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Let's make every conversation a winning negotiation.
Nico, welcome to the show.
Thanks for having me Kwame.
yeah, it is our pleasure, my friend.
So how would you get us started by telling us a little bit about yourself and what you do?
Yeah, absolutely. So I do real estate with Mauricio Umansky.
I work at the agency here in Los Angeles.
Our office is in Beverly hills, so I'm a real estate broker.
We help clients buy and sell real estate.
And obviously negotiation is a big part of what I do.
So me and Kwame actually met at one of the agency's seminars.
If you haven't seen Kwame speak publicly, he's absolutely incredible.
I was captivated. And we just became fast friends and now whenever he's in LA we hang out and he destroys me in chest. So that's our relationship I love it, man.
Listen, I wasn't gonna say it, but you said it.
Oh, yes. Listen, this is great Niko and I we vibed immediately.
So I had a great time with the agency events in Austin, Texas It was a great keynote.
I tell you your team the atmosphere that you all were able to create at that event I mean it was just indicative of the cool culture that you've put together So it must be cool being part of that team because you started just a couple years ago, right?
Yeah, so I started last year and it's been the worst time that you could possibly start in real estate So this is equivalent to forget 2008.
That was a better market because you had people for closing It was a sadder time, but you had people for closing on their properties People were kind of forced to sell there were deals to be had so people were buying there was still transactions But if you look back at transaction volume This is the lowest it's been since the housing crisis in the 80s.
So for us to be on par with that, this is one of worst markets in history.
That being said, I'm going to discuss a little bit later about how negotiation has helped me become a better agent and training and my constant need and desire to continue to learn and be a better agent has really fueled my business.
And in this year, a lot of people are not doing any business.
I've been able to do five transactions this year, and it's all because getting out there, Putting yourself out there and hustling, which I know people who are tuning in to listen in on negotiation, I'm sure have some business acumen.
They're looking to improve themselves.
People are listening is podcast. So I'm going to share some examples of how I've done that.
Hopefully you learned a little bit about the real estate market too.
I think it's a market that everyone should know about.
But more broadly, we're going to talk about how negotiation is really a common thread, whether you're in real estate, whether you're selling cars, whether you're doing your day to day job, whether you have a nine to five.
You're still negotiating.
You got to negotiate for your salary, right?
If you're gonna get a raise in salary You got to negotiate so there's a lot of a lot of common threats So it's you're gonna get tinges of real estate touches of real estate But I think broad more broadly if you're tuning in it's gonna be about negotiation as well I love it man and here's the thing too because your approach clearly is leading to success because when you're talking about Transactions Nico we really have to paint the picture of what type of deals that we're talking about because I'm out in Columbus, Ohio, the market is a little bit different.
You're out there in Beverly Hills, the property value is a little bit different so can you paint a picture to the audience of what negotiations look like in your world?
Absolutely so just for context I quit a really well -paying job to get into real estate and at first it was because I had a great connection in the real estate world who was encouraging me to make the leap but like you said you're in a state where the property values are much less than Los California, which is one of the main cities in the United States slash the world.
So just for context, my first deal was a $3 million house.
Now, when you break down the commissions on that, a buyer's agent takes home minus splits and all that stuff.
They're taking home 2 .5 % of that transaction.
So if you do some simple math, it made a lot of sense to get into real estate.
So $3 million properties in Los Angeles are pretty standard. you got to think if you're gonna get an entry level house in LA to get something that's Relatively nice at three -bedroom to bath with 1800 square feet in a decent neighborhood You're looking at like one and a half to two million dollars So most people who are my age who I'm 30 and they're you know, we're just entering the housing market We're getting our first place.
A lot of people are getting a one -bedroom condo in an older building for $600 ,000 so it's just crazy And when you look at the Midwest, you're getting a three bedroom, three bath house, 2 ,500 square feet for like 200 K it's crazy.
So as an agent, since we get a fee off of whatever we sell, it makes a lot of sense to be in a market that has higher values, that being said, there's a lot of competition with a lot of competition.
It's really important to differentiate yourself.
I wear, and this is no joke.
I wear a full cowboy outfit out sometimes just to get conversational flow.
I'll get five conversations.
I've calculated per day that I wear a cowboy outfit just oh, where are you from?
What where'd you wear that and I used to live in the Midwest So it's not too far off to be wearing a cowboy outfit, but it's a conversation starter.
And then you start with yeah Where do you live?
I live in West Hollywood.
Okay, West Hollywood you like West Hollywood.
Yeah, it's it's cool Oh, where would you live if you didn't live in West Hollywood?
I'd live probably Long Beach I don't really like that much. Oh, do you own in West Hollywood?
You renting? I rent, but I'm probably looking to own a space.
Well, I'm a real estate agent.
I'm going to give you my card if you have any questions, let me know.
I work with that area.
The cowboy hat, although it's kind of crazy and it's nuts, it works.
You have to just figure out what works for you and go with that.
For me, I'm a confident person, I'm fully cool with who I am, whatever I want to do.
I'm my own best friend slash number one advocate.
So you have an idea execute it don't be afraid to execute it and move forward So that's a little just a little background on how I think about real estate and life and in LA when the competition's so thick It's not like I could just wear whatever I want and blend in and hang at home Like I have to make the effort to go out I have to make the effort to put myself in places where I will get those victories and those wins So and a lot of it too is who you know connecting with your sphere people do business and sales in different ways There's cold calling door knocking which are all great methods
and methods that I probably will end up doing more of as time goes on But so far for me, it's been totally interpersonal.
I grew up in Los Angeles So I know a lot of people here and just connecting with them and putting the word out There has been really helpful for me to spark my business.
So listeners you're seeing why what I love talking to Nico You just dropping all sorts of gems and just passing by we're gonna hone in on some of these because this is I love talking the folks who are in the real estate space, especially in LA and New York, because the environment is so competitive, because we don't just have the negotiation expertise that's required to close these deals, the marketing and sales at the front end is so important because you have to stand out, it's so incredibly competitive.
And so you have to get people's attention first, demonstrate that credibility and then make it clear that, hey, I'm an option for you without pushing too hard. And how do you balance that when it comes to the competitive ecosystem you find yourself in?
Because that in itself is a negotiation too.
Absolutely. So the cowboy hat's great.
But if you don't know shit about real estate and part of me causing I know your editor is going to have to beep it out.
If you don't know anything about real estate, the cowboy hat doesn't matter.
So you need something to qualify yourself.
All right. So the qualifier, you could wear a SpongeBob outfit, it really doesn't matter, but you need a qualifier.
It doesn't matter how you look it matters what you know, for example, someone walks into an open house and I'm wearing My sweats and my t -shirt and all the other agents are wearing suits just based off appearance alone You're gonna go with the guy who is wearing the suit, but what's your qualifier?
This is the question that you really have to understand and know my qualifier is.
Okay, which house are they walking into?
What are the other houses in the neighborhood that look like that that are at that price three bed three bath?
Whatever that they're looking for.
What's the difference?
What? Okay one, two, three Main Street down the street How is it different?
Is it a one -story a two -story if an older couple walks into my house and I'm wearing sweats and I don't look qualified What am I doing to qualify myself?
So they walk in and I say hey, how are you doing?
Oh, we're doing good You know we looked at the house.
It's not really for us We're looking for like a one story because our knees are bad.
We're getting old Oh, did you see 123 Main street down the way?
It's a cool house. I didn't really like how the fireplace is positioned, but it's kind of a nice option.
You could go in, you've got the primary on the lower story.
It's still got a pool.
It might be an option for you, or there's also 225 Main street down the street even further.
Uh, now the guy wearing sweats seems like the best option because holy cow, he knows the market, right?
So how are you going to qualify yourself?
The other way to qualify yourself is working for a reputable brokerage.
So when I go into a meeting with someone and they're thinking about listing their house with me, when I say I'm from the agency, it's one of the most prestigious brokerages in the world.
Now there are other brokerages that don't have that same level of expertise.
You may hear a name and say, I don't know if I trust the brand, right?
So you don't know if you really trust it.
So the agency is trustworthy.
So what are these qualifiers?
The brand that you work for, your knowledge is really the most important piece and knowing the market and knowing what's going on and giving examples of what you've done.
Now when you're breaking into the real estate agency, it's like a plastic surgeon, right?
Do you want to be the first client for who goes in for surgery with this guy?
Absolutely not! That is the most ludicrous thing.
It's the same thing with real estate!
So you gotta find a good mentor in whatever field you're in.
You gotta find a good mentor who's going to be your qualifier instantly because you might not know all the things that you, you need to know, but when you have a mentor, you could easily use slap their brand on your pitch. So yeah, my name's Nico.
I work directly with the CEO of the agency Mauricio Umansky Titan in our industry, who's closed incredible deals for the last 30 years.
And they're totally hands -on with me.
So that's like instantly like, Oh wow, that's amazing.
And then bring Mauricio to the listing appointment show that he's there and then get his advice as you're moving forward. You're gonna get osmosis, you're also gonna lose the deal if you don't bring in a mentor.
If you don't have a mentor, you might risk losing the deal because you don't really know.
And think about real estate.
The thing about it that I've learned in the last year, there are a million and one things that you have to know to get a transaction done.
When people say, oh, I'm not gonna use an agent.
I'm like, good luck.
Like the amount of paperwork, the amount of disclosures, the knowledge that you have to have, knowing what to do and when.
It's, I believe there's like 200 plus items that you need to execute in order to close a real estate transaction.
Think about all the people involved in that.
Think about all my inspectors that I have to call when I'm looking through a house.
Think about my transaction coordinator who's helping me with all the paperwork, what to speak of the car forms that you have to be a realtor, a California Association of Realtor Forms to be a realtor, to access.
Think about the hundreds of forms that I have access to.
Are you gonna have a lawyer draft all that?
I mean you could, but you have a billion dollar organization backing all these contracts and they're the industry standard. So it makes sense to go with a realtor who knows the forms, who can help you through all this stuff.
But yeah, so anyways, a bit of a tangent, but yeah, that's a little tidbit on qualifying yourself and having the proper knowledge.
And it's not just what you wear and getting the leads, it's also actually knowing your business.
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podcasts. You're absolutely right.
And just to recap for the audience, when it comes to qualifying audience, when it comes to qualifying yourself, you're three things that you go to first showing people that you know the market, the credibility of the brand, and then strategically letting people know the connection that you have with such a powerful mentor.
And so for listeners, if you don't know Mauricio Omanski, he's a big deal, not just in the real estate space, but also crossing over into the mainstream with Hollywood with the Netflix as well.
So like Netflix show I mean you couldn't name anybody better in the industry as a mentor and one thing I want to home in on is Showing that you know the market one of the mistakes that people make when they're trying to show off the fact that they know stuff Is that it comes off as showing off not being helpful.
Because you're saying alright, I'm going to listen I'm going to empathize I'm going to understand what they need and I'm going to give them the amount of information they need to make a better decision and Educate themselves in an irrelevant type of way, but other people when they're insecure you just hear them showing off encyclopedic knowledge of random things It is a major turn -off.
So I love the fact that you bring that relevance in there, too Totally it's way easier to be an encyclopedia Oh, yeah This fact that fact because it takes you two minutes to learn the fact and it takes you two minutes to explain the fact it takes you three four hours to understand the market in a neighborhood in two minutes to deliver the important information that they need.
So it's a lot harder to be helpful versus actually just knowing a fact or two or three, and it's actually such a turnoff.
It's like, I didn't need to know about that information.
And then you've already lost them.
So yeah, there are three things that really determine the value of a transaction, whether if something's sitting on the market for a long time, for example, if I have a listing, there are three things that really determine Whether or not it's gonna move.
Okay, the first thing is the agent is your agent Taking calls of clients that are coming in and I've seen scenarios where no, they're not taking calls They're not reading their emails and it's just the craziest thing to me that that these people exist, but they do so They're not taking calls.
They're not reading their emails.
They're not saying hey, we just got a lead.
Hey, they're not doing the showings They're not doing their job.
That's number one. Number two would be the marketing.
Okay. So what are your pictures look like?
What is your listing description?
How are you putting it out there?
Are you doing social media posts?
Are you doing, you know, are you posting on the MLS, which for us is like the Zillow for agents.
And number three is the price.
What price are you going out at?
And this is where the negotiation part of our conversation comes in.
So the price, is it too high?
Is it too low? What is the market determined as the proper price for your property?
And what do you price that now?
It's kind of counterintuitive here, because a lot of how you price something is a really, really, really important piece of the puzzle on whether a piece of real estate sells or not.
And when you think about the price, obviously, both the listing agent and the person selling their house want to get the highest possible price for your house, right?
I get paid more if I sell the house for more.
My client gets paid more if we sell the house for more.
So we're both on the same page immediately that we want to sell the house for the highest price possible.
So now how do we arrive at that number?
a lot of sellers think their house is way more valuable than it actually is.
It's a natural thing to think that they have the best house in the neighborhood.
I don't know if it's an ego thing or what, but sometimes I say, hey, what do you think you're home's worth?
And they'll say, oh, I think it's 2 .7 million.
I'm going, this house is not selling for over two, two and the best day on earth.
You know what I mean?
So they don't really know.
But, what happens is, and the big issue with someone who thinks that their house is expensive and is attached to that idea, first of all, it's unrealistic.
But more importantly when you list a house when I list a house and it's for sale and I go on the market at 27 when that's actually valued at 22 and we get zero activity that first week we get zero activity the second week third It's sitting there and you know what happens when it sits there it racks up days on Market and if you know anything about sales scarcity creates demand.
When you have something that has sat there with no scarcity, no interest, no nothing, what does it do?
You're already way priced out of the market.
When you reduce your price your days on market stays the same, and they're thinking what's wrong with this house?
And it kills interest. Now if you under price it, let's say your price, and this is by the way, full disclosure, this the LA market because it's so competitive.
If you price that $2 .2 million valued house at let's say $1 .9 million, you're going to have 70 people come to your first open house.
You're probably going to have five to ten offers on the house, and you're going to have leverage to say, hey, Bob offered us $2 .1 million, and we have three other people who have verbally said that they're going to be offering and I've let them know that we're already at 2 .1 million.
At this point, the 70 people have walked through the house have emotional buy in on the house and now the price becomes irrelevant.
Now it becomes this, this kind of bidding war thing.
I hate to use that word but it becomes almost like a bidding war, right, where everyone's like attached to the house now and they want to win this house.
So, it's a really tough market to be in an LA because of this and agents will intentionally price the house a bit lower than the actual value to get a massive amount of interest. It helps offload the property quickly and you're able to leverage different offers against each other.
So it's an interesting thing and this is where I'm sure you have a lot of thoughts on this, but I'll let you go ahead and yeah, if you have any questions, Kwame, or me, well, I'm just going.
I'm just going so this is so good.
You you just wound up the the Kwame negotiation doll I love this because the negotiation starts off with the pricing strategy, right?
But even before we get to the pricing strategy we have oftentimes the tougher negotiation that you have with your own client for what the price should be because there's a difference between you as a real estate professional knowing how you should price things and You as a real estate professional successfully persuading your client to post the house at the right price And so in psychology, this is called the endowment effect So once you own something you value it higher and so every year that somebody spends in the house They're investing more emotionality into it and that price point goes up
and up and up So if the same house belongs to somebody else, they would say this is a 2 .2 million dollar house But if that same, that same house belongs to them, this is like 2 .7 because of the emotional tax.
So that's one of the tough negotiations.
Then let's say we actually get it down on the market for something that is too high when we don't get the appropriate buzz.
Really, what this is, is this lack of, the scarcity principle is not acting in our favor, but even more so than that it's social proof, which is the wisdom of the crowds.
What do the crowds say?
Crowds are saying something's wrong with this house and so they're not going to investigate further.
That's the thing it is an emotional conclusion that they come to everybody is saying no to this house It's been on the market for how long what's wrong with this house pass on it They're not going to dig deeper and then on the other side It's still ultimately an emotional decision because they're saying wow there are how many offers on this house There this it's been on the market for like three days and it's already got offers Everybody wants this I want it, too And again, they're using that same psychology looking at the masses seeing what they're doing and then following suit ultimately It's
still an emotional decision, but there's so many layers of persuasion we have to get to in order to arrive at that conclusion Absolutely at the end of the day There's all these different Strategies that you could use at the end of the day it really comes down to what does the buyer want and what does the seller Want that's the bottom line So what's really important and like you said the first negotiation is figuring out when you're going to list a property Okay How am I going to figure out and kind of back into this situation where?
The seller becomes more realistic and that's a really sensitive Conversation.
That's a sensitive thing because this is something that they own there also is a level of like mistrust with agents, right?
Like oh is this this agent?
I don't really trust them or whatnot that's a barrier that you have to overcome but the most important thing when I'm thinking about going on a Listing appointment or potentially listing a house for sale is what is the client like?
What are their goals?
Right, like I want to hear their goals.
Why are they selling this house?
Sometimes I will literally tell them not to sell their house, you know, just yesterday I had an appointment where it was actually a dear friend of mine who lives up in the canyons in this beautiful house And they're concerned about fires because there are fires in Los Angeles and there cut they've been in the house for 30 years they're like we want to sell it and we want to move to this neighborhood and I looked at the value of the house and the neighbor I said This is what you would get in this neighborhood and frankly I don't really see you making that move because of your lifestyle what you
like to do. The guy likes to work on Motorcycles, he's got a big garage that just it makes a lot of sense where he's at and I had to kind of understand Number one, what's your goal?
Having me help you what's your goal?
What are we arriving to right?
Another person's goal might say hey, I want to sell the house and move to Hawaii.
Okay Well, how much is a house in Hawaii that you're looking for 1 .5 million?
Okay, and you're looking to get what from your house up?
2 .7 million dollars.
Well your house is worth 2 .2.
We can still accomplish your goals, which is the good news, but this is the price.
So, trying to understand, okay, what are their needs, what are their wants, and then strategically and tactfully arriving at obviously something fair.
My job, and I have a fiduciary duty to my clients, is to make sure that I'm honest, that I'm working within fair dealings, and that they're taken care of.
So that's the utmost important quality of mind that I like to present with whoever I'm doing business with because at the end of the day, it's like your reputation and that's why people will come back to you.
So if you are an honest person, if you are telling people honestly, a real estate agent telling me not to sell my house even though they'd make $100 ,000 on the transaction, there's something like, oh he actually cares about me because I do, you know what I mean?
So, and then that'll lead to referrals in the future or whatever, or when they decide to sell, if they do, for another reason, that'll lead to a potential sale, but it's so important to be honest, to deal fairly and make sure that you take care of the people that you're working for.
Obviously in any industry, it's good to be honest. So yeah, I think it's an interesting negotiation when you're going in and someone has an, an inflated value of their house.
There's a myriad of ways that you could kind of share with them that, hey, your house really isn't worth this.
So number one would be pull the comps, share recent properties that have sold in the area.
Down the street, there's a house that sold for 2 .2 million, same bed bath count, same amenities.
It had a pool just like your house.
Same kind of finish work that you have. There's another house that sold for 2 .1 million, and this had the same stuff.
the ones that are selling for 2 .7 have an extra bed and bath and an extra 3 -400 feet and they have a pool and a jacuzzi and that they have a bigger backyard and they're maybe newer finishes and so you kind of arrive at this value where it all depends on the person like who are you speaking with some people i could instantly have a candid conversation with like bro your house isn't worth 2 .7 like your house is worth two too other people might be a lot more sensitive maybe either super emotionally attached to their house.
Maybe they don't want to hear no. Maybe they just want to hear yes and so you got to, you're like a therapist, you're like a psychologist. Like you're working all these different spheres to figure out who am I working with, how can I communicate with them effectively and how can we arrive at the conclusion that helps them, helps us, helps everyone.
Brilliant, because you're focusing on the outcome.
You're focusing on the outcome that is best for the client.
And again, a lot of real estate agents might understand what that outcome is, but do they have the type of relationship?
Do they have the trust and do they have the persuasion skills to get their client to agree with them on that ultimate conclusion?
That's the tricky part.
But I love that you started off with trust because, yes, you have the fiduciary responsibility and everybody in the industry does.
The problem is that even if you are truly a fair dealer and being honest, that doesn't always automatically shift the perception of the other person because they're gonna say well Niko is here trying to sell, so of course he's going to say nice things, but one of the things that you demonstrated is beneficial when it comes to building trust, is a statement against interest. It would be in your best interest to sell whatever and put it as high a price as possible, but you're saying hey listen that is not in our collective best interest, nor is it in yours in particular because of these reasons
and so you're building that trust and then you're letting the data decide.
Here's the information, it is not me hating on your house if you lived and forever, this is the mark.
I wish I could get you that prize.
The market says otherwise.
This is so powerful.
And then lastly, your willingness to flex because after you're having these conversations you're making a read on the people.
And for some people, they need all of the detailed evidence and maybe several conversations and maybe a little bit of pain to change their perspective.
And other people it's like, no, I'm getting a read on this person.
I can just talk straight and we can work through it.
But again, that shows your negotiation skills because you're willing to flex and adapt based on who's in front.
Totally, totally. Now you hit the nail on the head on the head.
You're a hundred per cent right on.
Let me know when you're ready to get your licence out here, Kwame, if you grasp it like that.
I can't wait to take you on a listing appointment.
That'll be amazing.
I appreciate it, man.
No, this is great. And you've been dropping gems this whole episode.
And for you, because I know you're it's so funny because, yes, technically you're starting off your career, But you're coming in here with so much experience and so much skills whenever I chatted with you It did not feel like you are new in this and I think it's so important to bring your fresh Perspective because times have changed so much just like the last few years So bringing your mindset and your negotiation skills that are working in such a competitive environment I think there's so much that the listeners can get from it anyway For you You're very active online building up your social
profile for the folks who want to follow you and learn more and connect What would you say is the best way to do that?
Let's Instagram would probably be the best way to do it So my handle is at Nico show and I K K O s H OW It really is a show.
You don't know what you're gonna get.
You could get some crazy videos You could get some real estate related content Sometimes I post a video and I'm like I may have just lost a couple of clients from this You know, I don't know, but I hope people work with me because I'm authentic.
It's kind of the concept of sweats at an open house, but knowing your stuff like people will still want to work with you.
So yeah, please follow me on social media.
Love it Nico. Thank you so much for coming on the show brother.
Really appreciate it.
You're the man. Thanks for having me Kwami.
You're the best. Take care.
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