Comments on: How to Negotiate

By: Matthew Jeschke

Matthew Jeschke — Sun, 27 Oct 2013 18:27:17 +0000

LOVE the post. Thanks! There’s one tip I use that you didn’t cover 😉 This tip along with what you shared is complete DYNAMITE for negotiation. This might be a bit long though to explain though…

I’m a Real Estate Agent and reverse engineered the simple supply & demand model to do this. Here’s what I do… I setup my buyer clients to have a surplus of home choices (I call them backup positions / homes) so effectively they are always in a buyer’s market. Then when we enter the negotiation. I do exactly what you speak of, to understand the seller’s position & speak directly to it… But also say to the seller,

“Hey look Mr seller. My client loves your home, but he has 2 other’s he’s interested in. He’s going to offer you this price which I understand is less than you’re asking, however, he has 2 other homes he’s offering on and they are willing to sell for the price he’s offering you.”

I will show information on the two other homes along with a nice cover letter I draft and my client signs reiterating the seller’s thinking / mindset. Goal of cover letter is to get seller to connect emotionally with my buyer and is something to the effect,

“I love your home, understand you took great pride in it, and want to offer you as much as I can however, other two homes are less expensive and in my right mind I cannot pay the extra even as much as I like your place. Here’s a picture of my kids, I like the back yard gril… love grilling, surely going to love your place… bla bla bla” Insert picture of family holding baby… anything to add emotional spice to the negotiation. You get the picture 😉

Like I said this in addition to what you said is PURE gold. I’ve shaved up wards of 25% off the price of the home for clients before! Now I’m in a sellers market and still experiencing 10-15% off appraised / market value of the home in multiple offer situations (up against other buyers) using these techniques.

I also developed a flip side to too this to help my seller clients keep people from bartering down the price, even in a buyer’s market. Used that to help a sellers fetch as much 18% over appraised before.

My website link also show’s a more in depth explanation of a specific example where I executed this concept for the first time and saved $40,252.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 29 Aug 2013 19:59:30 +0000

I like to think of tip 2 as the craigslist theory. Always ask for way more than what you want on craigslist expecting low ballers.

By: Scott Masters

Scott Masters — Fri, 05 Jul 2013 06:16:46 +0000

You didn’t see the pop up that said “just kidding!”?

By: Timothy

Timothy — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 13:38:43 +0000

Great insights, Derek! This is definitely a good reminder for all of us to be thinking about where the other person is coming from before we arrive at the negotiation table.

By: Sophie Manders

Sophie Manders — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 17:25:57 +0000

Love this video. Agree with the tips as well. However, asking for more than you really want can be dangerous when sounding unrealistic. As a PR and Communications student, learning about BATNA (best alternative to negotiating agreement) helps. Also understanding the difference between integrative and distributive bargaining strategies is beneficial!!

By: Sapna

Sapna — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 12:15:18 +0000

Derek,

I’m not idiot now for sure. I’m also on your list as well.

Thanks

Sapna

By: Jonathan

Jonathan — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 00:38:53 +0000

You guys are amazing… it does feel different, and I’m sure it breaks so many barriers in the negotiation!
Great job!!!

By: Himanshi

Himanshi — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 22:17:08 +0000

Watch the video and I didn’t realized that its easy 🙂

By: Constantin Gabor

Constantin Gabor — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 20:31:38 +0000

This is Gold, Derek! Cheers for doing these videos.

By: John Whiting

John Whiting — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 14:50:17 +0000

Thanks for the advice! Great article!