Is there a reason everyone thinks a realtor is on call 24/7? I really don’t understand why anyone would call about a property at 11:00 pm or 6:00 am. Do you?
When you are a Costa Rica real estate agent, you seem to be on call, just like a doctor or a priest in the old days. I don’t even think doctors and priests are on call 24/7 anymore nowadays.
I guess a client thinks the service of a realtor should be like this: When a client calls to see a property, no matter what time of day it is, you jump in the car and you are ready to make it happen. If the agent doesn’t respond in the next 10 minutes and returns the call, the buyer says he/she already bought another house.
The other day I checked my emails and found one from a client where he asked several questions. There was another email two hours later asking why nobody had answered his email yet.
Food
When a client emails you that he or she is going to be in Costa Rica for a week, they expect you to spend 8 hours a day with them. They want to see everything that is available and expects to receive a moving to Costa Rica course program in 3 days, for free. Then they disappear on you, don’t respond to calls or emails. The best part is that realtors don’t eat unless they pay for everyone’s lunch. Smart real estate agents take one client in the morning, go home for lunch and take another client in the afternoon.
On the other hand, many clients who invite you for a nice lunch or dinner will probably not purchase any Costa Rica real estate from you. Pay for your food seems to be their way of saying thank you for all the hard work and the gas spent, especially when they don’t buy.
A Calling
Real estate is a calling, just like being a priest or a doctor. I know, it’s not for everybody to live like that. Many people try to sell real estate because they think they’ll make lots of money, the easy way. Most get fed up with it after a while.
I still enjoy selling real estate most of the time, and most of the time I don’t make lots of money.
And when the clients are not nice people and difficult to work with, I tell them nicely to visit my competition. And that’s what I teach our agents also. I want them to enjoy their job, not hate it. You know, you can’t win ’em all. So be warned!
Always Available
People expect you to be there for them, at all times. And if you are not, they say you’re lazy or not interested in the business.
A few do understand you cannot attend 3 clients at the same time, 300 emails a day and you have to juggle the showings because you can’t get hold of the sellers to let you in.
Valuable information
So while I’m working, I try to stay with nice people. I get rid of the nasty ones, quickly and no matter how much money they can make me.
Working with nice people is fun, I enjoy that and I go the extra mile. You can ask any of them. I try to give them
- Lots of extra information
- Insider tips
- The things that will make their life in Costa Rica easier
- Things they should watch will keep them out of trouble
- Those that will save them money.
That is where the value of hiring a better-than-average Costa Rica real estate agent is. Not just one to show a property or two.
Loyalty
When you give a buyer all that valuable information, you certainly hope they will stick with you, show loyalty. It is like publishing blogs where you give information for free. You don’t know if they use the free information to buy elsewhere, without you. But that same person might recommend the blog to someone else who does recognize the effort and knowledge offered.
For that same reason, some realtors will not give you any valuable information, until they have a signed purchase-sale agreement.
Most knowledgeable
That is the reason that I am writing this blog on Saturday night at 7:58 pm. You will be able to read it on our Ivo’s blog newsletter tomorrow morning at 6:00 am when I’m still asleep.
We want you to feel comfortable about having chosen the most knowledgeable real estate company in the Central Valley to represent you in your real estate purchases. And I feel good about it because I feel we helping future buyers to not make the same mistakes many before you already made.
It is like preventive medicine. And you don’t even need healthcare to be able to access it. You only need to subscribe to our newsletter below, so you will receive Ivo’s blog every Sunday at 6:00 am. I hope you’ll enjoy it. Oh, and try to call me during office hours please, I’d really appreciate it!
