Real EstateEmotional Intelligence – Why it matters in Real Estate

By: Sebrina Leigh-Jones, Founder, Luxury Simplified Real Estate

Anxious consumers need special attention, especially those that trigger strong feelings before the service even begins.   A simple statement, but surprisingly most Realtors fall short in anticipating and mitigating their client’s anxieties and fears.  I will admit to being taken aback by the high level of emotions involved in getting a sales transaction to closing.  I distinctly remember thinking, “WOW! I don’t want to get caught up in this, my job should be to rise above it and act as the mediator ” – but, I was wrong.  In fact, I quickly realized that if I wanted to be the best at what I do, I needed to mitigate my client’s negative emotions before they surfaced.

 In fact, the solution was not a difficult one and, after several years of putting it to practice, has proven to be well worth the effort for the clients of Luxury Simplified Real Estate, and my emotional well being.

Here are the top issues I found triggered anxieties among my client’s and the steps I took to help my client’s navigate the high-emotions of buying and selling real estate in Charleston, S.C.

• Lack of familiarity with what to expect from their Realtor – As someone who went back to graduate school later in life, I was excited about the new technology and innovation I was learning, but I also realized there was a heck of a lot of things I didn’t know. Most clients feel the exact same way when working with a Realtor.  They know the Realtor is responsible for helping them find or sell a home, but what exactly does that entail?  I found that by walking through the types of agency agreements in great detail and highlighting what my role would be along the way, helped provide clarity and helped them ask more informed questions.
• Lack of control over the performance of selling a home – This by far is the biggest area of influence. Communicating with your sellers is one of the most important jobs of a listing agent.  There is NO excuse for not providing updates. Informing sellers about market conditions, setting expectations with regards to absorption rates, marketing activity, prospecting feedback etc., will help to manage seller anxieties.
• Complexities that can make real estate transactions somewhat of a “black box “ – How many times have you sat looking at a frozen computer screen and wondered what in the world was going on, only to be told by the Apple technician that your hard drive had crashed? Unless you’re a trained electrical engineer chances are that you will have to trust that the technician is telling you the truth.  Navigating through the contingencies in a purchase contract can leave the client feeling the same way.  Explaining to the client what will happen and what you will expect from them each step of the way is crucial in managing the “what if our contract crash and burns’ anxiety most client’s feel during this phase of the transaction.

 Here are my golden rules for Client Management:

1. Identify Emotional Triggers that may arise throughout the buyer’s (or seller) journey and clearly articulate how those will be managed before they sign an agency agreement.
2. Respond quickly to intense emotions expressed by a client.  Failure to recognize, acknowledge, and address a client’s emotional state leaves them scared, frustrated, and powerless – all of which is unacceptable and will lead to a poor performance review.
3. Enhance Client’s Control – provide a direct contact number and if out of town, make sure to communicate who will assume a back-up role. Provide multiple methods of communication from email, phone, and/or customer portal, as a means for maintaining reliable and constant communication. 

There are approximately 600 words in this blog about what we do differently in the Charleston, S.C. real estate market, but no one could say it better than our clients.

 Have a look at what they have to say about us…