Closing the Deal: The Grand Finale Versus the Premature Exit

Those with strong cash positions will tout their ability to close without lender financing. Those in need of financing will boast that they can pay a higher price for more time to close. Those with surety of funds to close will insist they can close as soon as the ink on the contract dries, for a price reduction.

How a broker answers these questions is more critical for the seller than how the selected purchaser proceeds. The broker’s response can set the stage for an award-winning performance with the highest possible price, the smoothest negotiations and a memorable grand finale. Or the results could be worse than a dropped curtain in mid-scene.

The typical question every buyer will ask is; “What makes the deal?”

Stop by any broker’s desk and every call with a buyer will always include this inquiry. I once overheard a zealous junior agent tell a buyer he was speaking to what he thought the seller would take. His answer was approximately 15 percent below the listed asking price. The buyer then submitted an offer of 25 percent below what the broker told him. The young, enthusiastic agent almost tripped over his own feet, squealing with delight over his accomplishment of getting an offer from a well-heeled buyer as he ran over to the listing broker to present his work of art.

Unfortunately for him, the listing broker, a seasoned and well-respected professional, had already received several credible offers as high as 15 percent over the asking price! The young gun, whose heart started palpitating from deflated joy, stood motionless, paralyzed from the shock. The senior broker explained to him that his first mistake was how he answered the question of what makes the deal.