Use hyper-local data to counteract the low-ball offer
In real estate, one thing that is as inevitable as people putting on their shoes in the morning is the arrival periodically of a buyer with a low-ball offer.
Here you got Mr. Thinks He’s A Tough Negotiator looking at homes with interest while tucked in the back of his mind is a conspiracy to come in with a crazy low offer.
An offer that borders on lunacy.
An offer that is sure to infuriate your seller.
Savvy brokers and agents know how to handle these people. But now there are data tools available that provide even more ammo to help real estate professionals counteract this type of buyer.
These “big data” tools offered by companies such as Home Junction Inc., can provide plenty of facts that will steadily erode the buyers cockiness and bring them closer to true market value.
Maybe the guy got a few deals at a flea market with his faux negotiating prowess. Perhaps he bought a car one time from a hapless owner who needed money fast and dramatically surrendered to an insane offer.
But this is real estate. This is not kids’ stuff. This is a serious transaction that requires a serious, not silly, approach.
The one thing the seller has to their advantage is that at some point the buyer is going to be emotionally attached to the property. They like this house.
Even by deciding to make an offer way below listing price, somewhere tucked deep in this buyer’s mind, they see themselves acquiring the property.
With a data widget from Home Junction, a broker has an arsenal of information at their fingertips, hundreds of layers of accurate, current hyper-local information.
So Mr. Tough Guy, you want to come in low.
Did you know that this property is in one of the best school districts in the area?
Here are the statistics:
– lower teacher/student ratios
– high test scores
-great number of graduates
Etc.
“Hmmm, maybe that offer is too low,” he will think.
Wait there’s more.
Look what is near this property (you can also integrate all this data into a map).
There’s a huge, very popular park.
There are three four-star restaurants within five miles.
That new mall is going up around the corner.
“Uh oh, maybe I was a little too harsh,” Mr. Tough Negotiator will think.
Look at Market Values in the area.
See how recent home sales data indicate a surge in prices.
In fact, look how fast they’ve risen in the past three months.
His next thought will be: “Oh no, I’m going to lose this deal! I’ve got to grab this property ASAP and here is my new offer. Hurry! Before someone else grabs this place!”
While Mr. Tough Negotiator may have the wallet, he probably has very few facts, or else he would not have made such a ridiculous offer in the first place.
Taking an low-ball offer to a seller is never a pleasant experience for a broker.
But with this enormous bank of local data, a broker can assure the seller that they have a formula to bring this guy back to earth.
And then they can go to work on the buyer, taking them for a walk on the road to reality to establish the true value of the property.
And that’s valuable because who wants to spend their valuable time with someone who is way off base.
