How do you determine whether a prospect should become your client? Simply, you have to have standards which will help you determine whether you can meet the prospect's needs and expectations and make the profit that you want to make. To make that happen, you can create a series of questions to help you quickly sort the clients from the time-wasters. The clients will meet your standards; the time-wasters will not.

Creating a systematized approach will help you to determine if a prospect measures up to your specific criteria. This approach needs to be applied each and every time you come in contact with a prospect, even if the prospect is referred from a trusted client, friend or family member. The prospect still needs to meet your standards. If the prospect does not meet the standard, I would encourage you to gracefully decline the potential business.

There are eight questions that I used during my career in real estate to determine if a client would meet my standards. Each question is important in helping me make the decision of whom to work with as a client. They are also invaluable in helping me to determine which prospects to eliminate.

1. When is this prospect going to buy or sell?

When is the prospect ready to move? The further out the move date, the lower the motivation of the prospect. You will have to follow-up more with the prospect and you will have to invest more time to achieve a sale if the moving date is far in the future. It is difficult to make a decent income chasing prospects who may buy or sell in the distant future.

2. Does the prospect have the ability to buy?

Does the prospect have the cash down payment and is he able to be approved for financing? There are many agents who show property to prospects for a week or two only to find out they cannot buy. My suggestion is to find out if they are able to buy a home before you even put them in your car. Require them to meet with your lender or provide proof of being pre-approved from another lender before you invest your time, effort, and energy in the prospects.

3. Does the client have reasonable expectations?

This question is two-fold. Is the "wish list" of what the client thinks he can afford and what he can actually afford close to the same? Often buyers are not in the real world in regards to what they can afford to purchase. If you are chasing a prospect who is not in reality, you are truly wasting your time. In this situation you are going to either be the bad guy by telling him what he or she can really afford or the client dumps you because you do not believe in his or her crusade. Either way it is a difficult road to success and eventually leads to no commission.

The second part of this question is directed to the clients who try to beat the market. I always tried to avoid the seller who wanted more than fair market value for his or her property and the buyer who wanted to steal the property. They both can be wastes of time for agents. The odds are heavily weighted against this buyer and seller. You often will invest a tremendous amount of additional time to earn the same income. Not to mention that often these people have the desire for an "I win-you lose" type of transaction. In my experience, those are the least enjoyable transactions to enter into when one of the parties is only concerned about himself or herself winning.

4. Does this prospect respect my time and me?

Our time is our most precious commodity. Once it is gone we do not get it back. A prospect who does not value your time by not keeping appointments and by showing up late is clearly telling you that he or she does not value your service or your time.

Often buyers and sellers will try to tell the agents what to do and how to do their jobs, yet they are paying for your knowledge, advice, and professionalism. When they do not take your guidance, do you want to continue to work with them? If you acquiesce during the listing agreement period, and your listing fails to sell, you will be to blame in your seller's eyes. The seller will talk disparagingly about you and your service.

I truly believe if you are a professional Realtor, your clients should regard your guidance as they do that of their doctor, attorney, or accountant. I would not question my attorney’s or accountant’s guidance. It is rather presumptuous for me to think I know more than they do in their area of expertise. My best advice to agents is to run away from prospects who don't respect your professionalism.

5. Am I being asked to compromise morally or ethically from my beliefs to make a sale?

If a prospect requests you do something that would fall into a gray area, you should carefully evaluate it. What if the deal blows up or the gray area turns pitch black? Most buyers and sellers will immediately point the finger towards the agents involved. So if you are asked to deviate from your business philosophy, it is best to reevaluate this business relationship. Being able to stand tall and live with your decisions is better than any sale you might make.

6. Can I create a satisfied client?

Is this prospect the type of person who will never be satisfied? Do you want to be the next agent he is complaining about? These are people who will never be satisfied no matter what you do, or what level of service you provide. People tend to know, enjoy, and develop friendships with people who are similar to themselves. Do you want more referrals like the current prospect? Determine who you want your current clients and future prospects to be.

7. Is the client willing to tell me the truth so I can help him?

Sometimes people view agents as the enemy or as a necessary evil. Prospects can sometimes play hide the ball with an agent. I think that open and truthful communication between the agent and the client leads to a successful relationship and transaction. In the end it will lead to successful referrals. Ask yourself if a prospect does not want to share enough information with you, how can you be effective at your job? Do you want to try to do your job under such a handicap?

8. Is the commission that you will earn worth the trouble?

Some agents may be offended by this question. But the truth is we are in this business to provide a service and to turn a profit. This is a question that must be asked every time Are the dollars earned adequate for the time and effort you will be expending to put this transaction together and close?

It is all right to decide to go ahead and work with someone even though you know the amount that you will earn may not be as high as compared to other transactions. In my career I entered into a handful of deals annually to help people. The difference was I accepted the fact that I would not be compensated for my time at my usual hourly rate before I entered into the client relationship. I think that it is easier to accept when you understand it going into the relationship, rather than invest all your time and then find out later that it wasn't worth your time. It is easier when the choice is yours and that's the point. Make it your choice.

You may have other qualifiers that you would like to add. Develop your own list of questions to evaluate your prospects and clients. Make sure that the clients with whom you are spending and investing your time measure up to the standard you have set. You will find an increase in your production and income waiting around the corner once the standard is established and met with all your clients.

Published: June 9, 1999

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Editor's Note: This article reflects the opinions of Dirk Zeller only and not necessarily the views of this or any other publication, organization or Website owner.

Dirk Zeller is a sought out speaker, celebrated author and CEO of Real Estate Champions. His company trains more than 350,000 Agents worldwide each year through live events, online training, self-study programs, and newsletters. The Real Estate community has embraced and praised his six best-selling books; Your First Year in Real Estate, Success as a Real Estate Agent for Dummies®, The Champion Real Estate Agent, The Champion Real Estate Team, Telephone Sales for Dummies®, Successful Time Management for Dummies®, and over 300 articles in print. To learn more regarding this article, please visit www.realestatechampions.com.