The Multiple-Broker Mistake...

I tend to work exclusively with most of my clients, simply because they've typically been referred by another successfully placed client and they understand that our database has a universe of nearly 97% of all available apartments within it, including those of over 400+ other REBNY-member firms. Therefore, it it's out there, my clients know that I can show it...and will show it if it's the right apartment for them.

However, we all occasionally get those clients, particularly those not familiar with the workings of the Manhattan rental market, who become so preoccupied that they will not find the "right" apartment that they begin booking appointments with other brokers and sometimes multiple brokers.

I certainly appreciate when clients tell me this, even as it creates a bit of an awkward situation. The dating analogy, would be the girl who tells her boyfriend, "As much as I like you, I really want to be sure you're the right one, so I hope you don't mind that after our date tonight, I've set up several other dates over the next few nights with other men." It's not news that anyone really wants to hear, but nontheless, I use it as an opportunity to educate my clients about the best way to use a broker in Manhattan.

All of this is premised upon the understanding that the client HAS a great broker to work with already. The client who simply knows nobody in New York and is setting out without any referral or recommendation, may gain a foothold on this task by talking to several brokers via phone and choosing the one that seems most knowledgeable, service oriented, and best able to grasp the particular apartment search requirements.

The "problem" many clients believe is created with using multiple brokers is actually not the true problem. These clients assume that one broker will be jealous of the other, or feel they're being put "head to head." The client may even feel that two or three competing brokers may work "harder" to outdo each other. But this really isn't the case...in this competitive industry we deal with that continuously and are inherently competing with the "community" of other brokers. The real problem is that the client who tries to navigate multiple brokers is unwittingly putting himself/herself at a tremendous disadvantage by destroying the two most important elements to finding the perfect apartment:

(1) building a good working relationship with your broker

and

(2) getting him/her to fully understand and appreciate all of the many nuances of your apartment preferences and needs.

What "multiple-broker" clients do not realize or understand is that I will generate a list of the "universe" of available apartments that will include virtually all of the other apartments that will be on these other brokers' lists. Do we simply run down the list and show apartments? Of course not. The only way to productively narrow down a list of several hundred apartments to the best deals and the most suitable for a given client is through the sheer experience of the agent, his ability to listen to his client and cull out the appropriate details, and the agent's ability to get knowledge and familiarity with the client's needs/tastes/preferences/etc. This "education" will often result in the broker making several immediate strong recommendations for the most suitable apartments. During the showing, the broker will get a "feel" from each reaction, comments and from followup questions, for such things as:

• Low floor or high floor
• Open layout or closed layout?
• Light over space? Space over light?
• Further downtown, or further uptown?
• Dark-stained floors? Light-stained floors?
• Buzzing neighborhoods or quieter streets?
• More living room, or more bedroom?
• More equal or less equal bedrooms.
• Front of street views? Or quiet courtyard solitude?
• Renovated apartment versus renovated building?
• Street or Avenue

and literally HUNDREDS of other comparisons/options/choices that span from the obvious to the obscure. In the span of showing several apartments and getting first-hand feedback from my client, I'm able to quickly assess which characteristics are the "must haves" and which can be sacraficed to get more of those "must have" features! In this way, over time I hone in on more and more "perfect" apartments, with often the most perfect at the end that leads to the application and the happy new tenant!

Now, what happens to the "multiple-broker" client? First of all, much as in the dating scenario, the lack of commitment isn't exactly the best way to motivate your broker to go "above and beyond" -- which is exactly what you need to score the best deal in New York City. So first and foremost, your broker knows he's just a "number," and has got a very short time to show you what he can before you're running off to the next. There's simply little motivation and no time to build a productive working relationship on that, and just as the broker may begin to be getting a great sense of that "perfect" apartment for the client's needs, that client checks his watch and must then run off to the next broker. That next broker, of course, must start completely from scratch, learning anew all of those same minute details, and very possibly planning to show those very same listings!

And then what about those "special listings," we may have...a particular new listings not yet in the system, or some incredible value that the broker is holding for a favored client...does "Miss Multi-Broker" get this recommendation? Of course not...the fear would be that the multi-broker client might communicate this special deal to the other brokers. Like in many other areas of life, trust and commitment can pay off handsomely when you're starting with an excellent broker.

Bottom line: Forget the brokers for a minute and do YOURSELF the favor...when you've been referred to a top broker, give him/her your trust and full commitment and let him/her know that! Let his/her proven success become your successful apartment find...and it will! And then you will be ready with a great recommendation when your friend asks you, "Do you happen to know of a great broker in New York City?"