Quick question to you Real Estate Developers

[Account Closed]

Hello Developers. 

When you're seeking to purchase for land to develop, and the seller is not interested in selling, what do you do?  In the mind of the seller, why don't they sell?  How do you over come objection?  How long does it take?

What solutions do you bring to the table and how to you overcome their hesitations?

[Jeffrey Stasz]

@Account Closed besides my flip answer...the drip works well. I mostly (only) work in downtown Charleston. And there is so much work that needs doing that I don't have too much of a need to be super pushy about trying to find the right thing. That can sometimes change if I'm trying to link a bunch of lots together and then it comes down to money or giving someone an opportunity to get into the deal. 

Besides money, being a known quantity helps a lot.  I am also a GC I'm purposely generous with my time. If the eldery gentleman up the block needs his sink to stop leaking I just pop in and do it. If his daughter has a work emergency and needs me to check in on something or someone I do that too. When the teenager's car is broken (again) and he and his buddies are fixing it on the street I come out with my big jack stands, the crawler and some waters. 

Not only is it the right thing to do but it puts me in a position to hear about opportunities long before they ever hit the market. Houses and land are unlike other assets because they so often have a huge emotional component attached to them. 

People need to feel good about what is often a tough decision to sell. Think about it, it's usually triggered by a death, or financial hardship and so under those conditions the decision about who to sell to is often about more then who has the most money. 

If you can help folks feel better about the sale that really helps. If they you're going to do right by their childhood home or empty lot where they used to drink beer and throw horse shoes you're a lot more likely to get the deal then someone who just came off the street with a checkbook. 

I have a friend that does this in Cambridge MA. It's one of hardest and hottest markets in the country. And he recently got one of the last ramshackle places left on one of the nicest blocks in the city. How? He sent the family a Christmas Card every year...for FOUR YEARS. 

The short takeaway is you need to build relationships in and with your community before you can start to meaningfully add or transform your community. And at the end of the day, developers are in the business of building community.