Page 119 - Trump University Commercial Real Estate 101

Locking in Y our Profit

Even More Negotiating Tips

Before we talk about how to present an offer through a real estate
broker, here are ten more tips to becoming an effective negotiator:
Discover everything you can about the situation, the issues,
and the participants. This is another way of saying come prepared .
There is no excuse for being unprepared for a negotiating session. The
person who is the best prepared usually wins.
Keep on the lookout for what ’ s motivating the seller. Some-
times all you have to do is ask, as I mentioned before. Occasionally you
don ’ t even need to do that, because the other person will let slip clues
to his motivations. It might be the repetition of a certain comment, or
how that person ’ s body language and voice changes when you ’ re
talking closing date, but not when you mention price. It ’ s a skill that
you ’ ll keep developing over a very long time, but the payoff can hap-
pen quickly, so start now.
Set goals. Know what you want to accomplish at each negotiating
session. I don ’ t mean generalities such as “ Seller signs offer. ” At what

specific price and terms will you be satisfied? Also try to have more
than one black - and - white desired outcome. If you can ’ t achieve your
ideal result, know what your fallback position will be.
Anticipate the other party ’ s comments and prepare your
response . If the seller says your price is too low, what will you say? If
the seller wants you to go hard with a deposit, what will be your
response? What if the seller wants an unreasonably short closing
period? These are all situations you should be prepared for.
You won ’ t be able to anticipate all of them, of course. But you
should never be caught surprised twice. Become a great note taker after
negotiations, writing down the answers to questions such as “ What did
I learn that can help me in my next negotiation? ”
Remain pleasant and unfl appable. We ’ re in a numbers game.
The investor who cares least almost always wins. If you are doing your
marketing properly, you ’ ll have other deals not far behind, so don ’ t
wrap your existence up in winning this one.

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