How to Survive a Real Estate Slump

If you’re reading this, you’ve already survived the worst of this slump, and this one’s been a real doozy. I’ve survived other housing slumps (early 70s, early 80s, and early 90s), and they all had four traits in common:

1. Housing slumps feed on themselves: buyers wait because they think prices will fall, and prices fall because buyers are waiting.

2. Prospective buyers and sellers (and some agents) ignore good news, and overreact to bad news.

3. The recovery does not begin with a bounce off the bottom of some statistical graph; it starts when people get bored with their sour mood and are tired of waiting.

4. When the recovery begins, it builds strength fast.

Here are some time-proven ways to continue surviving the remainder of this current slump, so that you will be ready to profit from the approaching recovery:


Manage your mood
Ignore bad news; it probably has little or no real effect on you. Good news is everywhere, but you have to look for it. Avoid at all costs getting caught in the spiral of gloom that paralyzes the masses.


Be a missionary
Do you think this is a good time to buy? If so, spread the word, and repeat your message until it starts growing on people. Be a herald for the first-time homebuyer tax credit, today’s low interest rates, ample FHA mortgage money begging for borrowers, and the news that savvy buyers are buying now.


Start your own personal recovery
Set specific time-phased production goals for yourself today, and get serious about them. Thousands of agents and brokers are earning good incomes right now because they are not waiting for the consumer confidence index to rise.


Baton down your budget
The housing recovery could be around the corner, but why gamble on it? Instead, be a good business manager by hunkering down into a temporary austerity mode with these budgetary adjustments:

• Decide how much you will spend each week at restaurants, coffee shops, and other entertainment venues. Instead, make your own sandwich, brew your own coffee, and find entertainment opportunities at home.
• Do not renew subscriptions. Read the news online.
• Drive different: slow starts, stay the speed limit, gradual stops. And don’t drive anywhere unless you need to.
• Negotiate lower rates with your phone service, trash service, and other vendors. If you threaten to go elsewhere, they’ll often give you a deal.

Learn the fun of cooking with fresh ingredients. Your meals will be cheaper, tastier, and more nutritious than deli take-out.


Avoid whiners and grumblers
Bad attitudes are contagious, so avoid getting infected. Better yet, be positive around your clients, co-workers, and family. They’ll like you better, and you’ll feel more like the winner you really are.

Take care, and savor the day.