WHAT IS A BUMP IN THE REAL ESTATE ROAD?

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A real estate conversation can be going perfectly well—and then, without warning, a buyer, seller or prospect says something that changes everything, like:

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“We want to think about it.”

“We'd like to see a few more homes.”

“Another agent said they would charge less.”

“Just send me the information. I'll call you.” ....AND MANY MORE!

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These are the real-world “bumps in the road” agents encounter every day. Some are genuine objections. Some are stalls. Some are simply unanswered concerns.

The important skill is recognizing which one you are actually dealing with.

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WHY? THE SAME WORDS CAN MEAN VERY DIFFERENT THINGS

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For example:

“We want to think about it .”

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What does that actually mean?

That sentence by itself tells the agent almost nothing.

It could mean: “We genuinely need some time.”

Or:

It could mean: “We're not 100% comfortable with you yet.”

Or:

It could mean: “We have another agent coming tomorrow.”

Or:

It could mean: “There is something bothering us that we haven't told you.”

Or:

It could mean: "We are more comfortable dealing with someone in our own ethnic group"

Or:

It could mean: "My spouses brother/sister/friend just got their license and we promised."

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And that leads into the central point of this page:

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IS IT A REAL OBJECTION — OR IS IT A STALL?​

 

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE?

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An Objection:
The real reason a person will not, or cannot, make a decision.

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A Stall:
Something a person may say ..... instead of revealing the real reason they don't yet feel comfortable making a decision.

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The words may sound very similar.

The important skill is learning to recognize which one you are actually dealing with.

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For Example:

• They may genuinely need time.

• They may be uncomfortable with something.

• They may not completely understand something.

• They may want to speak with someone else.

• They may simply not be ready to trust the advice they've received.​​​

 

The words are the same. The reason behind them may be completely different.​

Until an agent understands the real reason, how can they possibly know what needs to be addressed?​​​

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​​​​SOME MORE BUMPS IN THE REAL ESTATE ROAD?

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BUYERS MAY SAY…

• “We love the house, but we haven't seen enough yet.”

• “We always sleep on it first.”

• “We'll wait until the price comes down.”

• “We want our family to see it first.”

• “We're just not ready to make an offer.”​

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SELLERS MAY SAY…

• “Another agent said they could get us more.”

• “We want to list higher.”

• "Other agent's commission is less."

• “We'll wait for a better offer.”

• “We want to try selling it ourselves first.”

• "We want to interview a few more agents.”

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PROSPECTS MAY SAY…

• “Just send me the information.”

• "I don't want to see it I just want to know the price."

• “Just give me the address and I'll call you.”

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Which of those problems are genuine objections? Which are stalls? ​But even more importantly, how would you know?

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“Experience has taught me that what initially sounds like an objection is often not the real objection at all. Sometimes it is simply a stall—a sign that the person is not yet ready to fully open up, trust the situation, or make a decision. Learning the difference is one of the most valuable skills an agent can develop.”

 

“It is easy for an agent to assume that every objection they hear is a problem that needs to be addressed and answered immediately.”

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“When a client has a genuine objection, simply trying to answer it may accomplish very little. Understanding what is really behind the client's hesitation must come first.”

 

But Before You Try To Answer...Make Sure You Understand The Real Problem.

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I've heard thousands of these in conversations myself:

 

"Through years of meeting buyers and sellers, showing properties, making listing presentations, presenting offers and negotiating transactions, I encountered objections, stalls and unexpected questions constantly."

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"I didn't learn to handle them by reading a list of clever answers. I learned through experience—and by preparing, practising, drilling and rehearsing situations before they happened."

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“Eventually, many of these situations stopped being unexpected. I learned to anticipate what might be coming and to prepare for it before it happened.”

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"And even when I couldn't change someone's decision, I wanted to understand why they had made it. That alone taught me something for the next time and it was enough for me to just know."

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Could this be one of your skills you would like to improve?

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If you sometimes find yourself unsure what to say when an objection, stall or unexpected question suddenly comes your way, that's something we can discuss privayely.

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We can look at one situation that's giving you difficulty or several of them. There is no need to discuss anything publicly, and there is no obligation or pressure.

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Sometimes simply talking through a real situation with someone who has encountered it before can help you see it differently.

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