Agents: All About Ultracrepidarians Pt II
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If you don’t know what “ultracrepidarian” means, see this Real Estate Therapy blog post. If you can’t be bothered, here’s a quickie definition. An ultracrepidarian is someone who boldly shares expert advice on a subject they know little or nothing about.
Realtors are beset by ultracrepidarianism, since every average Josephine thinks they know a thing or two about real estate. It’s astounding (and funny IF you can maintain a sense of humor). Ill-informed advice comes from every direction.
The guy who runs the corner bodega and predicts, with absolute confidence, the sales price of a new listing down the block.
The anonymous caller who says “Frisco” is going to hell in a handbasket tomorrow.
The lady (next door to a condo just purchased by my clients) who greets them in her bathrobe and says, “Nice to meet our rich new neighbors! I remember back in 1990 when the last people moved in. It seemed like they paid a lot of money then, but now…”
Like they KNOW.
But what we Realtors most need to guard against are a) our ultracrepidarian peers and b) our own ultracrepidarian tendencies. (Case in point: Who do I think I am – writing about who knows what and who knows best?)
It’s human nature to try to be helpful. And if that means pulling an answer out of your proverbial you-know-what, so be it.
The danger is that, as agents, we may be doing a big disservice to our clients or customers:
Going on about the integrity of a foundation even though we are not seismic engineers.
Advising on tenant evictions even though we are not lawyers.
Sharing suggestions for paint colors even though we haven’t even seen the room in question.
Or we may be signing up for business that will quickly reveal our ignorance and cause us to suffer or work harder than we need to. Let’s admit it! We’re not the agent for everyone. I’m not qualified to sell a house in Orinda, CA. I don’t know the first thing about foreclosures or short sales. And I’ve gleaned just enough about large apartment buildings to really screw things up.
Whereas there are few agents who understand San Francisco property better than I. But does that mean that I scatter golden kernels of inspo-insta-info around like chicken feed every chance I get? It does not!
Instead, all too often, I find myself politely listening as some new agent enthusiastically coaches me on Real Estate 101 or wink-wink-nudges me and says something client-condescending like, “We all know how it goes with these new buyers, blah blah blah...”
I hear them out, patiently hiding my irritation. But what I want to say is, “Well, in fact, YOU DON’T KNOW how it goes with these new buyers, blah blah blah. I DO KNOW because I’ve been doing this since you were in grade school, yet YOU only got your license last month and you clearly have no compassion for those whom you serve.”
I’m not saying that the new licensee or the out-of-town agent don’t have anything worthwhile to share. They do (and there’s always something new for me to learn). But I am, in fact, an actual expert on San Francisco real estate and they are not.
So, dear agents, I urge you to check yourself the next time you feel like expounding at length on any topic to do with real estate. Do you really know what you’re about to talk about, and is it worth sharing?
And when one of your colleagues is holding forth, please listen with care and respect. But always remember they may be as ill-informed yet confident as a blind man describing the proverbial elephant.
Photo Credit: Paolo Bendandi
Author and RealEstateTherapy curator Cynthia Cummins has been devoted to homeowners and homebuyers for three decades and counting. Visit KindredSFhomes.com for more information on San Francisco real estate.
