Watch Out! – Sales tricks real estate agents will play on you.

Ever seen those signs on the side of the road that say 'Acreage from $30'000!' ?  It's pretty exciting to think that there would be land available ANYwhere for that price. Read this before you get trapped by a crafty salesman.

Allow me to share with you what I, as a licensed real estate agent and ex land salesman discovered during my training was common practice in order to sell land.

Step 1. Get the absolute crappest piece of land that you can find, maybe something in the middle of a flood zone, a water way, or perhaps something that has a giant power line running through the middle of it.

Step 2.  Put a cheap price on it, advertise this price like mad in every newspaper, on every billboard, with a different catchphrase for each target market.  Perhaps, "Little house on the prairie" or "Bushland retreat."  Get people excited by the price so they pick up the phone and call you.

Step 3.  Talk up the property like it sounds amazing and that at the price, it's obvious it will be gone soon, so they'd better go out and take a look at it asap. You'll drive. "I haven't actually seen it yet either." You say.

Step 4.  On the way to the property, talk about everything in the area, show everything you can that gives the impression that the area is going to shoot up in value. Point out the shopping centre going in, the power plant creating jobs.  Build their trust in you.

Step 5. Drive to the advertised block.  Behold, the giant power line in the middle of the block rendering it completely useless. Look shocked, dissapointed.  Watch as the customer looks dissapointed. They've come all this way to see this? There goes the dream.  Of course, if the customer is a redneck that WANTS to live under power lines, and loves the idea that they'll never have to pay for power because if you held a fluoro light near it it would light up without being plugged in, then pretend you're happy to sell it to them, but then get dissapointed when you discover that… "It already sold this morning." Move along people. Move along.

Step 6. Say "Well, it's ok, we have other blocks in this area that we can show you."

Step 7. Take them to 3 other blocks that you have researched carefully in the area.  The first one is the most expensive block that you can find. One that is about 50 grand overpriced that would never sell.  Say "Look at what these other blocks are selling for!"  do this 3 more times until they believe you.

Step 8.  Take them to the block you wish to sell. Now that the customer has seen what blocks are 'worth' in the area, has had an emotional rollercoaster going from excited, to dissapointed, and has been given 'fair' comparisons, when they set foot on YOUR block, it all looks really good.

Step 9.  Take the gloves off. No more mister nice guy. Smash them with every pressure technique, ever sales trick, every sense of urgency and fear of loss statement you can muster. Make sure they don't set foot off that block until they have signed a contract.

Step 10.  Sign the contract.

Step 11. Stop taking their calls. When they decide they want to sell the property again and cash in on all the sincere promises you made about them getting rich from this land, ignore them. You know that you sold them a property that was 30-40 grand more expensive than similar blocks in the area and that they'll never get that price when they try to sell.  Yours was only 30 grand too much. That looks a lot better when you show them properties that are 50 grand too much that have been on the market for 3 years, especially while theyre emotional and under pressure.

Step 12.  Justify it to yourself. Say things like "It's my job to sell property."  "They could have just said no." "If they had done more study for themselves they would see that this property was overpriced."  Ignore that pang of your conscience that worries that you have used your ability to influence people to trust you to get them locked into deals that tie up or lose them amounts of money that take as long as ten years for people to save.

Repeat steps 1 through 12.