Dealing with High-Expectation Clients as a Real Estate Agent

 

In a perfect world, all client interactions would go smoothly and successfully, unfortunately, dealing real estate is a highly sensitive business, and things don’t always go as planned. Keep reading for our insider tips on how to navigate high-expectation clients and diffuse any hazardous problems you might encounter. 

 

Pre-Screen Clients 

Although it is natural to want to accept every potential client, this is not necessarily a reasonable desire. Instead, it is better to be relatively selective surrounding who you choose to take on, as this is often the best way to avoid potential problem situations. 

A screening need not take a lot of time or be overly excessive. Simply creating a generic questionnaire with any deal-breaker questions and scheduling a 15-minute meet and greet with those who pass the screening will suffice. 

In the meeting, be sure to clearly lay out your process of doing business and be clear about deal breakers or expectations. This will significantly improve the trajectory of your business and help prevent any obvious mismatches. 

 

Set Boundaries 

For clients who are selling or buying a home, dealing with a real estate agent can be very sensitive and potentially triggering or upsetting. Despite these feelings, however, at the end of the day this is still business and must be kept professional. 

If you are dealing with a client who is being very demanding or having extreme reactions, it is ok to practice your own self advocacy and establish your boundaries. Oftentimes, the “the customer is always right” mentality can create a toxic environment in the professional sphere. Instead, reminding yourself that your needs must be met before you can even operate successfully is helpful. Your boundaries will be unique to you and will be determined based on your work style, however, strictly maintaining them will be better in the long run for both you and the client. 

 

Have Clear Communication 

One of the most important practices that you can implement in your business to prevent conflict is consistently having clear communication with clients. When you preemptively provide disclaimers and essentially “lay it all out on the table,” clients have less ground to stand on when they make complaints or accusations. 

Although having consistent communication can be difficult, it will ultimately benefit you in the long run. Even having regular check-ins with clients, where you give them updates, ask them questions, and provide the space for them to ask questions, can significantly lessen tensions. There is no shame in not knowing everything and there is no negativity in clients having questions. 

 

Ask For Input/Feedback 

Going along with communication, requesting feedback from clients is a great way to get information that they might not otherwise offer up. Ask them about what they think of your work so far, where you can improve,  and any suggestions they may have for you to better do your job. 

This inquiry will not only clear up the path ahead for you, but also reassure clients that you do actually care about them and what they think. This concept may seem like it would be a given, but it is a personal touch that often gets lost in the modern world of business.