Kent County Association of REALTORS®
  • Home
  • Member Login
  • Calendar
  • Education
    • KCAR Class Schedule
    • Continuing Education Resources
    • CE Shop Online
    • Continuing Education Requirements
  • Affiliates
    • Affiliate Membership
    • Affiliate Directory >
      • Advertising, Promotional, & Virtural Tour Services
      • Builders & Contractors
      • Financial Services
      • Home Services
      • Insurance Agencies
      • Law Offices
  • Professional Standards
    • NAR Professional Standards Resources
    • Filing an Ethics Complaint
    • Citation Program
  • About
    • Board of Directors
    • Leadership Team
    • Membership >
      • Member Benefits
      • Statewide Forms
      • Taxbot
    • KCAR Scholarship Foundation >
      • Past Scholarship Recipients
    • Awards >
      • ROTY & Good Neighbor
    • FAQ & Resources
    • SentriLock
    • REALTOR® Safety >
      • NAR Safety Program
      • Safety Videos for REALTORS®
      • Safety Webinars for REALTORS®
    • Contact Us

How to sell a home to the ‘snowflake’ generation

3/1/2017

0 Comments

 
What real estate agents need to know about selling homes to millennials - BY BERNICE ROSS
​Key Takeaways
  • First-time buyers need a patient, savvy agent who can help them navigate the realities of purchasing their first home.
  • Dump the expert advisor role and become an “interpreter” instead.
  • Provide them with down payment details, and make sure they are qualified to purchase the home they want, including lifestyle and utility costs.
  • Give them details about potential pitfalls of shopping online or attending open houses.
The term “snowflake” has become a pejorative description for young people who cannot handle confrontation or opinions that differ from their own.

How interesting that “snowflake” also accurately describes how truly vulnerable first-time buyers of any age can be when it comes to buying their first home. (You can’t search Google for what you don’t know that you don’t know!)

I recently interviewed Terri Murphy of MurphyOnRealEstate.com about her experience with her 20-something niece, who was ready to buy her first home.

Murphy regularly speaks about “zapping the communication gap” between generations, and she highlighted some important statistics about millennials.

Millennials (born between 1980 and 1994, but sometimes as late as 2004) are now the largest age cohort in the U.S.

Nevertheless, only a relatively small fraction of this group has reached the median age of 32 for first-time buyers.

What this means is that we should see a substantial uptick in the number of first-timers as the majority of millennials approach their early 30s.

Agents want ‘right now’ business
When it comes to working with buyers, many agents don’t want to be bothered.

Those who do work with buyers normally focus on right-now business — clients who will transact in the next 30 to 60 days. This is partially because most agents lack adequate systems for nurturing leads for extended periods of time.

Based upon Murphy’s experience with her niece and many other millennial first-time purchasers, the right-now business model simply isn’t a good fit.

Instead, they need a patient, savvy agent who can help them navigate the realities of purchasing their first home, a process that can take up to a year or more.

First-time buyers are willing but often unable
Murphy’s niece fell into this category.

She wanted to buy a distressed property she found online without even seeing it. She had no context for judging the property’s value, its condition or the overall cost of ownership, including mortgage, taxes, insurance, homeowner association (HOA) dues and special assessments.

Nor had she spoken with a lender about whether she could qualify or if she would need a co-signer due to her age and short work history.

She also didn’t understand why she would need a physical inspection, what an HOA is, or how CC&Rs (covenants, conditions and restrictions) could prevent her from having a pet or place other limitations on her use of the property.

Furthermore, she didn’t realize closing this sale could take six months or more.

Interpret and protect
Based upon her experience with her niece, Murphy makes the following suggestions that can help you do a better job of serving first-time buyers.

First-time buyers want to be actively involved in the process

To work more effectively with first-time buyers, dump the expert advisor role and become what Murphy calls an “interpreter” instead.

Provide your buyers with links to websites and other resources that explain the purchase process in detail.

When you first begin working with them, give them sample copies of all transaction documents, including a sample set of loan documents. This will help them to be better prepared to handle the documentation, especially if you are using a digital signature or transaction tracking platform.

Most importantly, encourage their questions and be patient.

Providing them with resources for down payment assistance

Many first-time buyers believe that they need a full 20-percent down to buy a home.

DownPaymentResource.com aggregates sources of federal, state and local down payment assistance programs that will allow your buyer to purchase with a much lower down payment.

Make sure that you explain that closing costs are not included in the down payment and that closing costs can vary based upon the type of the loan — such as VA, FHA or conventional.

Establish their purchase power

It’s especially important to establish whether your first-time buyer is qualified to purchase now, must clean up their credit first or needs more time on the job to qualify.

They may also need a co-signer. If this is the case, make sure the co-signer understands that the buyer’s loan will now become part of the co-signer’s debt load and could limit the co-signer’s ability to obtain a loan for their own account in the future.

They believe they can find the perfect house online

It’s important to educate your clients that finding the right house requires more than just looking at pictures online. Instead, the buyers must consider both the payments plus the other costs associated with homeownership.

Murphy’s niece had no idea about HOA dues, private mortgage insurance, utilities — or that she would be responsible for repairing or replacing any appliances that failed.

Tools like TLCEngine.com can estimate the overall cost of homeownership — including affordability, lifestyle and commute times and expenses — and can be extremely useful in educating your buyers about these costs.

Make sure they know the risks of looking without you

Your buyers will be unaware that seeing an open house without you could force them into being represented by the seller’s agent, who has a fiduciary duty to get the seller the highest price possible.
Explain this situation and make sure they always register for any open house with your name and contact information. If they will take your cards with them, that’s even better.

It’s not your “forever home”

First-time buyers can become frustrated when what is available doesn’t meet their expectations.
Murphy recommends that you encourage them to find a home that is a good fit for them right now, but that it is not their forever home.

They’re scared

Keep in mind that when any of your clients become angry, act out or behave poorly, fear is the underlying issue.

Consequently, dial down your energy, ask what you can do to “fix” any issues that may be of concern, and speak to them using the tone you would use to calm a frightened child — quiet, slow and understanding.

First-time buyers can be a source of repeat business for years to come if you are willing to educate them about the realities of purchasing and owning a home and then to gently guide them through the process.

Bernice Ross, CEO of RealEstateCoach.com, is a national speaker, author and trainer with over 1,000 published articles and two best-selling real estate books. Learn about her training programs at www.RealEstateCoach.com/AgentTraining and www.RealEstateCoach.com/newagent.
Email Bernice Ross
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    2017
    2017 Housing Market
    Accomodating
    Affordability
    Agent
    American Dream
    Annual Premiums
    Appraisal
    Appreciation
    Architect
    Attitude
    Average Rent
    Baby Boomers
    Baseline
    Benefits
    Best Deal
    Best Strategy
    Best Time To Buy
    Best Time To Sell
    Blogging
    Books
    Boomerang Buyers
    Borrowers
    Brand Awareness
    Branding
    Brokerage
    Brokers
    Build Rapport
    Business Owners
    Buyers
    Buying
    Buying Versus Renting
    Call For Action
    Capitol Hill
    Changes In The Real Estate Industry
    Characteristics
    Charity
    Checklist
    Client
    Clients
    Closing
    Code Of Ethics
    Commitment To Excellent
    Common Scams
    Communication
    Community
    Community Events
    Competency
    Competition
    Competitive Market
    Congressional Address
    Connecting With Clients
    Contacts
    Continuing Education
    Convention
    Conversations
    Convert Prospects Into Clients
    Cost Of Homeownership
    Credit Scores
    Current Events
    Customer Service
    DAR
    Deductions
    DEFAC
    Delaware
    Deliver Value To Customers
    Demographic
    Deregulation
    Design Trends
    Dover
    Down Payment
    Educate Clients
    Education
    Election Day
    Elections
    Email
    Email Signature
    Emotional Purchases
    Empowerment
    Energy Efficiency
    Events
    Face-to-face Meetings
    Fair Housing
    Federal Reserve
    FEMA
    FHA
    FHFA
    Field Guide
    Financial Future
    First Impressions
    First-time Buyers
    Firsttime Home Buyer
    First Tuesday Happy Hour
    Fixer Uppper
    Flood Insurance
    Focus
    Follow Up
    Follow-up
    Forecast
    Foreign Banks
    For-sale Prices
    Foucs
    Freddie Mac
    FSBO
    Future
    Generation X
    Generation Z
    Giveaways
    Goals
    Go-to
    Government
    Governor-Elect Carney
    Great Real Estate Agent
    HELOC
    Higher Income
    Higher Sales
    Holidays
    Homebuyers
    Home Buyers
    Homebuying
    Home Equity
    Home Equity Loan
    Home Insurance
    Homeowner
    Homeowners
    Home Owners
    Homeownership
    Homeowners Insurance Policy
    Home Prices
    Home Sales
    Homeseller
    Homesellers
    Home Sellers
    Home Selling
    Home's Value
    Honesty
    House Size
    Housing
    Housing Market
    HUD
    Hud1
    Hud-1
    HUD Secretary
    Increase Effectiveness Of Your Marketing
    Increase Your Returns
    Industry Outlook
    Inflation
    Infrastructure
    Inman
    In-person
    International Happenings
    Internet Data Exchange
    Internet Strategies
    Inventory
    Inventory Shortage
    Investments
    Investors
    Invisible Improvements
    "it" Factor
    KCAR
    Kent County
    Lead Generation
    Lease Agreement
    Legislation
    Lenders
    Licensed Agent
    License Renewal
    Listing
    Listing Presentation
    Listings
    Lucrative
    Market Activity
    Marketing
    Marketing Articles
    Marketing Resources
    Market Statistics
    Martin Luther King Day
    Member Benefit
    Mentor
    Millenials
    Mistakes
    MLS
    Money Saving Tips
    Money-saving Tips
    Month Of May
    More Leads
    Mortgage
    Mortgage Insurance
    Mortgage Interest
    Mortgage Lenders
    Mortgage Limits
    Mortgage Rates
    Move-up
    NAR
    NAR Realtor Benefits Program
    National Association Of REALTORS®
    National Association Of REALTORS®
    National Flood Insurance Program
    New Agents
    Online Presence
    Open Floor Plans
    Open House
    Opportunities
    Overpricing
    Patent-reform
    Persistent Follow-up
    Personal Branding
    Personal Security
    Pets
    Philanthropy
    Photography
    Placester
    PMI
    Potential Clients
    Prepare
    President-Elect Trump
    Presidential Election
    Prevention
    Pricing Too High
    Proactive
    Problem Solving
    Professional
    Project Ideas
    Property Search Website
    Prospective Buyers
    Prospects
    Qualified Buyers
    Qualities
    Questions
    Rapport Building
    Real Estate
    Real Estate Agent
    Real Estate Agents
    Real Estate Business
    Real Estate Career
    Real Estate Decisions
    Real Estate Market
    Real Estate Professional
    Real Estate Spending
    Real Estate Technology
    Real Estate Transactions
    Real Estate Trends
    REALTOR
    Realtor7a154d414f
    Realtor® Broker Summit
    REALTORS®
    REALTORS®
    Realtor Safety
    Recommended Listing Price
    Red Flags
    Referral
    Referrals
    Regulatory Burdens
    Remodeling
    Renovations
    Rental Property
    Rentals
    Repeat Business
    Research
    RESPA
    Respect
    Retirement
    Rising Home Sales
    Rookie
    Rpac
    Safety
    Safety First
    Sale By Owner
    Save Money
    Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
    Search Traffic
    Seller
    Sellers
    Settlement-changes
    Showing Homes
    Simple
    Snowflake Generation
    Social
    Social Events
    Social Network
    Special Buyers
    Spring
    Square Footage
    Starter Homes
    Starting Price
    Stay Educated
    Strategies
    Strong Communicaton
    Suburbs
    Summer Bbq
    Surban
    Survey
    Sustainability
    Sustainable Properties
    Tagline
    Taxes
    Tax Reform
    Technology
    Tenant-occupied
    Tenant Rights
    Testimonials
    The Voice For Real Estate
    Time Mangement
    Tips
    Tips For Agents
    Tips For Clients
    Tools
    Trainings
    Transactions
    Trend
    Trends
    Trust
    Trusted Adviser
    Vintage
    Virtual Assistants
    Voice For Real Estate
    Vote
    Website Traffic
    Win
    Winter
    Winterize
    Workplace
    Would Be Home Buyers
    Would-be Home Buyers
    Younger Generations
    Young Professionals Network
    Zillow

    Archives

    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015

©2018 Kent County Association of REALTORS®
860 Silver Lake Blvd, Suite 150, Dover, Delaware 19904
Join
Phone: (302) 678-9750 | Fax: (302) 678-0848
  • Home
  • Member Login
  • Calendar
  • Education
    • KCAR Class Schedule
    • Continuing Education Resources
    • CE Shop Online
    • Continuing Education Requirements
  • Affiliates
    • Affiliate Membership
    • Affiliate Directory >
      • Advertising, Promotional, & Virtural Tour Services
      • Builders & Contractors
      • Financial Services
      • Home Services
      • Insurance Agencies
      • Law Offices
  • Professional Standards
    • NAR Professional Standards Resources
    • Filing an Ethics Complaint
    • Citation Program
  • About
    • Board of Directors
    • Leadership Team
    • Membership >
      • Member Benefits
      • Statewide Forms
      • Taxbot
    • KCAR Scholarship Foundation >
      • Past Scholarship Recipients
    • Awards >
      • ROTY & Good Neighbor
    • FAQ & Resources
    • SentriLock
    • REALTOR® Safety >
      • NAR Safety Program
      • Safety Videos for REALTORS®
      • Safety Webinars for REALTORS®
    • Contact Us