Home

I think part of the art of being a great Realtor is looking at every challenge like it can be overcome.

Early in my career, I thought it was my job to “fight” for my client. Fight to get everything they wanted. Fight for their terms only. I guess it’s that attorney streak in me. My parents always said I could argue with a fencepost.

But I’ve realized the really, really, good agents, they don’t fight. They look for opportunities and solutions. They look to find a middle ground. They work together with the other agent to create a win-win for everyone involved. They don’t point fingers. They don’t make excuses. They overcome challenges.

Finding the common ground in the initial offer on this one was tricky. To be honest, I didn’t know if we could pull it off.  My sellers had nowhere to go until their new home would be completed. With an expected completion somewhere between July 31 and October 31. Talk about an open time frame.

We schemed for 4 days to see if we could make the numbers work on moving them elsewhere for an undetermined length of time. What about a rental? Wouldn’t go less than 6-month lease. What about moving in with family? They live too far way. What about an AirBnB? Yeah, try $2500 per month. And what about their stuff? Where would it go, and can could they afford to pay movers twice?

We schemed and we schemed. We brought the buyer’s agent in and she offered up suggestions. We worked together with everyone to find a way to overcome this challenge.

And guess what?

We closed on this gorgeous property last week.

And my sellers are over the moon! Their dream is coming true. They will soon be moving into a low-maintenance, new home, close to Huntsville.

I get to work on a lot of neat transactions, and this was certainly one of them. I can say with certainty this wouldn’t have happened if we, as agents, would have chosen to fight each other.

Sometimes, the strongest negotiators are the ones willing to bend and to look for solutions, not problems.