We think the response “I did my best” has become the default explanation for when we fall short on reaching a goal or objective. It can often be reasonable and true, such as “I did my best getting here on time, considering there were two accidents on I-405 and the off-ramp was closed.” However, we hear the phrase all too often in our line of work. “Our clients did their best with their offer, I hope your seller picks us!” Yup, that line doesn’t work when your clients’ pre-approval letter goes $100K higher than their offer price. Last year, we had a listing where the buyers’ agent was MIA for half of the time we were under contract (literally, he was on vacation and difficult to reach). We had an important deadline to meet and tried several times to get a hold of the agent. We finally called his manager, who was of course able to reach the agent, and when the agent responded he said, “I’ve been on vacation, so I’m doing my best to respond promptly!” His poor buyers ended up with no freebies because the sellers movers hauled everything away before the clients could say yes to keeping them. Agents are crucial to keeping a sale civil and smooth and to help clients avoid problems or missed opportunities. This hot real estate market has brought a lot of folks into the real estate brokerage business who have been especially difficult to work with due to their inexperience, lack of professionalism and/or odd work schedules (many juggle a separate full-time job). In this competitive market, buyers and sellers need the best representation they can get – there’s a big difference between “the best” and “doing one’s best!”
© Rich Tao Real Estate - since 2003
