The real estate market is undeniably shifting. Following periods of record-breaking momentum, we are now navigating a more challenging environment, particularly in certain Australian markets. As days on market stretch and buyer urgency softens, we find ourselves in the uncomfortable position of delivering more news that might disappoint our vendor clients and potential sellers.
In this environment, some unsettling behaviour is being exposed across the broader industry. I have been shocked at hearing a couple of stories - fortunately not of our own members, but I’m not naive - where very successful agents exaggerated the number of open home attendees and artificially inflated buyer interest. Increasingly, these actions are discovered by vendors with cameras and microphones that are now commonplace in private homes.
Recently, one of our own members admitted to me that they were struggling with the new level of transparency that NurtureCloud provides to our vendors throughout a campaign. "I can't fiddle with the numbers," he told me straightfaced!
This begs an important question: Why do some of us struggle to tell our clients the unvarnished truth?
The answer is deeply rooted in human nature and some traditional misconceptions of our industry. Some enter our industry with the belief that charm and spin are core attributes of success, and that we can talk our way out of difficult situations.
When a market is booming, this might work. But when the market turns and enquiry is slow and open homes are quiet, an agent faces a moment of truth. Some baulk at being direct and honest because they fear that delivering bad news will make them look incompetent.
They exaggerate numbers out of a misplaced desire to appease their clients in the short term, avoiding the difficult but necessary conversations about market realities, price expectations, and potential price adjustments. They hide behind inflated numbers because they lack the confidence to stand by the actual work they have put in.
When someone says “I can’t fiddle with the numbers”, they are exactly right, and this is by design. NurtureCloud is fundamentally challenging us to move toward the opportunities to build trust with our vendors through transparency. By digitally recording our actions and buyer interactions, our clients can now access this information directly in real-time.
For some of our members, this is a very challenging concept because it invites a higher level of scrutiny on our work, and for some requires a significant change of
habits. If you haven't made the smart calls, followed up the leads, or driven the buyer engagement, the platform will show it.
You cannot fiddle with the numbers, because the system relies on the reality of the effort put in. However, we must recognise what an extraordinary opportunity we have to build much stronger relationships with our clients if we make this change. When we are completely transparent about our efforts - showing exactly how many buyers we've contacted and the exact feedback we've received - there will be no question in our clients' minds that we are unquestionably on their side. We prove to them that we are doing everything humanly and technologically possible to find them the best price in the market.
