Be Positive With Real Estate Clients

REMAIN POSITIVE AROUND REAL ESTATE CLIENTS

Sometimes My Real Estate Clients Become My Close Friends

But if I want to keep them as clients I need to be careful what I say and how I act around them. I am thinking of an incident which recently happened.

I met with my real estate client, “Laura”, right before I began a three week vacation to the Galapagos Islands. I was a bit long in the mouth, having not received recognition I felt I deserved at our company’s annual award banquet, and shared that  disappointment with her. Big Mistake: Do not be negative about business around real estate clients, no matter how badly you are feeling.

Some Unexpected Real Estate News

After my return Laura and I got together for coffee. She told me some disappointing news. She had bought another condo in her building right across from her unit; one which had unexpectedly come on the market while I was gone. Now she was remodeling the unit. I had recently sold her the San Francisco condo she was currently living in, and although she was using it as a pied a terre, she and her husband still felt it was a bit small. “So will you be combining the new condo with your unit?” I asked. She shrugged her shoulders as she gave me “Probably,” as an answer.

Don’t Take Real Estate Setbacks Personally

A few months later I noticed a condominium in her building which just came on the real estate market—always a good reason to connect with clients—and called to tell her. Laura did not pick up so I left a voice mail. When I went to preview the San Francisco condo on Brokers’ Tour I was astounded—no, actually shocked—when I realized that it was her unit, which she had recently remodeled, that was for sale! What was especially shocking was the fact that I had just taken her to the Opera the week before and she had not said a word about her plans.

When I took a step back and thought it over, I figured Laura probably had conflicted loyalty issues and was embarrassed to tell me what was going on. I told myself not to take real estate setbacks personally and focus on tomorrow.

Most importantly I learned a valuable real estate lesson: If you want to keep your clients, you cannot be sharing your woes and misfortunes with them. Realize that if a real estate client becomes a close friend and confident, you may cloud and confuse your relationship. Please learn from my mistake: always keep your business and professional relationships separate.

Be aware that any clients names have been changed to protect their privacy. Furthermore, Paula Pagano does not accept any liability for the content of any Blogs and this Website or for any actions you take or resultant consequences of actions taken based on the information provided in this communication. Any advice is my opinion after being a 35 year experienced real estate agent in San Francisco.