Chapter 103: Competition

Such bargaining as Li Qin’s is very common in the real estate business. Many times, just when a deal is about to be signed, the buyer and the owner cannot agree on the exact amount, and sometimes the entire transaction collapses.

Zhang Wei could almost read Li Qin’s thoughts, and he found her words and intentions were the same: she simply wanted to pay 2,400 yuan less, believing that as a client she had the right to push the rent down a bit.

In her view, even if the owner refused to lower the rent, the brokerage could reduce its commission to cover the gap. Besides, she had liked the apartment, but she wanted to discuss it with her husband that evening, so she hadn’t agreed immediately.

Though Zhang Wei could read her mind, he could not control it. What Zhang Wei and Fang Wenjun could do was only to persuade the owner to reduce the rent as much as possible, or convince Li Qin to accept the quoted commission. Failing that, they might even use part of the brokerage fee to bridge the gap.

At the end of the day, the relationship among buyer, owner, and broker is a negotiation in which each side pushes against the other. Either one side gives in first, or one side finds another counterpart. The broker’s role is to push one side to compromise before they find someone else, and sometimes, in order to prevent a deal from breaking apart, the broker may even sacrifice part of the commission.

Although this rental had not been signed yet, the gap was not huge, so there was still a good chance to close it. At eight o’clock, Fang Wenjun called the owner again to test whether he had softened.

What they had not expected was the owner’s reply: the apartment had already been rented out at 7,000 yuan per month. Zhang Wei and Fang Wenjun were both caught off guard.

Clearly, in this three-way standoff, the owner had found another tenant and removed both the brokerage and the client from the deal.

In fact, Zhang Wei and Fang Wenjun had already planned for the worst. If neither side was willing to yield that night, they would likely contact both parties the next morning and offer a 2,000-yuan concession on the commission to offset the gap and get the deal signed quickly.

But unexpected things still happen. In real estate, a deal made and a deal broken are often separated by a single thought; in the pursuit of maximum gain, one always risks ending up with nothing.

“Fine, the apartment is gone. What now?” Fang Wenjun sighed.
“It’s true there are two sides to every matter. Yes, this apartment was taken, but it has also created some urgency for the client. As soon as we find her a decent place next time, she’ll put down a deposit without hesitation,” Zhang Wei consoled her.
“You’re right. I’m just afraid if I have to find a new place for her, it will be through another brokerage, and we’ll be doing all the work for someone else,” Fang Wenjun replied, spreading her hands.

“No problem,” Zhang Wei said as he dialed Li Qin. “I’ll call her and keep her steady. At least we mustn’t let her rush to another agency.”

“Hello, is this Li Jie? This is Zhang Wei from Zhongtong Real Estate.”
“Oh, little Zhang, calling this late for something?” Li Qin answered.
“I want to talk about the three-bedroom we saw this afternoon.”
“Did the owner agree to rent it for 6,800 yuan?” she guessed with a hint of relief.
“No, I’m afraid that apartment is no longer available.”
“What happened? The owner didn’t want to lower the price?” she asked, then added quickly, “Little Zhang, this is not how to do business. If the owner won’t lower the rent, can’t you just reduce your commission by 2,000 yuan?”

Li Qin’s thinking was simple. If the owner refused to reduce the rent, the brokerage would make room on the commission; she assumed, with the certainty of one who wants a deal, that they would have to concede. This is a common mindset among many tenants and buyers: they think a real estate firm can earn money merely by talking, so they are reluctant to pay full commission, always trying to shave something off because there are so many agencies and fierce competition. Surely one of them will offer a discount.

“Ms. Li, this is no longer about commission. That apartment has already been rented out.”
“What? It’s gone?” Li Qin sounded stunned.

Li Qin and her husband were staying in a hotel, spending a few hundred yuan every day, so she was genuinely in a hurry to find a place. She had liked that unit and intended to rent it, but she wanted to save two thousand yuan first—and never imagined it was already taken.

When she heard that, she grew a bit anxious. “Do you have any other three-bedroom units for rent?”
“We do have another three-bedroom,” Zhang Wei said, improvising one on the spot to keep her from panicking and running to another agency. “But the owner is out of town and won’t return until the day after tomorrow.”
“And how does that one compare to the one we saw today?” she asked.
“Ms. Li, any place I find for you will be a good one. But if you’re indecisive like you were today, even a good apartment could be snapped up by someone else.”

“Don’t worry. As long as we find a suitable place this time, I’ll pay the deposit right away.”
Li Qin’s situation in the hotel cost her several hundred yuan a day, so it wasn’t really about losing that two thousand. She just liked to get a slight advantage, and if her husband found out, he’d scold her for it.
“Ms. Li, hearing you say that puts me at ease. I’ll contact the owner tomorrow. As soon as he returns to the capital, I’ll let you see the place first thing.”
“Good. Just call me as soon as the owner is back. I’m free anytime to view.”
“Right. Let’s stay in touch.”

After she hung up, Fang Wenjun asked with uncertainty, “Zhang Wei, do you really have a three-bedroom available, or are you just fooling around with the client?”
“I’m not selling her an imaginary apartment, and I’m not lying to her. I’m just buying time. If we can find a proper three-bedroom by tomorrow, we can show it to her the day after tomorrow, can’t we?” he said casually.
“Zhang Wei, I have a suggestion, but I’m afraid you’ll be annoyed by it.”
“If that’s the case, then don’t say it,” Zhang Wei said with a laugh.
“...” Fang Wenjun was momentarily choked; she had expected him to let her speak, not shut it down.
“Even if this upsets you, I’ll say it anyway,” she said after a pause, shooting him a look. “I think we two are just too slow working together. Why don’t we each go our own way—find properties by ourselves, arrange the client ourselves, and whoever secures the apartment gets the full result?”

“Good point,” Liu Ziqi said, suddenly appearing behind Fang Wenjun with an eager expression. “The headquarters is encouraging competition between small teams right now. The two of you are in the same group, each handling one client. Let’s see which broker is stronger.”