Quite often when either someone finds out I’m a REALTOR® or they already know me and we get involved in a general conversation, I get asked “How’s the market?”. This might seem like a simple question, and on some level it is, however the answer is more involved. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your perspective) many real estate professionals will respond with a simple “Good” or “Bad”. And typically that’s the answer most people are looking for. But I’m not most people. We can do better.
Why It Is Not a Simple Question?
Although the question “How is the market” is a simple question on the surface, for me to answer the question accurately I need to know more about the person asking the question. Everyone has different goals, experience, perspectives and motivations for asking that question as well as a different definition for “Good” or “Bad”. What is good for one person can be bad for another. This is true in life but absolutely critical in investing. The answer to this question can be (and many times is) very different depending on the person asking it. As a simple example, is the person asking about the market looking to buy or sell a house?. This one little detail can change my response from “Great!” to “Terrible!”. If I assume I know how the person defines “Good Market” and“Bad Market” or that I know what they are looking to do, then I might give them misinformation which could result in them making poor financial decisions. Here are some examples of possible motivation for asking “How’s the market?”:
Thinking of buying a house
Thinking of selling their house
Thinking of flipping a house
Thinking of purchasing a rental property
Interested in how my business is doing as a REALTOR®
As you can understanding a person’s objective before trying to provide information is critical. This is just the first step when I’m consulting a new client. I addition to understanding their objective I need to understand their current financial situation and expectations before I can start providing advice and proposing a strategy.
Ambiguity In the English Language
The English language is well known for being ambiguous. Although I’m not a literary scholar I have become very aware, based on personal experience, how dangerous it can be to make assumptions when someone makes a statement or asks a question. Outside of the fact that we have various forms of slang baked into our normal conversation there also many words that (when heard) can have multiple meaning’s. Observing how most miscommunications arise from either one both parties assuming they know what the other means, I have been known to ask many follow up questions to try my best to avoid miscommunications. Although this does get me into trouble at times in regular conversation and I will apologize when I go a little overboard, I will not apologize when it comes to my business and clients. When dealing with large financial decisions like purchasing a house (or other financial advise I might provide) it is vitally important to have the best information possible. I take this very seriously and since my #1 goal when working with clients is their financial success I am going to ask many questions as possible to make sure I fully understand their situation and what they are trying to accomplish. For some, this may seem like I’m over complicating things but I’m passionate about providing the best possible service for my clients and helping everyone build long-term wealth. Sorry not sorry. But you will appreciate my approach at the end of the day.
What You Should Ask
So if “How’s the market” isn’t the best question, what should you ask. Well, more specific questions like “is this a good time to buy a single-family house in Atlanta”. Notice how I stated “single-family house” instead of “home”. Again, the answer could be completely different if you’re looking to buy a Single-family house vs a Condo in Atlanta. Try to be more specific and deliberate with how you ask the question but don’t stress about it. If you’re asking a real estate professional questions about the market, it’s their responsibility to make sure they know exactly what you’re asking and why. They are professional so they should understand the nuances and know the follow up questions to ask. I understand you don’t think about real estate every day and are most likely just trying to start the conversation to gain a better understanding.
When You Should Ignore The Answer and Run
As I mentioned above, although we can all try to be more specific when we ask questions the responsibility to make sure you receive an honest and accurate answer that is relevant to your situation is on the REALTOR®. If you ask “How’s the market” and you receive a simple answer like “Good”, “Great”, “Terrible”, “Best in years” or “Best market of all time” without any further explanation or follow up questions, you should run. If you’re in a situation that would make it awkward if you high-tailed it out of there like Usain Bolt, then just start backing away slowly. In that case the person might not notice until you’re at a safe distance. In all seriousness, you don’t want to trust someone with your largest transactions and decisions, who isn’t naturally thorough enough to discuss the nuances of the real estate market. Best case is the person doesn’t understand the market and/or isn’t analytical enough to learn. Worst case is they are just looking for your business and don’t care about what’s best for you.
