Учебно-методическое пособие для студентов минск 2010 ббк утверждено на заседании

(1)* paragraph in which this word or expression is used

2. Read the article. Find out what usually makes real estate agents lose their temper?

Who Asked You? (adopted from the New York Times)

Then there is this question, often deployed after an offer has been accepted: “Do you mind if I bring my (decorator / mother / friend / boss/ Feng Shui expert / rabbi) to take a look?” Yes, your broker minds. A lot.

“It’s the kiss of death,” said Michele Conte, the sales director at the Centurion, a 48-unit condominium at 33 West 56th Street. “Brokers fear second opinions because, human beings being what they are, people always want to justify why someone asked them to come in. So the first thing they do is look for something wrong. And they also tend to judge by their own standards. One man’s meat is another man’s poison in real estate, big time.”

Unfortunately for those selling houses or apartments, a slowing real estate market combined with recessionary fears is prompting resurgence in outside counseling. Brokers estimate that as many as a quarter of all buyers solicit third-party views and that 10 to 25 percent of the deals fall apart as a result. “Their job is to point out things you haven’t noticed yet, things that on a first-round presentation a client wouldn’t really notice to begin with,” said Preston Proler, a sales representative at the Setai, a 167-unit condominium building at 40 Broad Street in the financial district. “So more issues do arise – like whether there’s something a little bit wrong with the neighborhood, or the elevator is going to make too much noise next to your apartment, or is the lobby so frequently used that it will be loud, or is the roof going to be too crowded.”

Those most likely to seek outside advice are first-time buyers. Neophytes often look to their parents, who may be helping out financially.

“Parents check certain things that maybe the kids would not think of checking,” said Anne Cynar, a senior associate agent at Corcoran. “They’ll ask about the financials of the building; they’ll ask about the doorman, about how the building is run, how old the appliances and heating system are.”

The mother of one client repeatedly rejected apartments, said Michele Kleier, president of Gumley Haft Kleier. But then the woman pulled Ms. Kleier aside and said: “Don’t show me anything more than three blocks from where I live, or I will never say I’m going to like it. When they have a child, I want to walk three blocks in either direction.” Once she understood her objections, Ms. Kleier found an apartment that met her requirements.

Other types of buyers pose other problems. These include the commitment-phobic (“If everyone loves it, they want to find that one person who can say, ‘It’s not for you,’” Ms. Kleier said); celebrities (who send their money managers and lawyer); analytical types who work in the financial industry; and people buying small apartments. Ms. Kleier told this anecdote: “I once had a celebrity who brought his live-in housekeeper. He said, ‘She has been with me 15 years, and I would not move somewhere where she’s not happy.’”

Besides parents, the most commonly drafted consultants are architects and decorators. They are also the most dreaded by brokers. “Very often, if the apartment is not a wreck, the decorator or architect is going to kill the deal,” Ms. Kleier said. “They don’t just want to order couches. You find very often that they want to do a gut job, which is understandable because that’s how they make their money.”

Friends may not see past their envy. Ms. Kleier said she had seen this scene play out many times in 25 years in the business: “I had one young woman who would bring her best friend who was married longer and who she looked up to. Whenever the apartment was nicer than the one the friend owned, the friend would find fault with it, and when it was ordinary, she liked it.”

To neutralize third-party criticism, brokers begin by keeping their lips zipped. “You really want to figure out the dynamics between the two people,” said Ms. Conte of the Centurion, “but the best thing you can do in a situation like that is stand back and let the potential buyer do the selling of the unit to his friend.” After the showing, she said, “I’ll make a follow-up call and try to get them to talk about what the other person said.”

Of course, most brokers prefer buyers who refrain from asking for outside opinions at all. Married couples in their 40s, 50s, and 60s – particularly pied-à-terre buyers – often fulfill this wish. “They are already settled in their life, they pay all cash, they don’t need a second opinion – you take them out twice, and they’re done,” said Pat Publik, an executive vice president at Halstead Property. “Those are the clients brokers dream about at night.”

3. Answer the following questions.

1. What makes most American real estate agents furious? Is it an old problem?

2. How does one of the agencies solve the problem?

3. What would you do in this situation?

4. If you were to buy a flat/house would you need a second opinion?

5. How do you understand the saying ‘One man’s meat is another man’s poison’ pronounced by one of the real estate brokers?

4. Work in small groups. Imagine you are the co-owners of the real estate agency. Write a memo with some guidelines for your salespersons on dealing with ‘second opinions’ people (see Writing file p. 214).

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