I PROMISE IT HAPPENS TO ALL OF US

WELCOME 

Hello! And happy 247th birthday, America! What’s your secret because you don’t look a day over 229.

Hopefully everyone’s about to have a short and fun holiday week, full of barbecues, pool parties, and fireworks. (Then coming back refreshed next week and ready to make the big push until summer’s end.) I am having a huge party for my clients and I can’t wait! Of course, I’m learning that if you want to get something done, plan a party because it forces you to take care of all those little details you’ve been putting off.

Before you check out for the week, we’re going talk a little bit about one of the best lines I’ve ever heard… and how I wish I’d heard it sooner. So, let’s get right to it!

THE REALITY OF REAL ESTATE

They’re at It Again

The latest drama coming out of the real estate world is that Zillow and Redfin are being hit with data privacy lawsuits. Per the article:

The data was allegedly collected using tracking pixels and other third-party tracking technology in violation of the Video Privacy Protection Act, according to the complaint. The plaintiff cited Zillow's video walkthroughs of homes, included on some property listings, as a source of user tracking. The tracking pixels document which homes a person has toured and send that information to third parties, "all without the subscribers' written consent," the filing states. The court documents argue that Zillow and Redfin knowingly tracked users for advertising purposes and to increase profits.

I was particularly interested to read that this act came about after a movie rental store shared the (completely unremarkable) videotape rental data of a potential Supreme Court nominee back in the 1980s.

If y’all recall, this is not Zillow’s first rodeo in regard to users’ privacy when they were sued for recording phone calls. While they did put an agreement in the terms of service, it was buried so deeply that users didn’t realize that they were consenting to having their phone calls recorded. As part of the settlement, they had to make it more clear in the TOS that they were doing this.

The problem is, essentially Zillow (and so many other companies) have made it very easy to trade data (and privacy) for convenience that I’m not sure this is a bell we can unring. But as excited as I get every time companies like Amazon suggest something with stars or sparkles on it, based on my buying history, I have to wonder if I’m part of the problem. So stay tuned and let’s see how this one shakes out.

STORY TIME WITH GLENNDA

I Am Not Immune to It, Either

As happy, light, and positive as I try to keep it around here, I’d be doing y’all a disservice if I weren’t completely honest. And the honest truth is, I get into slumps, too. I have bad experiences, too. I get dejected; I get beaten up. I am not immune to everything that can and will wrong.

Everyone has a bad day and a bad transaction. That’s just reality. A while back, I had one of those bad transactions and it really threw me for a loop. What made it worse was that I was so dispirited that I overcompensated in trying to bounce back.

Normally, when things go wrong for me, I’m able to recover quickly and I believe that’s largely because I do not engage in negative self talk. I am always very kind to myself and I try to be my own biggest cheerleader. There’s a ton of studies that show how people who project a positive attitude have happier and more satisfying lives.

So when it goes off the rails, I normally do something to make my world feel right again. Maybe it’s giving my bank statement a quick review or maybe it’s taking myself on a little tour of the dream house I’m living in. Sometimes I’ll treat myself to a nice dinner or I’ll spend some quality time at TJ Maxx. And it’s pretty hard to be sad when I’m eating rainbow sherbet with my grandsons.

But with this one dejection, I bounced back like I had something to prove to someone. I ended up taking not one but two bad listings because I was looking for a win. I should have known better. Both were overpriced and I knew they were overpriced, but I thought I could push through it. My ego wrote a check that the market could not cash. Spoiler alert: I could not push through it. My point is that this happens with all of us. Think of whomever you admire most in this business and I guarantee you that person has taken hits that left a mark.

The best thing you can do in these situations is learn from them. After my hard knock (followed by two more hard knocks with the overpricing), my partner Elizabeth and I went on a listing appointment where the seller was out of town. When we showed up at this home located smack in the middle of a beautiful neighborhood, we were shocked at the condition. The pool was in shambles. Oh, my stars and stripes, I am not joking. I figured whatever monster crawled out of that muck was surely going to give us rabies. The driveway was so cracked, it created its own speed bump. There was erosion, there was synthetic stucco that I promise you was full of termites. And there were six kinds of flooring on the first floor! It was a hot mess, and the worst part was, the seller was convinced that people would pay top dollar to take over that hot mess.

When we walked out, I told Elizabeth, “Unless this seller comes to reality with the pricing, there’s no way we’re going to take the listing.” The home required a gut rehab and it needed to be priced for it. Turns out, the seller didn’t want to listen to us, so instead of pushing, we said thank you and walked away from what would have been a bad experience for all of us.

Because I had learned my lesson. Always correct, never over-correct.

Last week, I attended a MasterClass where the speaker shared one of the best lines I’ve ever heard in regard to dealing with sellers who fight reality, especially when they already met with Suzy, the agent who said she’d list it higher. I learned you’re supposed to say, “I would go ahead and list with Suzy at the price you want. Maybe she has some magic that I just don’t know about. But the first time she asks you to reduce that price, I want you to call me.”

The bottom line is, there are two kinds of clients out there. There are those who listen and do what you—the expert—advises them to do. And then there are those who are only looking for someone else to pin the blame on when it doesn’t exactly as they’ve decided it should in their heads. And to them I say, “No, thank you.”

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GLENNDAISM

This Week’s Mantra

GO HOMES.COM WITH GLENNDA

I showed y’all the front last week, and today, here’s the back of this magnificent listing.

I forgot to mention last week that this is my second time selling this showplace of a home. I put my buyers in here twelve blissful years ago and they’ve loved every minute of their time. If you’re looking for a place that makes you and your family feel like you’re living in a spa or a resort, this is it. From the fire pit to the pool to the shaded playground, this home has something for everyone. There’s even a scrapbooking room, which you’ll likely need to capture all the memories made here.

Now, don’t forget if you’re an agent, with Homes.com, it’s always your listing, your lead and what could be better than that?