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The open house started at two and went for one hour. A few minutes past two, the first potential buyers walked through the door. They were a young married couple in their early thirties and Sophie was thrilled to see when they signed in that they weren’t working with an agent yet.
“We’re just starting to look,” the husband said.
“We are preapproved though,” his wife added.
“Please look around and let me know if you have any questions,” Sophie said.
“This listing has been on the market for a few weeks now. Do you think the owners are flexible on price?” the husband asked after they’d walked all through the apartment.
“I think he’d welcome an offer,” Sophie said truthfully. She wasn’t sure how flexible the owner would be, and she worked for the seller, so it was her job to get the best offer possible.
“This is a little higher than we’d hoped to pay,” the wife said. “Do you have any other listings we should know about?”
Sophie smiled. “Of course. What’s most important to you and what areas are you interested in?”
They chatted for another fifteen minutes or so and Sophie jotted down notes on what the couple wanted and what their ideal price range was. She agreed to follow up after the open house to set up some more showings for them.
About ten others came through, but none of them seemed like serious buyers. Still, Sophie was friendly and made sure to get contact information to follow up with those who weren’t already working with realtors.
The open house the next day for Caroline was more of the same. Though there was one woman who seemed like she was ready to buy soon, and they agreed to touch base on Monday about seeing more properties. By Sunday evening, Sophie was tired but encouraged. She had two buyers to work with now and she figured that the odds were good she might have her first sale soon.
Chapter Nineteen
Sophie was on a high all week, showing listings to her two buyers and trying to drum up more buyers and possible listings. She felt good about both buyers and set up showings on both Thursday and Friday. Both said they would call her over the weekend or on Monday with their decisions.
So, she was on pins and needles when she checked her email first thing Saturday morning before heading to the store to pick up groceries for their dinner party that night.
First came the email from the young couple, who she’d really liked.
“Sophie, we’re so sorry, but we saw another listing last night and we both fell in love and made an offer that was accepted. You were great to work with and we’ll be sure to call if we’re ever looking again.”
And before that could sink in, another email came through fifteen minutes later from the single woman that had seemed like such a solid buyer. Well, she was, but like the couple, she wasn’t working exclusively with Sophie either.
“Sophie, I really liked the last listing you showed me, but I had dinner with a friend last night and she’s decided to move, and her place is perfect for me. There’s no realtor involved. I’m sorry this didn’t work out, but I’ll definitely tell my friends to call you. I did enjoy working with you.”
Tessa walked into the kitchen as Sophie finished reading the email. She stopped and took in Sophie’s face.
“Everything ok? You look like someone just died.”
Sophie sighed and told her about the two emails. Tessa’s expression softened and she made herself a cup of coffee and one for Sophie too. She set it down in front of her.
“I’m sorry. That’s the worst. Especially when you’re so sure you have a good one. It happens more often than we’d like—and always when you’d least expect it. I mean, the friend moving, that’s just fate. The other couple though, unfortunately some buyers do that. They just call on different listings instead of working with one agent.”
“Is there anything I can do to prevent that?”
Tessa shrugged. “Some people try to force buyers to sign exclusivity agreements. I don’t believe in that. I prefer to just provide excellent service, so I deserve their loyalty. Most buyers won’t do that to you. Some will, but in the long run, I think it works out better this way.”
Sophie nodded. “I thought I was so close.”
“Did you ask them if they were working with any other realtors?”
“I did. I got them both through open houses.”
“Be more specific when you ask them. I ask if they have seen any other houses through a realtor. Because some buyers don’t understand what working with a realtor means. At least if you know they are using other people, then you can decide how much time to spend on them.”
“That makes sense.” Sophie shook her head, still feeling horribly discouraged that her potential sales had disappeared. “Is it always this up and down?”
Tessa grinned. “It gets better as you gain more experience. You’ll have a better sense about people, and really you just have to focus on generating as much activity with as many people as possible. So, if one thing blows up, or two, you just move on to the next deal.”
