would you be willing to exchange your property?
- What is the minimum amount of cash you wish to realize from the sale of the property? Are you prepared to accept the total sales price in the form of shares in a company to be formed by the buyer?
- Have you done a thorough market value analysis of your property?
As in the case of residential properties, never let your probing sound like a cross-examination. Remember you have to limit the number of questions. However you must try to cover all the areas and phrase your questions in such a way that they will encourage the seller to talk on a number of issues in response to a single question.
Lessons (from my experience) of Reaching an Agreement with the seller
Up to now you have been convincing the owner that the marketing of commercial and industrial properties is a complex process requiring special skills. You also emphasized that your firm is best placed and organized to solve the seller’s problems and that you are the salesperson best qualified to do a professional job. You have also learned a great deal about the owner and his properties through subtle questioning.
In most cases I do not believe that you will have sufficient information and insight to finalize the mandate by the end of the first interview. I consider it irresponsible for an estate agent to try and convey the impression that he can walk through, say, an eight-storey office building with twenty shops on the ground floor and then give an immediate reliable market valuation, or authoritatively discuss the details of how the property should be marketed. It is worse to try and do this when you have only been shown aerial photographs and floor plans. You will have to arrange a follow-up interview with the seller within the next few days to discuss market valuation and marketing strategy.
During the first interview you should convince the seller to make use of your services and those of your firm and also agree with him that the mandate be finalized during the follow-up interview.
As in the case of residential sales, you will have to listen to possible objections from the seller and overcome them. The techniques are similar to those used in residential selling. Typical objections that can be raised are:
- I still think I can sell it myself.
- My son has just gone into the estate agency business.
- The fastest way to sell my property is to give it to as many agents as possible.
- In this existing buyer’s market I would be a fool to give my property to only one agent.
- All right, I will give you a mandate, but I am negotiating with two prospects who will be excluded from our agreement.
- Be aware of the type of objections that may be raised and be prepared to answer them.
When you have overcome the client’s objections ask for the mandate and arrange for it to be signed at your follow-up interview. In the meantime reach a verbal agreement.
Do not get involved in a debate with the seller about the market value of the property. If he volunteers an asking price, take note of this and tell him that you will first have to do your own valuation before you can discuss market value and asking price. Enquire how he arrived at his value estimate. Ask if a professional market valuation has been made and by whom.
The above should only serve as guidelines. Never be dogmatic. I have frequently found that at the end of the first interview, the seller insists on my accepting the mandate. This is usually the case where you have a highly motivated and cooperative seller. If the price and sales terms required by the seller appear to be reasonable, accept the exclusive mandate at the first meeting, subject to confirmation of these matters after you have done your own investigations. In complicated cases you will find that it is necessary to approach an attorney to draw up the exclusive mandate for you.
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August 8th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
As for reserves, Gary Murphy, auctioneer at Alsop, the UK s largest auctioneers, We only list lots that we can sell in this market. … Landlord Owning
August 9th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Line newspaper ad costing between $$600 per day, this can get very expensive very quickly for a homeowner looking to sell. … Home Appraisals