Inventory Shortgage in 2021

I’ve had conversations this week with presidents of large real estate companies across North America and I’ve heard the same challenge in every conversation … we need more listings! To give you an example, in my hometown of 150,000 people with 1,100 agents, there are currently 43 detached homes for sale. The same story is playing out in many towns and cities across North America. Most agents see this as a problem. They are panicked because they have buyers and nothing to sell them. My question is … how many hours a day are you prospecting for listings?

Agents will often use the virus as an excuse for not prospecting. They’ll say: we can’t do open houses, we can’t go to networking events, we can’t go door knocking, etc. They see the problem. I need you to see the opportunity. If there are no listings, what do you need to do? Go get listings!

In 2021, if you are working with buyers, you will be standing in line hoping the seller chooses your offer. If you are the listing agent, you are the one creating the line up. Getting past the fear of prospecting seems to be the biggest issue. Agents come up with every excuse not to prospect. Here are my suggestions:

• Watch the Lead Generation session in the Leader’s Edge Virtual Training system to tune up your prospecting skills and build your confidence.
• Pick up the phone! Since we are challenged with social distancing during the pandemic, the phone is your most efficient and cost-effective way to generate business. Follow the DNCL rules, but don’t use the DNCL as a reason not to phone people.
• Know your numbers. If you did your business plan for 2021, you know exactly how much you need to earn every month, and how many transactions you need to close, to meet your monthly obligations (business, personal, investments, debt reduction). Once you understand your minimum production requirements, it motivates you to prospect because you understand the negative repercussions of not doing it. Every month you don’t sell a house, your obligation doubles the following month. There is one thing worse than prospecting … poverty.
• Choose a powerful reward. What would you reward yourself with if you got a listing this week? If your reward is important, it will motivate you to pick up the phone and make prospecting calls.
• Set daily goals for conversations (not dials). Let’s not complicate this. You need to get booked for listing appointments, and in order to get booked, you need to talk to people. The secret to converting more prospects is fear of loss. When you are talking to prospects, drop into the conversation that if they wait rates might go up, or there could be an economic downturn that impacts the market. They will get a great price if they sell now … don’t miss the opportunity.

No doubt we are in a challenging market, but when the going gets tough, the tough go back to basics. Hit the phones this week. This is mission critical. If you have the listings this year, you’re going to make a fortune. If you don’t have listings, you are going to struggle. The choice is yours.

Chris Leader
President
Leader’s Edge Training