Monday, June 29, 2015

Yesterday, while talking to a Seller...

As most of you know, I am a very experienced Nevada Licensed Real Estate Broker.  I have 23 and more than one half years of experience helping Sellers and Buyers work their way through the CRE acquisition process.  So, none have ever ask me my experience in a particular price range.  (I thought this odd.)

Anyway, the Seller (of a Las Vegas hotel property) asked me WHAT? was the highest price real estate transaction I have ever closed.  I wasn't sure, so I said I didn't really know because I have done a lot of transactions through the years but the exact sales price escapes me.  Well, he said it was important to him that I have experience in a certain price range in order to gain his confidence in my ability to Sell his property.

He said that without that experience he didn't want to be the first to train me in that price range. (What??)

He went on to suggest that if I was with an international firm, I would have the experience to sell his property.

(Okay, I had to stop him right at this point.  First, I told him, I did work for two international firms and that since the international firm he was leaning toward, didn't like splitting commissions with anyone else, they were NOT going to respond to my telephone calls or emails.  I explained the problems I had, had with this particular firm over the years; AND, I told him that the firms I had worked for in the past did the same thing. He was shocked to hear this.)

Fortunately, I did have one experience in the price range he was asking about; the problem was it was a build to suit for lease (Total Lease Value +/-$16 Million).  You see, just because a bully of a real estate firm comes along doesn't mean they are truly capable of the job -- especially when they refused to call other brokers back or even pass along a counter offer they have received from their own listed client.  (Yes! This very firm did just that on a smaller building sale where I represented the Buyer and they represented the Seller.)

However, this particular Seller didn't believe me.  He thought it foolish for a company to attempt to only double end the commissions, thus voiding any potential sale.  I had to remind him that when you deal with an international real estate firm that promotes that they have a team working on Selling your property, there is very little commission to be split unless you can control both sides of the transaction.  Still, I got the feeling he was thinking I had sour grapes for this firm.

Anyway, one of the listing competition to his property was listed with this very same firm; and, they failed to sell it.  Thus, the "new" broker for the property.

So, I had to explain to this Seller that the selling price -- though important -- was NOT the most important part of the selling process.  I unfortunately, had to explain to this Seller what truly happens when a large real estate firm comes along and tells a Seller that they have +/-6,000 agents worldwide searching for a buyer for his property.  (Not True!)

In truth, ONE agent will be doing a whole lot of cold calling.  They will call every hotel owner they can think of and ask if they are interested in a Las Vegas hotel.  I can already tell you, the cold called person is going to say yes.  (All hoteliers world wide are interested in a Las Vegas Hotel.  The problem has always been the price.  Las Vegas hotel properties prices are too high for most hoteliers.)

Anyway, since I don't think I convinced him, I left the meeting thinking I just wasted my time.  Since I already have offers on other Resort Properties in the $50 to $500 Million range, I thought it best to go back to working on those transactions to make sure they close.

It also reminded me of when my Real Estate Broker's license was hung with the large international firms: I did learn a lot about CRE during this period. BUT, that the fact that I would receive only about 35% of the earned commission fee when I was doing 90% of the work still sits unsettling to me.

Now, there's no need for me to bash the international real estate companies, so I will let the following experiences I have had be your guide to your own judgement of me.

While at this international firm, I was once called by a secretary there, "The hardest working broker she ever saw that earned so little money."

That sounds really bad, doesn't it?

But it was true. I grew up knowing that IF you went the extra mile for a client, your effort was always noticed by the right people.

So, as an example, a large national apartment company executive once said to me just off the cuff while discussing Las Vegas apartment locations, "David, you are the baseball player that runs out the ground ball to second!" Really? Me? I don't even like baseball. (I know I am a sick puppy of a man.)

Another example, is a local Las Vegas convenience store owner who said to me, "I picked you to sell my under performing stores because you are the only real estate broker who didn't lie to me."

(At first, I thought he was joking?) Then, I remembered that during the listing appointment, I wondered why he was asking me questions that I thought he should have known the answers to.)

Then, there is the largest real estate deal I have ever been involved in: Konami Gaming (The +/-$16 Million Build to Suit For Lease.)

I received a call from the HR VP of the local office. She asked that I come over to discuss Konami's plan to move to a larger location. After an initial meeting with the local office President, my next meeting -- to my surprise -- was with the Konami Gaming CEO.

We started out to look at buildings in only one area in particular just south of McCarran International Airport. And as we drove, we "looked" at various buildings. I soon got the impression he had already seen these before -- at least from the outside.

I did end up -- the last building on my list which he had NOT seen -- showing him my only listing in the area.  And, while on the way to the building, I asked him IF Feng Shui was going to be in integral part of his decision making process.

He looked at me incredulously. I felt doomed. (I thought I had just blown the deal because he was Japanese and Feng Shui is Chinese.) To my relief, he said yes. And asked me IF I had knowledge of Feng Shui? I told him I only had a limited knowledge of it and I told him the little that I could remember.

As we toured my listed building, he took note of the items about the building that were NOT Feng Shui.

Later, after our viewings were complete, and I was driving him back to his Las Vegas office, empty handed, the Konami CEO said that out of the six brokers he drove with to look at property, I was the only RE Broker to ask him the Feng Shui question. I now knew he was impressed with me.

And since I felt like I didn't find an appropriate building for him, I parked on a vacant parcel that fronted Sunset Road and Bermuda. This parcel has an unobstructed view of McCarran International Airport; and was large enough for a +/-115,000 SF building.  This is when I asked the CEO IF building his own building to his specifications would be a more economic alternative for him. Looking at the view, he replied he'd talk to his board.

It only seems now like it was a few days afterwards when the HR VP called me and said the CEO was impressed with me, my knowledge and my suggestion to him. She was calling to arrange our next meet when he returned to Las Vegas from Tokyo so we could start the paperwork for a Build to Suit For Lease.

Long story short (Too Late?), that's what they did.  (Recently, they enacted the Purchase Clause in the lease and they now own the property.

So, IF you don't know me, I may seem aggressive. IF you do know me, I may seem bossy. AND, I really do NOT like baseball. (Boring.)

But, as the previous secretary said, I try way too hard for my clients for them to NOT work with me.  And IF you don't work with me, you will never know just how hard I really do work for my client's business.

And if you do decide to let me work for you, you will find out why I don't want to be just one of many when I stand out so well on my own. (Sorry to pause to pat myself on the back.)

AND, I do NOT need the (artificial) backing of an international real estate firm to be successful in selling your property.

Contacting David Howes is easy -- either by: davidATdavidhowesDOTnet OR call him at: 70 25 01 93 88 AND Follow David on Twitter: @DavidAHowes

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