Are You Negotiating?
Okay your eyes aren’t playing tricks on you I am really blogging about real estate! I have been busy with lots of different things including talking to some of you via email, phone, twitter, google hangouts,Facebook, et cetera (yeah that’s how you actually spell etc.) and on down the line! Yet I haven’t forgotten any of you or wholesaling real estate during any of all this, nor have I forgotten how to write at a level most people could never dream of!
In talking to so many of you it has once again been brought to my attention that for some reason there are investors out there that don’t realize that it’s pretty much mandatory to negotiate. I’m not saying that everyone should take my approach and negotiate everything business related, but you could learn a few things from some tips I use day-to-day. (Personally I negotiate prices on everything I use from pens and pencils to the paper for my printer.)
Tip # 1- Every seller you talk to is essentially after the most money they can get.
As a real estate investor when you go to “buy” a house the seller wants as much as they think they can get! Whether you are a wholesaler or whatever this is a fact. They want the most cash out of this asset that they are selling to you. It’s not rocket science! If they realize it’s run down they will say hey I’m “giving it at this price” sometimes that may be the case, but even still negotiate! It doesn’t matter if you only end up squeezing a mere thousand dollars off the asking price that’s where the difference in your bottom line comes from. If you do one house a month which isn’t big time by any means a grand more on your profit each deal is 120 thousand extra in your pocket over the next ten years!
Tip #2- Make sure you pay attention to others negotiations!
Here is something I have noticed throughout my dealings with buyers the one’s that don’t negotiate from your asking price any are usually the one’s who don’t end up buying! I don’t care if you have an in demand “perfectly priced” property and getting your asking price isn’t a problem they shouldn’t just accept your price as the gospel. If this keeps happening and you actually do close them like this regularly then your asking price is too low! It’s not greedy for me to say this the important part of entrepreneurship is having a grasp of the concept that you making money is just as important as anything else! The “freedom” of working for yourself doesn’t mean anything if you can’t afford to pay your bills.
Tip #3- The fear of speaking up will kill your business!
I know anyone who tries to do even part-time investing is actually trying to bring as many leads as they can in. The way I look at is don’t waste any of your marketing efforts! If a seller contacts you and their price is just outrageous try to do a quick negotiation anyways! You have them on the phone or are emailing them anyways why not just “Speak Up” and ask for something more favorable! Even if you hear no at least you heard something! This is actually a scientifically based thing here. For every rebuttal someone hears there will be a reaction and in more cases than you realize that reaction will be the seller caving in quickly to get some actual favorable terms out there!
