Dealing With the No-Show Part II

I wish I could tell you that there is an easy magic formula for eliminating costly no-shows who set an appointment with you to see a rental and then bail out, but there isn't. Interestingly, even realtors I have spoken with say they have a high no-show rate. You'd think that people who are claiming to be contemplating such a serious purchase would be serious about keeping the appointment, but the "fantasy" or "window-shopping" syndrome hits there as well. There are some things you can do to cut down on no-shows, though:

1) Try to answer any questions they may have before setting an appointment. For some, school districts or other civic features will automatically rule out some sites. Maybe you think you're a natural salesperson who can talk them into taking it anyway, but in most cases you're wasting time, and sometimes people forget to ask you those screening questions that they had in mind. So just ask them - do you have any questions about school districts, utilities, etc.?

2) Absolutely insist on getting a phone number they can be reached at when making an appointment. Tell them you need it in case something comes up and you can't make the appointment, which is true of course, but the reality of giving out their phone number starts to wake up some of the folks who are just calling on a fantasy.

3) Do a little pre-screening if you get a chance. People who are getting evicted somewhere else will do a lot to seem like a promising prospect to you (like show up for the appointment), which is likely a waste of your time. We're in the courthouse regularly, and it's easy then to check on the eviction suits that have been filed. Check and see if your appointment is on that list. If they are call and cancel the appointment and save yourself some time. We do sometimes offer to continue with someone who is evicted if they can come up with a reasonable co-signer, but most of them can't - probably because family members have already been hit up repeatedly and won't do it again. One time we had an appointment in the afternoon, but were in court earlier and saw the prospect there on an eviction case. We called later to cancel the appointment, telling her that we saw her in court on an eviction. She couldn't understand why that would matter, so we offered to continue if she had anyone who could co-sign. She admitted her family wouldn't do that. If the family doesn't trust you, and you aren't paying the rent where you're at, it saves both of us time to just cancel.

4) Try calling them an hour or half-hour before the appointment to confirm. Many times they will answer and tell you they changed their minds. They weren't going to call and let you know that, of course, but when called personally they will admit to it.

5) If they don't show, try calling again. If you can find out for sure they aren't coming at this point, at least you'll save a few minutes.

6) If you aren't far from the site, there is another approach in this age of cell phones that we have tried when no-shows get out of control: Tell them to call you when they get there, or just before they get there. If they tell you they don't have a cell phone, that's not a good sign, but most will have one. You can tell them that way if they get there a little early, they won't have to wait on you - you'll come right over and are just a few minutes away. If you never get the call, you'll know you've saved yourself a no-show trip. While this is a little bit aggressive, and a few prospects might find it odd, when you're running 50% no-shows and have several showings a week, you have to do something to protect your most valuable asset: time.

7) Double book. Very often prospects have some flexibility in when they can see a property. If you already have a showing set for 2:00 on Monday and someone else calls wanting to look at it Monday afternoon, try to steer them towards 1:45 or 2:15 or 2:30, so you only have to make one trip. You've doubled your chances at least one will actually show up. It also never hurts for a prospect to know that someone else is coming to look at it. We've even triple booked when we can, and almost never do all three show up.

8) This one I've never tried, and have reservations about, but offer it as food for thought. I heard through a friend in the business of a landlord in Florida who had gotten so put out with the no-show problem, he quit doing showings. He would tell prospects to come by his office (so this doesn't work so well if you don't have a public office), and he would take down their driver's license information and then give them a key. He would then tell them to go take a look and bring the key back when they were done. The concerns with handing out keys are obvious, but apparently it did work for this one fellow, and he completely eliminated his no-show problem. I believe that closing the deal and getting an application is much easier, though, if you are there with them looking at the property, answering questions, and they can apply without having to make a trip back to your office.

No-shows are costly. They keep you from getting other things done that keep your real estate operation growing and well managed. Using the methods above that work for you will save you more than you realize.