The K.I.S.S. Theory In Real Estate

The KISS theory, we all have heard of it.  Keep It Simple…(you can choose your own last word).  A very powerful theory and concept to keep in mind with all things real estate.

Real Estate has the potential to be as complicated as we want to make it. And there is no shortage of people out there that will make it complicated if given the opportunity.  Your goal as a professional in serving your clients in particular is to keep things simple every chance possible.  There is a rarely a reason to overcomplicate a real estate transaction whether buying or selling. 

Today, I’m going to focus on three specific areas that should be common to most if not all real estate professionals where the KISS theory proves very effective in any real estate transaction.

1. The Marketing – whether you are an investor selling a property or you’re a listing agent listing a property, simplicity here is bliss.  Shoot for effectiveness.  Pick modes of marketing that have been proven to be effective, time and time again and do them well.  Very, very well.  There’s a lot of niche type marketing out there that you can try.  And lots of suggestion out there that for a small fee you can figure out how to do a hundred things under the sun that may or may not work.  Many of these things sometimes are guaranteed, sometimes are not, and sometimes are just free tips on Youtube.  Again, evaluate well.  Choose wisely but keep it simple.  The reality is that keeping up a bunch of marketing does take work and tracking it takes additional work.  So consider picking and choosing your spots that have proven to be the most effective time and time again and systemize it to the point of complete simplicity.  It works very well.

2. Communications – A wise friend of mine several years ago told me a phrase that I will never forget.  We had just sat down through an all day meeting in my past life of IT.  The seminar at our office was all about communication tips and ideas on how to work as a team.  This gentleman was in his 50s and at the conclusion of the event looked at me and he said, “Frank, I heard this exact same seminar about 25 years ago.  Most issues are almost always a communication problem.”  That phrase has stuck with me since.  Every time there is a problem, sure enough it is usually due to some kind of communication issue. Or, most specifically miscommunication, or in some cases a lack of communication.  Reality is, we live very busy lives.  And it is an extraordinary easy to not prioritize communication to the level that It needs to be kept at.  Many times it’s because people fear that there going to be bothering someone.  And while that may be true, I have found repeatedly that it’s better to over communicate than under communicate.  I have never seen someone get upset for over communication beyond just being told, “Oh my, you’re talking quite a bit here.”  But for under communication we’ve seen problems from one end of creation to the other and the results can get pretty ugly in some cases.  So again keep it simple. Communicate well, communicate effectively and never leave anything to assumption. Always ensure and if possible document every pertinent communication that even has a slightest chance of impacting anything.  Trust me, when something goes astray, and you can point your finger back on something it does wonders for quelling, any potential fires that could brew and flare up from a situation.  Keep it simple and just communicate! 

3. Paperwork – paperwork is one of those things where at least in our state, it does not have to be complicated to be effective to close a deal.  An example we run into sometimes is where people feel like everything needs to be on a state contract.  We have no problem with a state contract and we will gladly use it.  But, there is certainly no requirement to use it.  And we have found that Sellers in particular and Buyers really appreciate contracts that are much shorter and written in plain English rather than legal speak.  Attorneys have no problem with these contracts in our state which is a wonderful thing.  We also encourage Buyers and Sellers to, if they are concerned about their contract being too “simple” or too “short” that by all means they can review it with their attorney.  What we have found without exception is that they don’t have any problem with it with the only changes coming usually being specific concerns regarding a specific item on the contract or a special thing that the Buyers/Sellers would want us to notate.  An example of this would be just taking a statement ‘As-Is’, and highlighting it with something to the effect of ‘Seller selling the house As-Is and will not repair anything’ to which we say that’s fine, let’s plug it in.  We’ll both initial it and it’s all good.  We find that many people really do appreciate the simplicity of paperwork that is effective.  Have solid paperwork but again keep it simple as everyone loves to read in plain English.  And some people don’t even like to read so they really appreciate it!

There are many more factors we can talk about with regards to the K.I.S.S. theory in Real Estate these are just some common one to practically any Real Estate transaction. Simplicity will allow your transaction to go so much more smoothly whether you are buying or selling a piece of property or working with someone to buy and sell it for you.  No matter what the case keep it simple use plain English and all parties have a higher likelihood of coming out satisfied in the end with the results.  Best wishes to your simplicity!