Do You Know The Right Questions To Ask?

Are You Asking The Right Questions?

In our self-service world where we pump our own gas, check ourselves out at the grocery store and fix our own drinks at fast food places it is easy to forget the importance and the “why” of personal service.  Service delivered by a professional in their field.

The analogy I often use with people who want to do it themselves is an oil change. I am a reasonably intelligent guy. There is probably a good book published that could tell me exactly how to change the oil in my car, step by step.  But the reality is I don’t want to change the oil in my car. I don’t know how long it would take, I don’t know what tools I will need, I wouldn’t know what to do with the oil once I changed it an on and on. If anything did not seem right I would not have a frame of reference to know if it was typical or not typical. More importantly I would not have anyone to ask, whose opinion I trusted.  I would rather go to the oil change place and pay the fee and have them do it right in about 30 minutes.

So to people who want to sell their home on their own or shop for a home on their own I say “go for it”. It is not rocket science. The information is all out there. If you want to put it all together and understand it and how it applies to you I am sure that can be done.  That is not said tongue in cheek or with sarcasm . I have worked with buyers and sellers who were very devoted to the process and although they worked with me, their grasp of the issues was excellent. However, these people were  the exceptional few  and something tells me that they can probably change their own oil!

To the rest of the world, those of us not up for a do it yourself oil change, I suggest that the value of a professional is to help you ask the right questions.  Providing the framework to structure the questions and the issues you should be asking about.

In the troubled Real Estate market that we are in today knowing the right questions to ask is vital.  Almost everyone I personally encounter has a unique set of issues. There is far too much at risk to rely on hunches or a best guess.   Look for the professional who will help you, educate you, frame the issues for you and lead you to ask the questions. 

If the professional you have chosen can't do that for you that is a strong clue that they may not fully understand the issues themselves. When  confronted with a person who simply wants to sell you something that is your first sign that it is time to move on to someone else.

Searching out the professional whose valuable guidance helps me ask the right questions is the only thing that works for me.