When Does a Sale Begin? When Does it End?

A sale is not a sale until the check clears. We often seem to forget that and think it ends when we have left the client's office with the order in our hand. Actually, that might be when the sale really begins.

My wife and I were nearing the end of our apartment lease and had been shopping for a great deal on a house. We visited a few homes each with different realtors. None of them had great follow-up and none of them were proactive about inquiring about what type of home, location and price would best serve our needs. We finally were shown a home by a guy who immediately followed up with a thank you and a list of other homes that were similar to the one we had visited. We decided he was the guy we would like to work with and found him listening and responding-right up until we signed a buyer's agent agreement with him and made an offer on a home. Suddenly the phone calls and emails weren't returned as quickly. We got the impression that he was afraid of something going wrong. Simple requests seemed to frighten him. His new attitude frightened us.