In a previous Buyer Masterclass we talked about the fact that more buyers are asking questions at auctions, especially the “is it on the market?” question. Asking questions can work well when bidder numbers are down.  If you are the only bidder at an auction you are going to get a better hearing from the agent asking that question than if you are one of five bidders and you’re the only one asking the question.

The other thing in buyers’ favour for now is that asking questions at auction is still a novel thing and not all selling agents have worked through the script with their dialogue trainers to work out how to deal with your questions. So all they can do when you ask, is ask the same question of their client, the vendor.

But things will change. The markets will shift, especially if  stock levels stay light and more buyers come out of hibernation. In that case we’ll see an increase in our bidders-per-auction indicator Bidderman and it will become less likely that you’ll be the only one bidding at the auction. As well, the agents will eventually acclimatise to the new buyer attitudes and questions. They will develop new techniques for their auctioneers and sales agents to manage your questions, such as dismissing them or asking questions back or some other strategy.

So asking “the question” at auction is not a cure-all. But asking it and other sensible questions prior to and post negotiations is a key step to become a better negotiator. It just may take you a lot of homes and bidding before you get it right.

Another way to improve your negotiations is through MINDSET.

We’ve learnt a lot of skills through buying homes for wealthy and/or successful people – and one of them is how much more effectively you can negotiate when you are in a certain mindset.

The fact is that if you really want a home, and feel you must get the deal at any price, an experienced selling agent will pick up on that – no matter what techniques, preparation or experience you have.  

The essential ingredient is to have a mindset of “What will be, will be”, otherwise known as the “I Care – But Not that Much” thinking of famous negotiator Herb Cohen, author of “You can Negotiate Anything”.  Con the Fruiterer (from the 1980s show The Comedy Company) was another great negotiator with his “Doesn’t matter” line.  

The point is that you have to be prepared to walk away. You need to have the mindset that there will be another property around the corner and a better one. We adopt this mindset when we discuss our fees. Some people like to negotiate them and we are happy to listen, but at the end of the day you have to be prepared to walk away if the deal isn’t right.

When we go to an auction we have two prices – one for if it’s on the market against proven competition and one for if it’s not. This seems to be one of the hardest concepts to grasp for the “other side” selling agents. They think: “Why would you pay less in a post auction negotiation than if it is ‘on the market’. Why wouldn’t you spend all your client’s money – why would you walk away from a commission as a buyer agent?” We do that when a client wants us to and because we have a mindset that allows us to. And this mindset gets us a lot more work than if we had to cut every deal we came across. Even though as agents we’re paid to cut deals, cutting any deal no matter what is a short term business strategy.

You may be unimpressed with some agents’ quoting strategies of late and we in some cases agree with you. But we do not question Marshall White’s or Kay and Burton’s agents mindsets when it comes to cutting a deal – especially when you go further up the food chain dollar wise and director wise. The best selling agents in other agencies have a similar mindset as well. They can and do recommend saying No to a price if they believe there is a better deal possible for their client. Sure it’s the client’ decision and a good buying or selling agent explains the Risks v Rewards before doing so, but superior agents can and do walk away from a deal when they have to. They do so because they have a mindset that allows that to happen.

By the way it’s not all about walking away. Like the great country singer Kenny Rogers said: “You’ve got to know when to fold ‘em but you’ve also got to know when to hold ‘em.” There is no point having a walk-away mindset if you walked away from your best deal.

You need to learn to find the balance that allows you to buy the right home without being a bridesmaid ten times in a row. If you can negotiate with an attitude that there will always be another, but you’re happy to take it at the right deal, then with the right preparation, process and experience over a period of time you will achieve better financial and emotional outcomes.

This mindset will achieve a lot more than a mindset of “I don’t care at all” or “I must have it at any cost”.

We only buy homes.