Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Top Realtor Ponte Vedra Sets Expectations

REE #272 Transcript

[00:00:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I always say timeline's the most important thing. You know, people don't wanna take their house off the market. So I tend to win them more by trying to make the timeframes as short as possible. That's my little trick.

[00:00:14] Tracy Hayes: Hey, welcome back to the Real Estate Excellence Podcast. In a market where spans are short and expectations are high, real estate must be more than just transaction managers. They must be advisors, marketing strategists, and fierce advocates.

[00:00:59] Tracy Hayes: Today's guest blends all of that with an edge, a deep understanding of Florida, a background in both banking and interior design, and a strong digital presence that attracts buyers and sellers across the country. Whether it's staging a home to perfection, pricing with precision, or negotiating with confidence, she makes it her mission to deliver results while still making the experience feel personable and approachable.
If you're looking for someone who truly knows how to combine strategy, style, and service, then lean in. Please welcome Jean DeMunck to the show. Welcome, glad you made it down this morning.

[00:01:35] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Thanks for having me.

[00:01:36] Tracy Hayes: Yeah. We were talking pre-show a little bit. You know, this is an interesting market right now. I mean, you're sitting on a lot of listings, but a lot of top agents are sitting on some of 'em—a lot of 'em in double digits as you are.

[00:01:47] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:01:47] Tracy Hayes: Yeah. Yeah. So we want to definitely break that down. Anyone listening to it here in, what is now the end of June 2025—yeah, halfway through the year.
But you've been in the business for almost 15 years, if I got your LinkedIn correctly—somewhere in there. You said 2011?

[00:02:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I think so.

[00:02:01] Tracy Hayes: I'm really curious—you, as we'll talk about through the show, the different things that you've seen change. There are agents who are listening out there who may have just become an agent in 2021.
You know, they've seen a market change, but they haven't seen a market change, and then change again, and then change again—as you have, and as I have too, 20 years into this business.

[00:02:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:02:26] Tracy Hayes: So, kick us off a little bit—where's Bobbie Jean from? Tell us a little bit about what 18-year-old Bobbie Jean was envisioning herself doing for a career.

[00:02:34] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, I'm from South Florida. I've lived—grew up kind of in Central Florida. Been in Jacksonville, you know, 15, 20 years—I think I lost track. I noticed I can't get my timeline of life together anymore. Must be the age.

[00:02:48] Tracy Hayes: Yeah. Yeah. It starts to all blend together. That's what's unbelievable about—especially when you have kids.

[00:02:53] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:02:54] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:02:54] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, 18-year-old Bobbie Jean was almost married, having a baby. So envisioning real estate wasn't it. But I love interior design, I love banking, I've always loved housing, and I love sales.
And I believe real estate's about sales. I mean, you know, you're selling yourself, a buyer, a seller. You're selling your listings. You know, you have to.

[00:03:14] Tracy Hayes: Is it you like the—when you say sales, it's just kind of the challenge of it?

[00:03:18] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:03:19] Tracy Hayes: And I don't want to use—I think the psychologists use the word "manipulate," but you're not really—you don't, you're not really manipulating in real estate.
You're understanding what they want and then showing 'em what they want—they're selling themselves, really. Right?

[00:03:33] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, that's why I think it's great when you hire an agent who actually listens. Because if you listen to your buyers and sellers and really dig down, you can normally find them what they want.
And you do have to, you know, sell your offers to the sellers and the agents and build relationships. So I think that's why I like it. Yeah. I like the challenge of negotiation.

[00:03:57] Tracy Hayes: Well, and the key part of negotiation is actually, you know, knowing when to speak and when not to.

[00:04:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Right.

[00:04:01] Tracy Hayes: Which means a lot of listening. That's part of, you know, that whole "How to Win Friends and Influence People"—but you know, the whole strategy is listening a lot…

[00:04:09] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Uh-huh.

[00:04:10] Tracy Hayes: …and then responding as if you actually did listen to them, and winning them over. Right?

[00:04:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I like how you did the "and did listen to them."

[00:04:24] Tracy Hayes: Well, and because that's both. You're not only—like, I think you gestured something there too—you're working with your buyer.
You know, in most cases you're showing them homes that they've asked you to show. You're not limited to an inventory on a car lot.
Yeah, if you're working on a car lot—"Hey, I'm selling Toyotas"—that's all you have. You have all these homes that you can show them based on what their wants are and area of town and so forth.
But really, it's—half the sales is actually taking their offer and selling it to the listing agent and seller.

[00:04:58] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes. I mean, it's really, you know, making sure you can tweak the timelines, you know, you're giving the best price, can add value. I always say timeline's the most important thing. You know, people don't wanna take their house off the market. So I tend to win them more by trying to make the timeframes as short as possible. That's my little trick.

[00:05:17] Tracy Hayes: Well, no, that's—

[00:05:18] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: —an old trick, but—

[00:05:19] Tracy Hayes: —that's actually an interesting tip there. Let's drill into that a little bit because the buyer and a seller—you know, I was actually, uh, first time I did it, but I just—a recent person, loan I was working on—and I went in to chat and I said, "Hey, write them this email."
'Cause we can talk to people, but yeah, we followed up with a little email, say, "Hey, this is what we talked about," right? Yeah. And I said, "Okay, I want you to create a little timeline for 'em, 'cause we need to do this, this, and this."
And you know, it gives them peace of mind, 'cause they know what's happening—a little bit of what's supposed to happen next.

[00:06:00] Tracy Hayes: And obviously, a seller—probably one of the biggest questions as a listing agent, would you agree, is like, "How fast do we want to sell this?"

[00:06:03] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:06:03] Tracy Hayes: You know, are you under contract in another home? You know, do we need to drop this one to get there? Are you moving because of work? Or whatever the reason—they have a reason for selling and a timeframe for how fast they want to sell.

[00:06:15] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes. And now it's not like it was before when homes were flying off the market and people were paying over pricing. So now it's even more sensitive.
Going back to the time thing you were saying, being able to explain to them that we're not in that market—it's gonna sit a little longer. Stay positive.
You know, we're marketing it, have a great product, we just gotta get the price right to get it in front of the right person.

[00:06:37] Tracy Hayes: Give me an idea—because it sounds like to me, and help me if I'm wrong—when you're making your offer, when you're representing the buyer and you're making that offer, what do you do to kind of get across or sell the seller on the offer with the timeline that you're pushing?
I think a lot of us would assume that you are pushing a quick close, but not everyone wants a quick close.

[00:07:05] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. I normally try to reach out to the agent to ask what's important. It's been—the market's been a little kind of crazy, you don't have as many multiple offers. I have seen some, but when I do, I think having really more of a shorter inspection period time is very important because that’s, you know, you're taking it off and then—what if the house has issues?
No one wants to do repairs. It's a big hurdle.
So I always try to get that. So trying to have good relationships with my home inspectors because, you know, if I want like a three or five day turnaround on my home inspection, that's pretty fast.

[00:07:51] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:07:51] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: That's kind of the leverage I did, especially during the—when things were going crazy. I mean, I would do 24 hours sometimes to win 'em.
And, you know, loan approval as well. Just making sure that you're not—like, I've noticed, 'cause you know, dealing on the other end, being a listing agent and working with a lot of sellers—that's what I look at when I look at the offers.
Not only do I look at the price, it's more of those timeframes. Because that's where we're taking it off the market.
And you know, right now—this is really normally busy season—so we don't wanna be taking it off and then miss our little window.

[00:08:15] Tracy Hayes: Yeah. Plus it makes everyone look bad.

[00:08:17] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:08:17] Tracy Hayes: You know, a house going back on the market—"What's wrong with it?"
There's always something wrong with it. What's the rumor gonna be around? There's something wrong with the house or something wrong with that buyer, right?
Yeah. We don't ever know. I have noticed—and I think this needs to be stamped out in the thing from the lending side—the loan approval.
And I've always had a sense of urgency when in a purchase or refinance. I was doing a lot more refinances when I was working, you know, working Quicken Loans—now Rocket—and loan people from a call center environment, 'cause they were refi shops. That's what they did.

[00:09:00] Tracy Hayes: And so we were literally in, you know, 30–40 minutes conversing, close documents out, maybe even signed while you still have 'em on the phone, right? Boom. It's in process.
No one else is involved but you and the homeowner.
But when you're in a purchase situation, to create a sense of urgency upfront—because you have so many other tangibles and other people involved, you know, we're not in control of the appraiser, how fast he gets out there or not.
We're not in control of the title company—if they're dragging butt or if there's a problem in the title. We don't know these things are gonna happen until they happen.

[00:09:48] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Right.

[00:09:49] Tracy Hayes: And I see the loan contingency like sometimes almost the whole length of the contract. Like, "Hey, we're closing on the 30th," and they have until the 29th for loan approval.
I'm like—so I'm trying to understand—are you really saying clear to close in the contract? Or really are they—because they really should have loan approval if they are working with a sense of urgency.
The document—you got a contract, loan applications out to them, they e-sign it, they get any extra supporting docs—they haven't already submitted pay stubs and all that stuff—so get that stuff submitted.
A week, especially right now when business is not like—like...

[00:10:00] Tracy Hayes: It was in '21—we might be backed up. We're not backed up now. So with the loan, they're processing—they should have an approval in a week, 10 days. They should have a conditional approval at that point.

[00:10:12] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:10:13] Tracy Hayes: But why are—why is—I don't understand that. So when you're talking about creating that timeline and saying, "Hey, we need loan approval, I’ll get loan approval faster," why are so many giving them until the end of the contract?

[00:10:37] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah, you have to really watch out for that because I think people—it's the number one thing I look at.
'Cause I'm right with you. Like, I—you know, I actually got one on one of my listings.
And then explaining it to the buyer is the same. You know, it's a little easier to explain it to your buyer, but your seller doesn't even really know that because they're not on the other side.
And even if they just bought a house, sometimes they don't even know it.

[00:10:57] Tracy Hayes: Right.

[00:10:57] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: But I always make it at least seven to ten business days before closing. And just, you know, staying on top of them, making sure they are doing their documents.
And sometimes, you know, the buyer could drop the ball too, and they're not sending documents.
So it's just kind of keeping everyone in line.
But I don't know why you would have it till the day before, because that means that day before they can back out on the—well, it should—and then you just took it off the market for what? At least probably 21 days, let's say.

[00:11:26] Tracy Hayes: I think it would recoil back into the process and make the lenders work a little—you know, we know there's, you know, just as there's bad real estate agents, there are bad lenders out there.

[00:11:35] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:11:36] Tracy Hayes: Some of them are dragging their feet. They're—you know, whatever. They're not getting this document.
They know what needs to be done. They know what they need in this situation to get it cleared up to an approval, but they're like afraid to tell the customer.
Tell the customer they gotta get off their couch and go get it.
You know, there's something—I don't know what it is. It's bad news. But you know what? We found out this happened in your life—'cause they find out everything.

[00:12:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:12:01] Tracy Hayes: And we need a document for it. I don’t care if you have to call the courthouse in California to get it. That’s what you have to do.

[00:12:06] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: You spent a dollar twenty-five—what was that?

[00:12:09] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, exactly. Well, yeah. People don’t understand.

[00:12:12] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:12:13] Tracy Hayes: People don’t understand that. I have to remind them—housing is one of the biggest money laundering platforms out there.

[00:12:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:12:20] Tracy Hayes: Because it’s large chunks of money. And we need to know where every dollar comes from.
Now sometimes they do get mad, but it’s not the lender—it’s the guidelines.
And the underwriter has to protect their tail. If that loan comes back, that underwriter could lose their license to earn a living.

[00:12:36] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Wow.

[00:12:37] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, you know? That kind of thing.
But let’s go back to you—so interior design, one of your passions.

[00:12:39] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: God-given talent. I call it a God-given talent. Yes. I love it.

[00:12:42] Tracy Hayes: Did you actually take it to the street level—in other words, other than how, obviously, you use it probably, you know, staging homes and helping people get their homes ready to sell—but did you actually at a time have a career in that?

[00:12:53] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes. I used to do it, just self-employed—had a company. And then I worked for a design center for about over a year and a half here in Jacksonville.
They’re no longer around. That was a long time ago.

[00:13:03] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:13:04] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: But I’ve loved it since I was a kid. I love old, you know, architectural buildings. I can walk in and envision ripping walls down.
I kind of grew up in construction with my dad doing a whole bunch of stuff, and, you know, I can actually lay floors—

[00:13:21] Tracy Hayes: —tile work?

[00:13:22] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yep.

[00:13:22] Tracy Hayes: Well, so tile work.
Let’s take that and that experience and share with some of the audience who may not obviously have that background—which I think is probably a lot of agents.

[00:13:31] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:13:31] Tracy Hayes: But you didn’t get to the level you’re at by not probably having some conversations with some of your sellers.

[00:13:46] Tracy Hayes: And so share with us a little bit—what kind of things, maybe some recent stories, that you have of going in and really, you know, telling a client, “We need to declutter” or whatever, and how it turned around and they got either top dollar or sold it quickly because they took your advice.

[00:13:56] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. It was probably years ago. I had a client—of course, hated real estate agents because, you know, they were unhappy with theirs. And I came in—great couple, I'm still friends with them to this day. They actually just texted me the other day about something.
And they had a lot of stuff, but the stuff was very personal. That’s the thing you have to get over—it’s the personal stuff.
And, you know, everyone thinks their house is gorgeous and beautiful. So I always just try to go in—I used to do a lot in the beginning—I’d go in and really help dig down, declutter with them.
As you get burned a couple of times, you stop doing the little extra things sometimes.
And I've gone in and done design, moved things around for people and they, you know, they get a little, “Why are you moving that chair?” And I’ve, you know—right?
But with these people, I went in—we decluttered and helped pack and move stuff.
And, you know, their house had been on the market for months and months. And when people came in, it didn’t look like the same house. I was like, “Hey, you gotta paint this, you gotta clean this.”
Because being in interior design, when I go look at houses—like even when I’m, you know, FaceTiming for your buyers—you want to point out everything because you don’t want them to come and be surprised.
And I always look at the little details like, you know, did they caulk down there? Nope, they didn’t. Oh, they didn’t touch up that paint, or the wall’s dirty.
But I’m a little OCD, so I probably look to an extreme.

[00:15:17] Tracy Hayes: Well, I mean—and they’ve done research on this. I mean, they've videoed people looking at homes and recorded what they’re saying.

[00:15:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:15:25] Tracy Hayes: And you know, I think one of the biggest things I always laugh about is—they walk into a master bedroom and say, “Will my king-size bed fit in here?”
Because people don’t listen. Some people just have that spatial issue going on.
And, you know, where you and I—I think I could walk into a place and visualize it without any of its stuff in there.

[00:15:49] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:15:49] Tracy Hayes: But a lot of people—especially, would you agree—a lot of buyers right now, the majority, and probably—I would go high in the nineties percentile—they want a turnkey place.

[00:16:01] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Oh, absolutely.
If your—as you can say—product is not, I mean, beautiful, it’s not gonna get top dollar right now.
Yeah. I mean, it needs—like, details matter.
I do think staging homes helps, especially now. Even from an appraisal aspect.
They do show better online—they show better, which is where everyone looks: online.

[00:16:23] Tracy Hayes: Right.

[00:16:24] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And you can do virtual staging, you know, for people who don’t have the budget, or maybe the house is empty.
But I do think it’s important.
But I also—on the buyer side of the design aspect—I love it.
Because, you know, if they're like, “Yeah, I don’t think this will fit in here,” I’ll be like, “Yeah, no, you could probably put a bed here. You’d have enough for a dresser.”
Or, “I don’t like this.” Well, you could paint the color.
You know, “If you painted the house this color, it would look so much bigger.”
So for me, I always try to overcome those hurdles. Because I know on the other side—now, I’ll get feedback sometimes from agents that are like, “They didn’t like the paint color,” or, “This didn’t work out.”
So then I’ll always have something to be like, “Well, you could do this and this—did you share that with your buyer?”
So I kind of use it on both sides.
Or like, if the house already—I know, you know, you list properties that need work, right?

[00:17:23] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:17:23] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So if I already, in my mind, have something—when I go to do the showing—I’ll be like, “Hey listen, these are some pointers, just so you know. This property—you could do this, you could do that. We’re aware the flooring needs to be redone,” blah blah blah blah.

[00:17:23] Tracy Hayes: Do you try to—especially a little bit of a project like that, especially if you're on the listing side—reach out and get some numbers?
Kind of do some preliminary work?
'Cause you said you know how to lay floors.
So, obviously, flooring is probably the biggest—“Hey, what’s it gonna cost to replace the carpet in here?”
Actually get some real numbers.
'Cause I think when you leave something so open to those who are open for suggestion—people who don’t know what they’re talking about—

[00:17:52] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. The job could be like—in your mind, you know—“Yeah, it’s a $50,000 job.”
You're like, “No, that’s like $15,000.”

[00:17:59] Tracy Hayes: It’s—

[00:18:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: —not. But it is, again—

[00:18:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: That’s why I partner with a lot of people. Clients—even after I sell them a house—will call me. So I always have a brochure. It’s actually ready to go out, and it’s full of people I’ve used, you know, from anywhere—from painting, remodeling, survey companies—whatever. You know, everyone you build relationships with.

[00:18:17] Tracy Hayes: Well, that says a lot about your career and your success as a real estate agent.
Because I occasionally see somebody post on Facebook, “Hey, does someone know a whatever?” And I’m like, you are a real estate agent. You are embarrassing yourself.

[00:18:33] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Wait—I—that is my—

[00:18:35] Tracy Hayes: —first impression.

[00:18:36] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: You know why? Because I actually found the number. I wanted my pool table moved, and I was like, “Man, where’s this pool table guy?” I know I have it.
So I found him—I don’t even have him saved. You know how I found him? Saved as “Pool Table Guy.”

[00:18:48] Tracy Hayes: Pool table guy!

[00:18:48] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.
So I finally found him. But again, certain industries—people go out. It’s very hard to find reliable plumbers, electricians. So even though at a time you might know someone… you know?

[00:19:00] Tracy Hayes: Don’t say that about realtors.
Well, when that moment comes—and that’s how I put 'em in my phone too—I’ll put their name and then obviously the name of their company, 'cause it has that line for it.
Or, you know, especially if I have a borrower, I’ll put the real estate agent’s name—I’ll say, “Bobbie Jean’s client.”
So when they call, I can immediately connect and get that deal in my mind—know who this person is.

[00:19:23] Tracy Hayes: But as a real estate agent—you know, other top real estate agents—when your plumber goes down, that other person should know.
You know what I’m saying?

[00:19:31] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:19:32] Tracy Hayes: You should really be calling your teammate or someone in the office. Say, “Hey, Bobbie Jean’s a top agent. I know she’s got a Rolodex. Do you have someone that does drywall work?”

[00:19:48] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I do that. Yeah. And I have people who call me, but still—I always say like, electricians and plumbing is like a dying market right now. It is really hard to—

[00:19:56] Tracy Hayes: Well, I don’t think it’s a dying market.
I think what’s happening is—the guys that have time for you today are getting their business going.
In six months, they’re so busy, they’re hard to even schedule.

[00:20:08] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:20:09] Tracy Hayes: Because they’re in demand. As soon as they start building a reputation, they’re getting calls and their bucket’s full.
But kind of roundabout to this discussion—is how important is it, as any agent, to be successful—to have that Rolodex?
To be able to get answers really quick? Or, you know, you’ve got a 30-day sale and something needs to be fixed.
You want someone there right now, not next week. 'Cause they might find another problem.
You want them out there like tomorrow, because you need to get the problem solved and put it to bed.

[00:20:41] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. That’s why I think relationships are extremely important.
So when you're considering an agent to list or buy a property with, you know—having relationships with everyone is honestly, I think, what makes a good agent.
Because they can help their client and, you know, go above and beyond and build those relationships.
And, you know, they’re always gonna have—you are not just a real estate agent. I'm gonna put you on the spot.
You're a counselor and… wait, what else? You gotta stay positive all the time, even though sometimes…

[00:21:14] Tracy Hayes: Oh, I—this has been—I wouldn’t say it’s been recently.
It comes—I go through these stages in… your episode 272.

[00:21:20] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Okay.

[00:21:21] Tracy Hayes: Yeah. 272, I think. 272.
Yeah, 272. 272.
Because I really think agents—some of, and even some of the top agents—fall into this category.

[00:21:38] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:21:39] Tracy Hayes: My belief, talking to over 250 of you…

[00:21:42] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:21:43] Tracy Hayes: …of all the pros—and then going in and getting, and I’m only getting it, you know, from the lending side— [00:21:43] Tracy Hayes: …want to have on your speed dial to make your deals happen.
And you—you said the word "relationship."
I think too many agents are sitting back in their chair, and because—as loan officers, as any of these other guys—we want to cater to…

[00:22:07] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:22:08] Tracy Hayes: …because you are a big resource—as a pinnacle in the community—of things that are happening around a real estate agent.
Every move involves all these things.
I think Tom tells me there are 267 things that people do when they buy a new house—whatever those things are.
I mean, turning power on, getting cable—I mean, think about all these different things—buying furniture, whatever it is.
You are the center of a lot of the economy.
And the real estate transaction means so much to our economy as well.

But as the agent, to reach out and actually say, “Hey, you are a good inspector. You are a good loan officer,” and actually get together and say, “How are we gonna…”
Like you said—you were talking this morning—your team can be hard to work with.
Not with buyers or sellers, but with some of your support people, right?
We are all like that. We all have our little thing, right?
There's people who like each other for different reasons or whatever.
But to create those relationships—because it will not only make your life easier as a real estate agent, but it’ll allow those other people to pour more time into your people knowing that they are important.
And they don’t want to lose that go-to.

[00:23:48] Tracy Hayes: The joke in our business is—real estate agents, they make no commitment to know anyone.

[00:23:53] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:23:54] Tracy Hayes: And there's a few listening who might say, “Oh, I use the same person for this all the time.”
I’ve had someone tell me they’ve been using the same loan officer for like six or seven years.
I’m like, “Oh wow.”
That’s rare.

But because the agents are looking for the commitment from the people who are bowing to them, saying, “Thank you for the business,” they’re missing out.
Because they’re not pouring back into the agent and creating the relationship that you were just talking about.
Do you understand what I’m—

[00:24:37] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Because we’re out there trying to—we're like, “Does she like me? Does she like me? Does she want to date me?”
No, ‘cause that’s really—I mean, it’s kind of what you're doing, right?
It’s kind of that human thing going back and forth.
And I really feel—if you're listening right now and you find a loan officer you like, or a home inspector you like—pour into them.
Until they obviously, you know…

But stuff is going to happen.
And you might be disappointed.
They might say, “I can’t do this loan. Like that condo—”
Doesn’t mean another lender might not be able to pick it up.

[00:25:15] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.
Well, I also feel that each—you know, when it comes to lenders—I’ve probably used the same circle of them.

[00:25:22] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:25:23] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: But I also love to meet new ones.
Because you’ll realize, just like when realtors get busy, they might not want to take on certain clients.
Well, lenders get the same way when they get busy.
You know, it’s a lot easier—

[00:25:36] Tracy Hayes: I’m with you.

[00:25:37] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: —I’m with you—to do the easy job.
But if you give them one that, “Eh, I gotta send extra papers, this is too much work…”

[00:25:44] Tracy Hayes: Well, I gotta actually have some hard conversations with the buyer—with the borrower.
I’m with you. That one’s fireable.
That loan officer’s fireable at that point.

[00:25:49] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So I do feel that building relationships—and I think you should have a bucket list, as many.
‘Cause, you know, just like there’s a lot of realtors, lenders, title companies—each one probably has a relationship with that person ‘cause they’ve probably done something above and beyond.
They built the relationship and the trust.

[00:26:00] Tracy Hayes: They had some value in—

[00:26:01] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Correct.

[00:26:01] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:26:02] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: But when it comes to lending, there are so many different programs.
And if you are working with people, the whole goal is to get the home sold so that the buyer’s happy and the seller’s happy.
That is really the whole point of the transaction.

[00:26:17] Tracy Hayes: Right.

[00:26:18] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So it’s about getting the right person.
Because the person I might use all the time that I refer—“Hey, these are the two lenders I use”—you know, I always like to…
You know, personalities—you kind of know in your head sometimes what personality is going to work well with another.

[00:26:32] Tracy Hayes: I’ve heard that story before.

[00:26:05] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: …like—

[00:26:06] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:26:06] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: You know, and—

[00:26:07] Tracy Hayes: I don’t think there’s any concrete evidence to it, but I have heard many people gesture toward that.

[00:26:13] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I always say, “Hey, listen. You know, it’s just like any sales job. Here’s two or three lenders I’ve used—they’ve done transactions for me for seven years,” let’s just say—giving you an example.
And, “Hey, which one do you like best?” I always look at them and say, “Whoever answers and gets back to you the fastest—that’s the one you should hire.”

[00:26:37] Tracy Hayes: Answering the phone.

[00:26:38] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Answering the phone.

[00:26:39] Tracy Hayes: Because—like any sales—there are, and I think this is in any… it could be used car sales…

[00:26:45] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Anything. You’re selling anything—

[00:26:47] Tracy Hayes: Anything—there’s always salespeople…

[00:26:49] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:26:49] Tracy Hayes: …who have a good month, and then they go away for a moment.
It might be a month or two because all of a sudden they’re on vacation or they don’t need to answer the phone.
They need to go do all these things that they couldn’t do the month they were so busy.

[00:27:05] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:27:05] Tracy Hayes: And, you know, those are—I—we say fireable people.
They're not in the game. Because I don’t see you doing that.
You have a great month and say, “Oh, you know what? I’m not gonna prospect this month. I had a great month last month, I’m just gonna roll with what I got.”
You gotta keep that pipeline going.

[00:27:23] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah, you gotta keep that pipeline going.

[00:27:25] Tracy Hayes: You know, there’s always those people.
And I agree with you from the standpoint—you have to have multiple lenders.
And talking just about lending, you have to have lenders who are also willing to say, “You know what? We don’t do a VA construction loan, but I know Tom and Tracy over at Planet Home Lending—they do VA construction loans. You need to go give them a call—or here, I’ll set the introduction.”

[00:27:50] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: That is a good lender.
And again, it goes back to—what is the main goal of everyone in that transaction?

[00:27:56] Tracy Hayes: Exactly. It’s to—

[00:27:57] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: —take care of the clients.
So, you know, even—let’s say I ran into a situation where I’ve had a bad experience with someone on the lending side.
And I could have just been the listing agent.
But maybe the buyer used them.
But, you know, they might have a great experience with the same person.
So I do think having some options is important.
Because again, it goes back to—if that person’s really busy.
Of course, everyone knows a lot of lenders.
But I’ve run into lenders where I’m like, “Well, I did call you, but you didn’t answer.”

[00:28:26] Tracy Hayes: Yeah. I will expose what “busy” is in the mortgage business.
I worked in the call center for 12 years—with people listening to your calls and monitoring your, “Hey, how many credit reports did you pull today? How many hours were you on the phone?”
That’s a big-Z mortgage lender.

The average person around here that’s writing even three to five loans a month—if they’re that good, they have an assistant.
If they’re consistently writing three to five loans a month—and their company that they’re actually working for—their processor is like an assistant.
And they are really running the show.
The loan officer takes the app, submits it.
A smart loan officer is gonna say, “Hey, processor—you’re smarter than me.”

[00:29:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: ‘Cause they are.

[00:29:01] Tracy Hayes: They see a lot more deals.
‘Cause they’re working with—who knows—like a transaction coordinator.
They’re working with a bunch of people.
They see all—they’re working on it. They’re emailing out, getting the documents.
Call me if the buyer doesn’t respond or doesn’t send something to you—then I get on the phone and kick them in the butt or whatever. Or get the agent involved.
That’s our more normal loan.
There is not a loan officer in this town that is actually “too busy.”
Just sayin’.

[00:29:42] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. You’re never too busy.

[00:29:43] Tracy Hayes: I worked 12 hours a day in a call center.

[00:29:45] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: You’re never too busy for anything in life. It’s what you wanna make time for in your life.

[00:29:49] Tracy Hayes: There you go.
Alright, alright, alright. I’m off my soapbox.
Alright. I just had to get that out.
Something was on my mind this morning. I said, “I gotta talk about that today.”
Alright, so, you know—I took your bio. I want to talk a little bit about artificial intelligence.
Are you using any AI to do any of your work or listing descriptions or anything?

[00:30:06] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I run stuff through AI.

[00:30:08] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.
So I fortunately had Lyman Starer on.
Lyman has created an actual AI home search.

[00:30:16] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:30:16] Tracy Hayes: And people are lumping out—I’m seeing all these trainings going on. People say, “Oh, we’re gonna talk about AI today.”
You don’t—I look at the person—“You don’t know anything. All you’re doing is watching somebody on YouTube and trying to regurgitate what they’re telling you.”

[00:30:32] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:30:33] Tracy Hayes: And then that person is regurgitating from someone else.
But he’s actually doing it—Lyman’s actually doing where you actually are having…

[00:30:40] Tracy Hayes: …a conversation, just like if you and I were talking. You were having a buyer consultation with me—“Hey, what kind of house are you looking for? How many bedrooms? How many kids do you have?” ‘Cause you need to know—how many dogs or whatever—and all those kinds of things you ask…

[00:30:51] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:30:52] Tracy Hayes: …to kind of, you know, help drive. That’s what AI can do.

[00:30:56] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:30:57] Tracy Hayes: But it can’t just grab the MLS and tell you—because who puts the information in the MLS?

[00:30:58] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: We do. Yes.

[00:30:59] Tracy Hayes: And here’s one of the biggest things—I was going around with Lyman and talking to brokers and agents about this and they’re like, “Yeah, we hate it when that agent—it’s got a pool, but they don’t put it in the description. And the only reason we know it has a pool is because it’s in the pictures.”
So he’s actually developing AI where it’s reading the pictures.

[00:31:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:31:19] Tracy Hayes: And also taking, you know, the areas where you put all the details about the home in.

[00:31:23] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I see. I see.

[00:31:24] Tracy Hayes: ‘Cause agents are not perfect people.

[00:31:26] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: What? What?

[00:31:27] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.
So just to put that out there—that is out there and coming.
He’s actually got it right now where you can put his widget on your current site. People normally go on and do a dropdown—“Hey, I want a three-bedroom, I want to do whatever.”
And it’s actually where they can start typing in—like they’re typing into ChatGPT—or talk to it and have a conversation with it about what kind of home they want.
And it starts pulling listings and narrowing it down, narrowing it down—the more information they give, the more refined.

But this is where Zillow and these other places—Zillow, that’s not their platform.

[00:32:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:32:00] Tracy Hayes: Because they want that lead up front so they can sell it to you. That’s their money generator.
What this is doing is keeping people on your site longer—because they’re going to your site and they’re not going to Zillow—because it’s this.
More and more people are moving over to artificial intelligence because it actually gives them the answers versus a bunch of ads like Google.

[00:32:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: It’s free. Yeah. It’s your free assistant.

[00:32:21] Tracy Hayes: Or even Zillow—it’s who’s paying the most. Or other sites—who’s paying the most is gonna pop up first.
So, just a little tip on it.
Agents that are listening out there—when you go do your bio…

[00:32:34] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:32:35] Tracy Hayes: You go and do your listing descriptions—AI is looking for AI.
So as things evolve…

[00:32:39] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:32:40] Tracy Hayes: …and AI is searching around for these homes—if you’re using AI, it’s looking for itself out there first.
It’s natural language that it’s creating. So create your—put your information in for your bio, let it write it.
Do your listing description—I already did—let it write it.
But you can actually upload the pictures to AI.

[00:32:58] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yep.

[00:32:58] Tracy Hayes: Which is very interesting.

[00:33:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I showed you—I showed you my picture. I uploaded pictures and that’s what it spit out.

[00:33:04] Tracy Hayes: If you’re not doing that—if you’re doing a listing description, upload the pictures and say, “Okay, create a listing description.”

[00:33:11] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yep. And then—

[00:33:11] Tracy Hayes: —go in and add some extra in there and then finalize it.

[00:33:14] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. Make it your own.

[00:33:15] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.
But it’ll actually do a lot of work and probably point out things that maybe, you know, you might miss or just not think is important—but it finds it for you.

[00:33:23] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Oh, I love AI.

[00:33:24] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:33:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I use it to write a lot of my, uh, Google reviews.

[00:33:30] Tracy Hayes: What?

[00:33:31] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:33:32] Tracy Hayes: Oh—reviews for others? You’re not reviewing yourself?

[00:33:33] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Reviews. Well, yeah. Wherever I go—

[00:33:35] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:33:35] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: —I like to leave reviews.

[00:33:37] Tracy Hayes: Oh!

[00:33:38] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: A little marketing. Yeah. A little tool in my marketing.
But yeah, I’ll leave reviews. And I go in there like, “Can you please make this with 120 or 150 words—make it appeal to [audience]…”

[00:33:51] Tracy Hayes: And that’s the basics of AI—it can do so many things as they’re coming out.

[00:33:55] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: My favorite is, “Please take out that…”
Like, you’re like, “I didn’t even say that word—take that word out.”

[00:34:00] Tracy Hayes: Well…

[00:34:01] Tracy Hayes: One of the basic things I do is for my descriptions and IG captions, right?

[00:34:06] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:34:06] Tracy Hayes: And what I—I catch it sometimes, even though I’ve told it, ‘cause I’ve done so many with it—do not put a link in there that isn’t the actual link. Right?
So if you don’t actually say, “Hey, this is Bobbie Jean’s Instagram,” and I tell it to put her social media in there—it’ll make up its own Bobbie Jean Instagram thing, and it might not even be your true Instagram.

[00:34:39] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Oh, yeah. You have to catch it.
So I go—I’ve told it numerous times and I have to catch it so often.
If you don’t actually have the link, do not make one up. I scold it every so often.

[00:34:45] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:34:45] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: When I leave reviews sometimes, I’ll be like, “Hey, please add their website in from Google,” da-da-da-da.

[00:34:47] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:34:48] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And let it read your bio.

[00:34:50] Tracy Hayes: Okay. What is that?

[00:34:51] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I—

[00:34:52] Tracy Hayes: Well, the introduction—my intro—was created by ChatGPT.

[00:34:56] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mmm.

[00:34:57] Tracy Hayes: So I upload it—that’s what I’ve been doing. I can upload everyone’s bio.
If they have multiple bios out, I just chunk it all in there and say, “Hey, give me a really good intro for the show.”
Because I upload all my transcripts to the show. That’s how it creates the real—the reel. I’ll say, “Hey, here’s Bobbie Jean’s transcript. In this reel, she’s talking about…”
And then create a caption, and then add all the SEO in there.
So it’s very familiar with the show because it’s reading the transcripts and all the stuff.

[00:35:34] Tracy Hayes: So—here’s a good question right here. You’ve been in real estate about 14, 15 years now.
What skill set do agents need now that wasn’t as critical when you started?

[00:35:34] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, when I started, I feel like—we’re kind of, where homes sat on the market for, you know, 90 days.

[00:35:43] Tracy Hayes: That was standard.

[00:35:43] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: That was standard. It was kind of standard.
I will say now—from when I started—it’s more of just, I feel like buyers don’t have the urgency to go buy.
Unless they really have to—like maybe if they are moving.
That’s what I’ve personally noticed on like my listings is, you know, when you follow up it’s like, “Oh yeah, we just started looking. They’re gonna buy in like four months.”
Well, okay—that’s a long ways away. This house better be gone in four months.

And I feel like people—back then, the rate wasn’t a big issue.
And like now it’s like everyone talks about rate, rate, rate, rate, rate, rate, rate.
And I’m like, okay, we can all refinance when rates drop again.
That’s what they used to do.

[00:36:25] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:36:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I think my parents paid like 12% or something on their rate for a house.

[00:36:29] Tracy Hayes: So if you’re an agent listening right now—
And this is a conversation because I’ve had a recent situation where, yeah—the buyer, they want to buy.
They’re in a condo. They’re ready to get out and get a house.
Excellent customer. They can buy—they literally could buy almost anything they wanted.
A good portion of the homes listed out there today—they could buy, they could get approved for, no problem.
They have money down—the whole nine yards.
They’re waiting for this mystery interest rate.

[00:37:00] Tracy Hayes: Like, they’re like, “Hey, I can’t wait until interest rates get to the low fives.”
I’m like, okay—you have to understand something.
Northeast Florida especially—I think we’re in a unique kind of area.
We have good high-paying jobs here, financial market, lifestyle—we have a lot of things that people are moving to Florida for, right?

[00:37:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:37:26] Tracy Hayes: And COVID accelerated that.
If those rates drop—as we talked about before the show—

[00:37:31] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:37:32] Tracy Hayes: If they drop below 6%, it’s gonna go crazy.

[00:37:34] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:37:35] Tracy Hayes: And right now, being closer to 7%, they can negotiate.
They might get $20,000 or $30,000 off the actual value of the home—as it would comp out or appraise.

[00:37:45] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:37:46] Tracy Hayes: But if it goes down to 6%, they’re not gonna give that discount.
It’s not gonna be a buyer’s market anymore—it’s gonna turn back to the sellers because there’s such a demand in our area.

[00:38:00] Tracy Hayes: And so I’m a hundred percent with you—buy now.
Maybe you get a high 6%, 7%, whatever your interest rate is—do the buy-down.
Negotiate with the seller to get you the buy-down.
So it might give you 24 months of a low payment—knowing that somewhere in that 24 months, if the rates drop, you then refinance and lock in the long-term rate that you want.

[00:38:21] Tracy Hayes: That’s what you should be—every agent should be—having that conversation with these buyers who are kind of procrastinating about, “Oh, the interest rate.”

[00:38:30] Tracy Hayes: Well, you know, suck it up a little bit—but negotiate the buy-down.

[00:38:34] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, and again—it’s, I don’t know how many times I’ve heard, “Oh, this is gonna be my forever home.”

[00:38:37] Tracy Hayes: Oh yeah.

[00:38:40] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So now I’m actually working with clients again that I’ve sold homes for.
So I was like, “Don’t tell me it’s gonna be your forever home,” because that’s what you said on the last one.
So we already know this isn’t your forever home.
And, you know, there’s a lot of other things.
I know you can recast some loans, which is—you know, I think some lenders—I don’t know recently ‘cause I haven’t asked about it—but they could do two recasts, sometimes some can do one recast.
But you never know what life is gonna throw you.
So, like, if you gotta buy—don’t wait.
Don’t be throwing your money away for rent.
You might not be able to buy—let’s say if you’re at your max—you might not be able to buy a lot more house than you used to be able to because of the rate.

[00:39:19] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:39:20] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: But overall, real estate is still a great, great investment.
And eventually those rates are gonna come down.
And if you’re still in that house, you can refinance.
I personally didn’t even buy down my own rate because I was just like—the buy-down was just a little ridiculous.
And I was like, “Ah, well…”

[00:39:37] Tracy Hayes: Unless you can get the seller to pay it—it really…

[00:39:39] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Even then, I was just like—I just want a house.
So, I mean, I guess it depends on how people look at it. And everyone is different.

[00:39:45] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:39:46] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Everyone looks at numbers differently.
I’m always just like, “Hey, just think—in the next year, you know, you can refinance it, and it’ll be down to where you want it to be.”
But I feel like that’s really the biggest hurdle in what a lot of people think—which, houses have been dropping.
Prices have been dropping.

[00:40:03] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:40:03] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: You know, really—‘cause there’s, you know…

[00:40:06] Tracy Hayes: Well…

[00:40:07] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Me, and I know some other agents I’ve spoken to—I mean, showings have been down compared to where it used to be.

[00:40:13] Tracy Hayes: I think people underestimate the number of people who are actually sitting on the sidelines—what we’re discussing.

[00:40:18] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:40:19] Tracy Hayes: They’re looking at the interest rate going, “Oh, I’m gonna wait till it goes back down.”
Okay—one, you’re gonna be out whatever amount of rent you’re paying over that period of time.

[00:40:26] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:40:26] Tracy Hayes: Two—I always tell people, if you find the house that’s in the neighborhood you’re looking for, that has—you know, no house is 100% perfect of what you see your utopia house to be.

[00:40:38] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Even if you build it.

[00:40:39] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, exactly.
But there’s only one piece of dirt with that address—that house—however located, and you love it…

[00:40:47] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:40:48] Tracy Hayes: You’ve gotta move on it.
Because the reality is—even if that house came back around when rates drop, today you might be one of two or three other people who might be looking at that house.
I guarantee if there are three people who are willing to make offers on that perfect, ideal home, ideal neighborhood, schools, whatever—
There’s gonna be 10 or 15 when rates drop.
Because there’s just that many other people on the sidelines.

And then—how many people did you handle—really over the last decade, but especially, you know, ‘19, ‘20, ‘21—when rates were, you know, you were seeing 3-something.
Some of these VA loans were doing below 3%—that were moving from community to community just to be closer to friends.
Or like, “Hey, I live in Nocatee—I don’t like it here anymore,” or vice versa—“I wanna move to Nocatee.”
And we had all these little local moves that have kind of really been stamped down because of the higher rates.

[00:41:43] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:41:43] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:41:43] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And kind of what we were saying before—there still is a lot of money moving into Jacksonville.

[00:41:48] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:41:49] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So there are still a lot of cash transactions—and there always really has been a lot of cash transactions, I feel.
But I do think that if you want to buy a house, it's—well, why wait?

[00:42:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Let’s negotiate the price, you know—let’s make it up to get you where you want to be.
It's very frustrating though, ‘cause you gotta keep everyone excited.
You gotta tell the buyer, “Do you want to buy?”
Then tell the seller, “It’s going to sell—it’s just a little bit slower now, but it’s going to sell.”
You know, “We’re priced right,” or “Hey, we gotta paint this room ‘cause it’s not looking that good.”

[00:42:25] Tracy Hayes: Well, it goes back—I think a lot of people look for that perfect utopia.
You and I have been in the business long enough to know that unicorn does not exist.
If you think it’s your unicorn, you need to move on it.
Because in your eyes it’s a unicorn—but you and I know, if you’re looking for a deal—which, you know, we got all those clients that are always looking—everyone wants to feel like they got a good deal.

Now is the time.
You can negotiate price.
You can’t—you and I, and anyone buying a home right now—we have no control over the interest rate.
You can’t control that.

[00:43:00] Tracy Hayes: So you just—when you say you bought a home in June of 2025—10 years from now, people can predict what interest rate you probably got.

[00:43:02] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:43:02] Tracy Hayes: But negotiating—whether it's off the price or getting the seller to buy the rate down, or paying your closing costs, whatever those other little things are—

[00:43:11] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:43:11] Tracy Hayes: —this is the time to get the deal.

[00:43:14] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:43:14] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:43:15] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I mean, I just think that we should really just educate—because I just had it happen to good friends of mine.
We found out what the house closed for, but we lost—we lost in a multiple offer.
And, you know, they asked me, “What did they pay?”
Because, again, right now, the house was on the market for 30 days.
The day I decided to show it and submit an offer—there was another offer on it.
Okay—Murphy’s Law. No way to know that.

[00:43:38] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:43:39] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And, you know, but a lot of people don’t want to be paying over list because of rate and everything.
And I’m always like, “If you lost this house over $5K, $10K, $15K, $20K, $30K to pay over—would you be able to sleep?”
You know? Or would you just—

[00:43:56] Tracy Hayes: Be upset, right?

[00:43:57] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: They were upset.

[00:44:00] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:44:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So I was joking with them. I said, “I told you guys…”
But when we saw the price—I think there was more behind it.
They overpriced it though, you know?

[00:44:08] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.
Well, let’s strategize.
Let’s talk a little about—because you’ve been through different markets.
We know, in the 2021 time period—I’ve heard of as many as one home having 60 offers.
Literally.
I’m like, “How do you sift through all that?”
How do you strategize now…

[00:44:56] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, I always go back to what I said before—what would you be upset if you lost it over?
And I kind of, I’ll show them the comps and then I really just say, “Okay, let’s put yourself in the seller’s shoes. What do you think is important to them?”
Sometimes price isn’t important—they want it to close in 10 days.

[00:45:14] Tracy Hayes: Right.

[00:45:14] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Maybe they have somewhere to go.
Maybe it’s been on the market for a while and they’re getting ready to close on the new construction—they’re stressed out.
Or they haven’t actually found the home.

[00:45:22] Tracy Hayes: They’re moving too—the seller.
Yeah, so they want a longer close.

[00:45:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: They want—yes. Because you do have that, you know.
Yeah, I’ve—A lot of times I ran across that, “Well, what if I sell it and I have nowhere to go?”
I’m always like, “Don’t worry. We’re going to sell it at the exact time. The exact home’s going to be ready—just watch.”
Because you—in this business—I feel like there’s been homes I put up I’m like, “They’re gonna go so fast.”
Then they take a little longer.
Then I put another one up, and I’m like, “I would’ve thought that would’ve sat a little longer,” but it just flew off the market.

[00:46:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So I feel like just having that conversation of—and you should already kind of know your client from the beginning of like, where their head is.
You know, where’s their max budget?
What’s important to them?

Because I’ve walked into houses and I’m like, “This is the perfect house for you. Like, you like the location, you like this.”
“Yep.”
“You don’t like the color of cabinets—we can paint those. But everything else is great. All the cabinets open and close.”

[00:46:20] Tracy Hayes: We can change the color of the shower curtain—it’s okay.

[00:46:24] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I feel like that’s kind of the market we’re in right now.
It’s just like you have—everyone’s nitpicking things, then you have the interest rate and, you know, you still have some sellers that are in the “I don’t want to give my house away,” you know?

[00:46:36] Tracy Hayes: You’re getting onto something I think is really important.
You know, we kind of gestured a little bit—sometimes we get in our routine and we neglect some of the details.
How important it is to really sit down—because some of these buyers are procrastinating a little bit.
They are looking at the interest rate—they know they want to buy a home—they’re like, “Oh, look at that payment.”
But if you sit down and really ask a lot of the questions that you’re gesturing here—

[00:47:00] Tracy Hayes: Sometimes you have to turn around and say, “Okay, yes, this is why you’re making the offer on this.
You want to make the offer—this is why you’re making the offer.”
Because remember the nine other things that you—on the 10 things you wanted—this is nine of the 10.
I mean, that’s perfect.
You’re not going to get 10 out of 10—it just doesn’t happen.
But by doing a little, I call it jiu-jitsu—you gotta turn it back on them a little bit, based on what you said.

[00:47:37] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.
You wanted—

[00:47:39] Tracy Hayes: A large backyard.
This has a large backyard. You can run your house.

[00:47:41] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: You said you wanted this, this, and this and this, right?
This house has this, this, and this. And it even—

[00:47:46] Tracy Hayes: That’s that.
But you have to sell it back to them sometimes.

[00:47:51] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, yes.
And I also feel like this is when it’s important to have truly a good real estate agent that does understand the market.
Because sometimes—going back to lending—you might be able to get them with someone, and they might be able to do something better than the other lender.
So it does help their buying power—they can get the house they want.

[00:48:11] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:48:11] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: But having an agent that really does understand the process of buying and selling in today’s market is very crucial.

[00:48:19] Tracy Hayes: Go a little bit in—so we’re going to turn it around.
You’re still representing the buyer, but the conversation—
If someone’s listening right now, and wants to—an agent who’s listening right now—and wants to come after one of your listings…

[00:48:36] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:48:37] Tracy Hayes: What would you tell them they should be doing—making that phone call to the listing agent before they make the offer?

[00:48:44] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:48:44] Tracy Hayes: Make that call to the listing agent. What kind of things should they be asking you?

[00:48:48] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I always phrase it—what’s really important to the seller? Just like, what’s important to the buyer.
And when you ask that question, it’s going to answer a lot.
They might tell you they really don’t want a long closing, or that price is really important to them.
I always call before I write an offer.
I know it’s not done all the time, because again, I have a lot of listings.

[00:49:10] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:49:10] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I’ve been a big listing agent.

[00:49:12] Tracy Hayes: All of a sudden, an offer shows up in your email, right?

[00:49:14] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I don’t even get a text message. I’m like, huh.
And nowadays, because there are so many spam ones from investors like, “Let’s do creative financing. They can live there and we can...”

[00:49:26] Tracy Hayes: No. Um—

[00:49:28] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So, I think that again goes back to hiring.
You know, even when—even if you go to show one of my properties, or I’m showing one of your properties—I normally always call the people or at least send a text message and explain.
And also, I like to explain about the buyer to the listing agent.
Because if I have a great relationship with my buyer, and that listing agent understands it, when the seller—which this has happened—says, “Well, do you know anything about that buyer?”
Sometimes that can play in your favor.

Because that person could be from a small town—the same small town the seller is moving from.
And that seller might have a fond heart.
Or, you know, you have people who are fond of, “Oh, I moved here with kids.”
You just never know.
So I always feel—and that’s why when I show my listings, I ask those questions—like, “Tell me a little bit about your buyer. Where are they moving from?”

[00:50:25] Tracy Hayes: I think one of the biggest things in that—in talking about the buyer—is our VA customers.

[00:50:31] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:50:31] Tracy Hayes: People assume because they’re using the VA loan, they’re not putting anything down.
That’s not always true.

[00:50:36] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: No, sometimes they put 20%.

[00:50:39] Tracy Hayes: Agents need to—
I mean, I tell agents all the time—it’s the best loan out there.
But so many of the guys are getting out—guys and gals are getting out—and they’re getting some form of disability.

[00:50:50] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:50:50] Tracy Hayes: So they’re not having to pay the funding fee.
The funding fee is the maker or breaker whether someone uses the VA loan.
They have the benefit, but if they have to pay a funding fee—and they’ve got money down—they might go conventional.
The funding fee could be thousands of dollars. It’s 3.3%.
If someone’s used their benefit before, 3.3% is huge.

So if they’ve already got, you know, 5% down or whatever and go that route, they’re going to go that route.
But so many are just out there with even just a 10% disability—well, they don’t have to pay that funding fee.
So they’re always—the rate is typically a little bit lower.
It’s got the VA backing, the government backing.
So the interest rate is still a little fraction lower.

So anyone receiving disability, whether they’re putting nothing down or 20% or 50% down, that VA loan product is probably actually the best product for them anyway.

[00:51:41] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Well, I’m sure you know as well—
Some people can get scared of the VA thing.

[00:51:46] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:51:46] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Like, “Oh, VA—I heard the appraisals are hard.”
Yeah. FHA appraisals are hard.
I’ve never really encountered that in my real career.

[00:51:53] Tracy Hayes: It is an old wives’ tale, is actually what it is.

[00:51:55] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I’m always like, no. I mean, you know, VA—if you know—
There’s a couple more inspections.
You gotta have, you know, a wood destroying organism inspection that has to be clean.

[00:52:07] Tracy Hayes: But you’re sending a home inspector out there to find that out anyway.

[00:52:09] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:52:09] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I'm like, you know, and again, when you're on the listing side, you'll walk through and you're like—you’ll maybe point out like, “Hey, if we do get a VA offer, this little piece of wood that, you know, the gutter basically wore away—he's gonna get dinged.”

[00:52:23] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:52:23] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: If you prep people, I feel—even when I’m showing buyers, I do the same thing. Like, if I already know they have a VA loan, I’m like, “Well, just so you know...”
’Cause I’ve been in this situation where I’m like, I need to call the listing agent now because I’m doing a VA, but is the seller gonna be willing to fix a lot of this stuff?
Because it’s pretty obvious, like you can tell.

[00:52:41] Tracy Hayes: But my question to you is—it’s obvious, like you’re saying—because if you’re not getting a home inspection, you’re an idiot. Okay?
Everyone should be getting a home inspector.
The home inspector should already be pointing these things out before you.
Of course, a lot of ’em actually do the—because they know you’re ordering that on a lot of homes anyway—WDOs.

[00:53:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:53:00] Tracy Hayes: Right. So if it’s so obvious, who is not gonna go back to the seller and say, “Hey, you got all this…”
Even if it’s old termite damage, they’re not even active anymore.
Are you gonna repair these?
You’re gonna do that on a conventional loan anyway.

[00:53:13] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes, but it’s mandatory on the VA, right?
But you also gotta go back to the seller. Does the seller have the funds to do this?
Again, that’s why relationships and communication between is key—to find out what’s really important so that when you're, you know, dealing with either party—but especially if you're submitting an offer—is knowing that.
Because you don’t want it to come up.

So, you know, if I’m already saying, “Hey, I know this is gonna have to be addressed,” this is gonna be an issue.
Or homeowner’s insurance.
With the roofs and everything lately, you have to make sure the roof’s not that old, ’cause homeowner’s insurance is gonna be like, ding!
Yeah. You live in Florida—ding!

[00:53:51] Tracy Hayes: How many times have you had anything recently?
It’s amazing, with technology and everything that’s there, how these insurance companies are on top of things.
They know you need a little permit to change a water heater.
So they already know how old the water heater likely is—unless the homeowner did it himself and didn’t tell anyone.

[00:54:10] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: True.

[00:54:11] Tracy Hayes: They know this stuff right away.
So you really can't get around them.
They’re already into it.
I tell people right away—as soon as that loan goes in the process—boom.
I mean, or as soon as you have a contract—you’re calling your inspector, you’re calling the insurance—get a quote.

[00:54:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Right.

[00:54:26] Tracy Hayes: Get it upfront, even though they don’t have the four-point or wind mitigation yet—start to get an idea.
’Cause they’re gonna go, “Oh, you know, that hot water heater, that’s gonna be a problem. It’s 12 years old.”
You start working on it right at the beginning.

[00:54:37] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. Well, I also feel that—again—hiring an agent who knows that those are things to point out, that’s who we’re preaching to today.
When you’re showing the property—you don’t always know everything.
But those are what’s important when you’re submitting offers.
Those are things that you should know.

When you’re submitting that offer, you kind of already know in your head that these are gonna be dings.
What is our offer gonna be?
Is that seller even willing to do anything?
If that seller isn’t, we need to think about that when we’re putting in our offer.

[00:55:09] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[00:55:10] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And yeah, you’re right—typically when I go under contract with my buyers, I already—
You know, the same time I hit send—I already have the home inspection set up, and my insurance lady already has the contract and the seller’s disclosure to answer questions to try to get a quote.

So they just have a quote.
They can go wherever they want, but that’s why you’re good.
It’s packaged together so I don’t have any hiccups.
I’m trying to make sure it’s all good.

[00:55:35] Tracy Hayes: Well, and you and I would agree—you’ve done enough transactions—everyone’s different.

[00:55:39] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:55:40] Tracy Hayes: You have some sort of hurdle.
How high that hurdle is, is different in every loan.
Some, there’s a couple high hurdles you gotta get over.
Some of them—just some, hopefully just some.
But there’s always something that comes up, and you’ve gotta have a conversation with the other agent, the seller, whatever—and make things happen.

But the more you can do—
I’m a big proponent of—I’m all about pre-listing inspections.

[00:56:04] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I—

[00:56:04] Tracy Hayes: I think—again, buyers have buyers’ remorse.
They sign that contract.
That’s why I have a high sense of urgency to get them under contract right away, ’cause they’re excited that first whatever hours.
Then maybe they go to sleep, they wake up the next morning—and they’re already going, “Did I do the right thing?”

So the more you can eliminate or lower the hurdles—

[00:56:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:56:26] Tracy Hayes: Like getting the insurance quote up front.
Have the insurance already, you know—
“Hey, when you make the offer, my insurance person told me the water heater’s 12 years old already.
This is something we may need to—”
They’re willing to replace it.
You’re already getting that cleared right from the get-go.
Because when that big hurdle does come—that you don’t know is coming...

[00:56:46] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:56:47] Tracy Hayes: You're able to get over those a little easier.

[00:56:49] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[00:56:50] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:56:50] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah, I just think that preparation—and again, it is the whole package. I go to list, I try to get as many hurdles that I think the buyer's gonna come at so that they're already kind of—

[00:57:00] Tracy Hayes: You're being proactive.

[00:57:01] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: It’s building expectations.

[00:57:02] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:57:03] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: It really is. And again, I don't have a crystal ball, so I can't predict everything, but I try to overcome all those. And really I feel like that's probably where I add value.
Yeah, it's like a one-stop shop. Well, I try—I try to do as much as I can for them, and always be available and make sure that when I'm presenting an offer, that I’ve kind of already told 'em, these are, you know, things that could come up and could be an issue.
So that they don’t go to inspection and be like, “Oh wow, that's a big deal.”
And then I don't throw this at a listing agent. I already brought up, “Hey, I just want you to know, you might already be aware of it, but this might be an issue.”
Again, it all goes back to communication. And the smoother the communication between everyone, the deal stays together.

[00:57:45] Tracy Hayes: Well, I think if they’re, you know, listening to you today—and this whole part that we’re talking about—'cause I think if you're an agent out there who’s maybe just kind of trudging on…
We know 77% of the agents didn’t do business.
I think I’ve—you know, just talking to people, talking to agents regularly and obviously looking at numbers, who I'm inviting on the show and so forth—there's some agents who have excelled through this market.
They're actually doing better than even when they did back when the interest rates were that much lower.

[00:58:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:58:25] Tracy Hayes: Because they are doing the things that you're talking about right here.
So that that client who wouldn't know it—but if they're doing that similar transaction—

[00:58:34] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:58:34] Tracy Hayes: With somebody else who wasn't foreshadowing, setting expectation, getting—jumping on the insurance quote, getting an inspection out there right away, setting the timeline that you're doing to make your buyer the best buyer they could be.
Same thing on the selling side, and then obviously doing what you’re doing—having these advisory things.

If you are not doing those things and you're listening to this show right now, you may need to call you and maybe have coffee with you and talk to you, and pick some more ideas beyond what we may have covered here on the show.

Because you're just accumulating all your knowledge.
And go back to AI—and that's what AI is.
And it gets better and better as it gets to know you better.

[00:59:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:59:01] Tracy Hayes: And as it learns. It doesn’t know certain things.
It doesn’t know—like AI search doesn’t know when you say, “Hey, I need a first-floor bedroom.”
It might think the basement's a first floor.
It doesn’t actually know that.
Or, “I want to live near the beach.”
Well, what is “near”? Near to you is different than near to me.

[00:59:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[00:59:19] Tracy Hayes: And so AI doesn’t know this.
But you’ve been accumulating all this knowledge 15 years and really putting it to work.
I think—I mean, definitely other agents out there have been doing this 15 years, but they are not putting it together as you are.
You’ve made it a routine.

You're looking at me with kind of a like, “Yeah, I know.”
That’s what I'm reading from you.

[00:59:49] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I call it systems.

[00:59:51] Tracy Hayes: Yeah. Well, you’ve built it into your routine.

[00:59:52] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[00:59:53] Tracy Hayes: That it's natural to you.
Others—you may need to actually, you know, open—get a notebook and actually journal every one of your deals.

[01:00:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[01:00:01] Tracy Hayes: Because it might help you remember.
You may not have to refer to it—but maybe you do refer to it.

[01:00:05] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[01:00:06] Tracy Hayes: And go back, “Wait a minute—who did I call to fix that, back six months ago? To fix that—'cause this is a similar plumbing issue, and I know they can fix it really quick.”
Something like that. But by journaling—

'Cause I always felt when the buyer—whole NAR thing came down and the devaluing of—
They try to devalue a real estate agent in my mind.

[01:00:24] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Right.

[01:00:24] Tracy Hayes: That’s what they’re trying to do.
They devalue what you do.

[01:00:27] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yep.

[01:00:27] Tracy Hayes: And agents really should be journaling what they're doing—how much time they're actually spending at 8 o'clock at night saving marriages.
I mean, you know—I mean, how many times have you done that?
Where like the husband and wife, they’re arguing over, or they—

[01:00:39] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Oh, the wife’s making the decision until the husband says she’s not.

[01:00:41] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[01:00:41] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. I just dealt with that. I was joking—and they're friends of mine—and I was...
So now it's in our joke group text. I'm like, “Nope. Nope. Did she okay this one?”
“Mmm, no. Are you sure? ‘Cause I don't know, I don’t think this is gonna fit. She said she didn't want white cabinets.”
And so now it's like a little thing. I'm like, “Well no, we can't look at that one since, you know—where’s the fireplace?”

But again, that goes back to listening.

[01:01:19] Tracy Hayes: Yep.

[01:01:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: To them and really just dialing down. But if you did sit down—I actually was just talking to someone who was trying to devalue a real estate agent, because of course, everyone looks at it like, "Oh, you're making this percentage off this house."

[01:01:30] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[01:01:31] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: They don't really realize the back stuff that goes into it. Like, we have to pay for five million different boards, different things. Most of us have broker fees. Most of us have monthly fees. Some of us have assistants and social media people. Some of us, you know, at night are doing reports and behind-the-scenes things. I actually was just trying to create step-by-step videos because I've been doing this for so long—and that's anything. If you gave me interior design, I would just already know in my head.

[01:02:02] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[01:02:02] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: But you just forget, because you're so—And they're like, "Oh, do I need to do that?" Be like, "Oh no, I already did it. It's done." Because I just forget that it's natural for me to do all of this.
You know, right now, also, I really don't have a lot of... so, I mean—it could be—so it's good and bad.
Yeah, so I really do think as an agent, and honestly building relationships with other agents, it always helps. I have agents that I—you know, when I see their name on listings, I'm like, "Oh, that's great. I know this agent. We've worked together."
So it boils down to everyone in the transaction. If all are communicating and they’re all after the same goal, it should be less stressful and enjoyable.
Right? But I just bought my own house, and I was yelling at myself thinking, "How do people do this?"

[01:02:52] Tracy Hayes: You made me—I focused on what you're saying because, obviously the thought—question—came into my head.
Were you doing buyer broker agreements before last August?

[01:03:01] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes. Well, to some level—90% of them were, yeah. All of my buyers signed buyer broker agreements, almost.

[01:03:08] Tracy Hayes: And it’s not shocking. Some of the pundits on, you know, some of the bigger real estate podcasts—like James, who was here for the RE Bar Camp, and so forth, and this other, Ricky Carruth is another one—
The agents are making more money now than they were prior to having to do that. And I think—I believe—you were already doing them. Maybe you took it up a notch, or you had to do whatever they wanted you to do, so you added that to your repertoire.
But when you're sitting down, and you're—it’s the things you're, like you said, doing in the dark area that no one knows you're doing. You're just doing them because those are...

[01:03:46] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Hours.

[01:03:46] Tracy Hayes: You just know this has to be done.
“Oh, this issue came up. I can solve that by myself. I don't need to involve my buyer or seller. I'm going to take care of that.”
That's the stuff they don't know.
And I think if you're an agent out there right now who's listening—you need to be really detailed.
And that's why I went back—I think agents should keep a notebook. Especially if you're a newer agent right now, keep a notebook on every phone call you make, everything that you have to do.
I don't care if it's sending an email or even thinking about how you're going to handle a situation.

“I took time tonight to think about how I'm going to negotiate this deal tomorrow.”
Whatever it is.

Because you need to then, hopefully, take it off the notebook and express it to your buyers or sellers—whatever you're working with.
There's a lot of stuff you're doing behind the scenes that makes their life easier. And that’s why people—people pay money because you make their life easier.
That's why they pay money.

[01:04:38] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I always make the joke that I'll help you get contractors, get your insurance, have the home inspection done, get you to close, pick up your papers, do everything.
But typically, I won't take you to lunch. I'll make you take me to lunch.
It's just a joke.

[01:04:52] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, well, no, that catches them and makes sure they're listening at the end.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on a second. I'm taking you to lunch?”

[01:05:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[01:05:00] Tracy Hayes: All right, let’s just—let’s jump in here and see if ChatGPT’s got another...
Oh, okay, yeah. This is a good one.

[01:05:46] Tracy Hayes: 'Cause this is very current to what's going on. And we've talked a little bit about obviously the number of listings you've got, as well as many of the listeners—agents listening.
When a home is sitting on the market longer than expected, what's your diagnostic process?
What signals do you read first—pricing, staging, marketing, or seller's mindset?
I think many agents—I’m taking my wife's phone calls right now because she's in an area where she doesn't have coverage. So one of her listings called me and said, "Hey, the house next door just dropped their price."
I don't know if it's literally next door, but on a street probably. Just dropped their price—$15,000.

[01:05:46] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[01:05:47] Tracy Hayes: So now you have someone on the street, who you're basically competing against, just dropped $15,000.
What kind of conversations are you having?
Obviously, you want to retain the listing. You don't want to lose it—especially for a seller who's being somewhat reasonable and agreed on a price—but it’s sitting there.
What kind of conversations are you having? How often are you keeping in touch with them?

[01:06:11] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: So I personally send out weekly Friday emails.
Goes over all the stuff—everything I did. Probably nothing to them, but they get it.
I talk to them at least once, probably more, a week.

[01:06:24] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[01:06:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I do deeper dives about every two weeks. And a deeper dive is really to see what's going on overall.
Like if I want to—let’s say I'm selling a house in Deerwood, just throwing an example out—and I know the product.
The home looks great, you know, it's great. I know that I'm marketing it all over the world. Everyone knows it's for sale. I know the quality of the pictures are good. But for some reason, we really haven't had that many showings.
I will dive into the community.
Then if I've noticed things—let's say I've had it on the market for 30 days—I’ll actually see if anything has gone under contract in the last 30 days.
If those people didn't come see the listing, I’ll call the agents and ask them, "Hey, is there a reason why you didn't show this listing?"
Then if—say—I can't get anything. Let’s say there’s nothing in there to really go off of because everyone’s sitting.

[01:07:18] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[01:07:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And nothing’s moved. And I called the other three—let’s say three homes in the price point—

[01:07:18] Tracy Hayes: That are not moving right now.

[01:07:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And they're telling me the same thing—it's slow.
Then sometimes I’ll dig out deeper and go to—hey, if I want to live in zip code 32225, and I have to have a four-bedroom, and I have to have three bathrooms—what is available right now at the price we’re listed at?
You and I always kind of give up, you know, maybe $50,000 below, $50,000 over.
And then that’ll show a larger picture.
And if you can show a person, like, “Hey listen, it's just slow in this area here.”
Again, that’s why feedback’s important.
It’s important to give it to the listing agents. It's also important when you're showing the house, you know, on both sides.
I always try to give as much feedback as I can because I’ve been on the other side.
Because, you know, it could be—even though I think the house is great and everything—they don't really like something in it, and it could be an easy change.
But really trying to—again, going back to relationships—is reaching out to all of the other people in the area and just asking them.

[01:08:22] Tracy Hayes: See what kind of feedback they’re getting from their walkthroughs and several...

[01:08:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. Or are they even getting them? Right?
You can’t pick up a house and move it.
So, I mean, if you’re getting that feedback—if the community doesn’t, you know...
You’re noticing they’re sitting on the market anyway for 90 or 100 days and you’ve only had yours for 30—
We're kind of in the same way. The turnaround isn't what it has been.

[01:08:42] Tracy Hayes: Do you think some agents—because this is the market—we can't change what's physically out there. The sun’s going to come up, we can't stop that.
That dropping the price, or going and suggesting the price, they kind of—they take it—and I think we all probably do a little bit.
'Cause we recommended here, and they agreed with you within a reasonable, you know, range of “Okay, list it for this.”
But now—because of the market and that sun coming up—we can’t stop it.
That—hey, you wanted to get out of here. You've got that other house. Or you wanted to get out of here in 60 days because your job’s starting in August or whatever.
Don’t take it personally to go and say, “Hey, we probably need to drop just 10 or 20 thousand.”

[01:09:26] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.
I don’t—because a lot of agents procrastinate on that a bit.
It’s almost like you have to be in front of the curve right now, and unfortunately, the curve is kind of—I feel like—going a little faster.

[01:09:35] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[01:09:35] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And so sometimes you even think you are, and then it’s like a week later, you could not be.
Overall, I really think people staying positive in it—you get the sellers that get discouraged.
I think negativity is just not good.
And anytime I ever go into a listing appointment, I kind of explain it on my thing, saying, “Hey, this is where the market is saying, this is what has sold. This is kind of where I’m thinking, this is our game plan.
You know, we have the numbers to back this price up because these two homes sold.
But we’re really not getting the traffic, and this one over here goes—
I want you to be aware that we should, as an example, drop it down this $20,000 because this might be what—
We don’t want to wait too long either because we don’t want to be behind the curve when everyone else is starting to put their house up.”
So it’s a little tricky.
I feel like when going into a listing, if you’re already...

[01:10:55] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: ...ramping them up to say, “Hey, this is what we have, and you know, this is where we should be priced. This is the range that we're seeing.”
I feel like having the conversation when the time comes to say, “Hey,” always having data.
And if you show them, “Hey, this is what's going on”—I did it with one of my listings recently, and I said, “Hey, just so you know, I think the spot's this number, 'cause if you notice, everything’s moving—even though we—this is what's moving now.”
Again, you know, we dropped it, had a little activity. But again, it goes back to the urgency of the buyer.

[01:10:57] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, well having that conversation and the relationship that we've been kind of hitting on throughout the show.

[01:11:03] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I always just tee 'em up with, “Hey, this is what it's gonna look like. Let's not sugarcoat it.”
And then really making sure that I talk to them every single week. If not—
And if I had a showing last week, let's say I still didn’t get feedback—I’m letting them know, “Hey, I followed up again. I still don’t have feedback.”
I think just letting them know you're doing everything you can do and that you're in it, you didn’t just throw that sign out there, is important.

[01:11:27] Tracy Hayes: Well, my thought that just came up—this last couple minutes, you were explaining that there in the details, and I know you do, I could tell in your voice—
'Cause there's no sure thing, right?
Someone asked me, “Is the rate gonna drop?” I don’t know.
I could tell you what's going on and what I think and hope.

[01:11:45] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[01:11:46] Tracy Hayes: There was one of the most well-known professionals that every loan officer knows about, and some of them pay him to be part of his newsletter or whatever.
He predicted interest rates back in 2023 would be back down in the 4% by the summer of ‘23.
And he gets paid a lot of money to make those statements.

[01:12:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[01:12:00] Tracy Hayes: Because there's always the unknown.
And I think the difference—just listening to you right there—the difference between being a successful agent right now in this market...

[01:12:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[01:12:21] Tracy Hayes: The difference between the agents who are the 25% producing—or agents who have excelled in this market—is doing what you are talking about.
Because the ball is moving so much right now.
It’s not like we’re on the—you know—
You have a lot of different things that you can do when you're, you know, down there on the goal line and you don't have very far to go. You're on the 5-yard line, you only have 5 yards to go. Great.
'Cause interest rates are low. You don't have all these other winds again in your face.
But when you're back on your own 30-yard line and it's third down—that's the kind of market we're in right now.

[01:12:59] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[01:13:00] Tracy Hayes: But because you're already like, “Hey, if this play doesn't work, we're gonna run this play.”

[01:13:04] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes.

[01:13:04] Tracy Hayes: “And if that play doesn’t work, we're going to go back and run play B. We're gonna reevaluate numbers and see—'Cause things are moving.”
Did that house down the street sell? What’d it sell for? What has it got that you don’t got?

[01:13:19] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[01:13:19] Tracy Hayes: And I think that’s the difference that separates you as a top agent versus an agent who may not be doing as well right now.

[01:13:28] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: A hundred percent agree.

[01:13:29] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[01:13:30] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I mean, I love what I do.
But it can get very stressful, 'cause I take it very personally and I really care.
And I’m like, “Okay, what could I be doing different? Hold on, let me try this. Let me do this.”
I'm always trying to do different social media ads, different—I mean, I actually just revamped almost all of it.
It hasn’t even been launched.
But I'm always trying to really go above and beyond.
And I share it. I have a huge network of referrals I do.

[01:14:00] Which is important. People move to Florida.
So I think being able to kind of just explain to them what you do every week and what you are doing—even though it can get tedious—it just reassures them and keeps them positive.
Because, you know, some of them might have a timeframe. But then some of them, you know, might say, “Hey, I don't need to sell right now. I have all this time.”
You still have to explain to them, it does kind of matter.

[01:14:20] Tracy Hayes: I want to finish with this 'cause this is always a good reel.

[01:14:22] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Okay.

[01:14:23] Tracy Hayes: Why do you love real estate?

[01:14:25] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I love it because I love the smile that I get when the transaction is done from the person that I work for.

[01:14:32] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm.

[01:14:32] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I just—I think it's a high.

[01:14:34] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[01:14:35] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: You know, the little hurdles come. It's kind of sad 'cause a lot of 'em will think they won't hear from me—but they hear from me.
'Cause I have a whole follow-up system that I do forever and ever and ever.
But some of them—I still check in probably every week for a couple months afterward. And then it kind of—you know, some of them stay and then some of them trickle off...

[01:15:00] To just my normal contact.
But I really love explaining to people that, “Hey, it’s great to own a home.”
One of my favorite things about my life is—I do love to travel—but I love to come home to my house and it be exactly the way I want it.

[01:15:06] Tracy Hayes: Mm-hmm. So, well, I, yeah. I mean, I think people sometimes neglect to realize—
I think it’s subliminally—we do it.
It was funny, when I first got out of college, I was in car sales and one of the, one of the, you know, tips was, “Hey, get 'em to drive the car home and park it in their driveway.”
'Cause now they see the car...

[01:15:26] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah, right.

[01:15:27] Tracy Hayes: ...they see the car in their driveway.

[01:15:29] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Mm-hmm.

[01:15:30] Tracy Hayes: And the importance of what it does for us emotionally and psychologically when we do—
When you come home from work or whatever, and you drive into your driveway...

[01:15:47] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[01:15:47] Tracy Hayes: ...and that's your house.
That’s your space.
Your little bastion in this world. And that means a lot to people.
And obviously, that's what you're tipped on, but I think you—you obviously—the end game of them saying thank you, I think you also are high on the process.

[01:16:00] I think you love the process.
You love being—I’m gonna say this—it’s not a knock: you love being smart. 'Cause you are.
And solving the issues before they really become issues.
Being proactive. That’s what I got out of this conversation today.

[01:16:20] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes, really. That is probably it.
It’s like a, “Oh no, I can fix this. I got it. Oh no, I can do it.”
Yeah. That’s even me in my own personal life. “I got it. Yeah. That's okay. Forget it.”

[01:16:31] Tracy Hayes: We want to be seen the same way.
We want to be seen as an influence.

[01:16:43] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Really, that’s what’s important.
I just want everyone to be happy, make sure I did everything I could do for them, and a smile on their face.
You know, I would probably say most of my clients would say—they can’t really forget me because I’m always in their face.

[01:16:59] Tracy Hayes: Anything you’d like to add?

[01:17:00] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: No, but if you have any questions, always feel free to call me.

[01:17:02] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, no. Any agents that are out there—I mean, if there’s one thing that every agent coming here—we didn’t really talk about it today—but, you know, is collaboration.
And as much as you love the process, it’s also the compliments.
And the compliment would be, “Hey, can I have coffee with you? Tell me a little bit more about your business. I heard you on the podcast.”
I think every top agent I’ve had on—all are more than welcome. They already do it a lot of times—
Mentoring newer agents or just answering their questions.
Because it’s definitely a business that everyone does differently.
So you steal a little bit from that person, that person, that person, and make it your own.

[01:17:38] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: And I also feel that you're always going to learn something from someone else.
Normally you’re gonna—especially if they’ve been doing it.
And I feel like in today, with all the changes, it’s really important that you have someone to call, and you have a brokerage that’s really educating you.
Because there are so many changes—some people don’t know about them.
And being an agent who maybe had more training or has done more transactions, you see a lot of mistakes.
And so that—they’re not there. Which could be bad for whoever they’re representing or even themselves.
So I always say, if you don’t know it, ask it.

[01:18:21] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[01:18:21] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I mean, if you don’t know something, I have no problem calling up and asking.

[01:18:25] Tracy Hayes: And I think any agent out there—just to piggyback on that—that if you’re not reaching out, especially if you are looking to change brokerages or you don’t know what broker to go with, you’re new—
Whatever—you need to be calling other agents and getting their input.
The thing is, you do your business a certain way.
I might want to do it a different way.
But I call you, I learn how you do your business.
Maybe Vanguard's not for me, but this other broker does business over here.
Maybe they're giving out better support or something—whatever it is.
But you don’t know until you ask.
And I think every agent’s willing to spill into it and say, “Hey, this may not be for you.”
Because you found that out.
There’s some things that aren’t you.
I’m sure there’s things that you’ve done in your career—you’ve tried marketing or whatever—it’s like, “Nah, I don’t like that. That didn’t work for me.”
But, “I like to do this, and this works for me. So I’m gonna 10x that.”

[01:19:14] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah.

[01:19:14] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[01:19:15] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: I agree with that.
I’ve reached out—
A lot of my systems came from people that I looked up to.
And I just sat down with them and picked their brain and then took their system and tweaked it to mine.
And, you know, added to it, took it away.

[01:19:26] Tracy Hayes: You don’t need to reinvent the wheel totally.

[01:19:28] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: No.

[01:19:29] Tracy Hayes: Don’t reinvent your own wheel.
Take pieces from other people’s wheels and make your wheel.

[01:19:33] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yeah. I like this, I like that, I like this. Let me just put it together.
Kinda like a house.
If I got this house, this backyard, this bathroom—
This bathroom right here with this climate so it never gets hot—we're good.

[01:19:45] Tracy Hayes: Bobbie Jean, appreciate you coming on today.

[01:19:47] Bobbie Jean DeMunck: Yes, thank you so much.