November 9, 2022 • 33 mins
Meet Suzette Peoples, a FIVE STAR REALTOR ® in Texas Monthly Magazine- 5 time winner! Listen how she runs her business and cares for her clients.
Find Suzette:
Peoples Properties | Facebook, Suzette Peoples | LinkedIn, suzette peoples (@SuzettePeoples) / Twitter, Providing Real Estate Services in Sugar Land - suzette peoples, Peoples Properties, Texas Real Estate Consumer Protection Notice, https://www.trec.texas.gov/forms/information-about-brokerage-services.
If you liked today's show - please let Laura know by either contacting her at laura@fisherpodcast.com or give her a great review. Also, if you know of someone who would be an inspiring guests, let her know… even if it's you. Until then… "You better be Up to something!"
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Laura Fisher (00:02):
Welcome to small business insights where back
office conversations give usinsight to what's really going
on. Is it grit or luck? Thatgives a small business owner an
advantage? Let's find out. I'myour host, Laura Fisher. Well,
welcome today I have in thestudio Suzette people's from
(00:25):
people's property, she's a realestate broker and owner say
hello, Suzanne.
Suzette Peoples (00:30):
Hello there, Laura. How are you?
Laura Fisher (00:32):
I'm good. So this is our first time in the studio
and a long time, so we're gonnaget used to this. So Suzanne,
you were recommended to me byKen Qasr. And he said, This is a
fascinating lady, your selfstarter, would you say that's
true? Oh, yeah, definitely.
Let's start off. How long haveyou been in Texas
Suzette Peoples (00:51):
since 1981. got here as fast as I could.
Laura Fisher (00:54):
Where did you grow up
Suzette Peoples (00:55):
in Florida?
Miami is the last place I wasliving.
Laura Fisher (00:57):
So were you in high school at that time?
Suzette Peoples (01:00):
No, I was out of high school by then.
Laura Fisher (01:01):
So I graduated in 1982. From high school and get
rid of my 40th high schoolreunion. Wow. And I lived in
Daytona Beach, Florida. Okay,that time when I was there, it
was not a good time to be inMiami because of all the
refugees. Yes, yes. Is that oneof the reasons why you left
Florida?
Suzette Peoples (01:19):
Yes. Because everybody kept asking me if I
spoke Spanish. So it was gettingkind of frustrating. And when I
came to Texas, it was like,especially Houston. I was so
amazed how friendly everybodywas. Yeah. When they move over
when you're driving. I'm like,Oh my gosh, they move over.
Yeah, I loved it here.
Everybody's very friendly. Soyou haven't left Texas since
then? Nope. Stayed on the northside, then moved to the south
side. And so you have familyhere and Sugar Land? Well, my
(01:40):
son is here in Houston, and mydaughter is in Dallas. So she
loves Dallas.
Laura Fisher (01:46):
We were talking earlier and you're an Aggie mom.
So you got an Aggie in thefamily. Yep,
Suzette Peoples (01:50):
that was a nice thing to see my daughter do it
engineering and got a master. Sowe're proud of her. And my son
is doing real well. He's in themedical field. So we couldn't be
prouder.
Laura Fisher (01:59):
That sound like some high achieving children.
Yeah, we were lucky. All right.
So Suzette, let's talk aboutyour business. So tell you are
now a broker. But that's not howmost people start off. Everybody
starts out, you have to be arealtor first. For those that
don't know, just kind of walk usthrough the process of the
career development of howsomeone becomes a broker?
Suzette Peoples (02:17):
Well, you have to be a realtor, I think the
criteria now is at least twoyears or so many hours. And you
have to take a class and test.
So you have to actually get abroker's license, and you have
to as a realtor, you have to besponsored by a broker. So to
become a broker, you have tohave been a real estate agent
for a while. And then you take alot of tests and pass those
tests. What's more fees?
Laura Fisher (02:38):
Yeah. What's the difference between a real estate
agent and a broker?
Suzette Peoples (02:43):
Well, a real estate agent is just your
average realtor that gets alicense and practices real
estate, they can sellcommercial, residential,
whatever. There's differenttrade real tour and then an
agent, real tours associatedwith the National Association of
Realtors. So that's a differentdesignation. So
Laura Fisher (02:58):
they're like certified. Yes.
Suzette Peoples (03:00):
It's a different organization, we're
actually in a different level, Iwould say. But then, you know,
you have to work under a broker.
So that's why I got my broker'slicense, because I always
thought well may not stay withthis company. If I want to go
independent, I need to be abroker.
Laura Fisher (03:13):
So he said, It sounds like a mentor, but it's
really not a mentor.
Suzette Peoples (03:17):
Well, there's supposed to be monitoring
agents. I mean, that's whatthey're there for is to
regulate, monitor train, youknow, they're responsible for
those agents that are beneaththem.
Laura Fisher (03:27):
Do they have legal differences between an agent and
a broker?
Suzette Peoples (03:32):
As far as well the broker is responsible for
the realtor so everything theydo, they can be liable for
everything that that agent isdoing right or wrong. So they
all have to have theresponsibility. Yes.
Laura Fisher (03:42):
Okay. So so back back to the just general real
estate. So what there's REMAXthere's all these different
franchises? Yes, franchises thatso how does the franchise work
and then the broker because thenI see you know, a name
associated with REMAX,
Suzette Peoples (03:58):
right and when I was with REMAX, it was a co
broker. So you you are notresponsible. You have brokers
that are responsible for theagents. So if you work for
REMAX, they have a designatedperson who is the broker for
those agents and they'reresponsible for them. You can be
a co broker. So there's severalagents out there who are co
brokers, we have our broker'slicense, but we're not
(04:21):
responsible for those agents.
Okay, so does it just pay morefees? And just it's a different
designation? Okay. Yeah.
Laura Fisher (04:29):
So as a consumer me not knowing any difference I
call, let's just say I call on alisting, right? Because then
that happened, people will lookit up and they don't really know
the difference. So I'd say I seesomething on Windsor Park Drive
and Houston and I call thelisting agent. Right, right.
What what does that mean? Imean, well, they're not usually
(04:51):
this. What does that mean?
Suzette Peoples (04:52):
Okay, you have a listing agent who is
responsible for the listing.
They represent the sellers bestinterest, they have listed the
property With that seller ownerof that property, the seller,
right, so they have hired thatrealtor as a listing broker to
represent them. Okay. And whenyou call that broker, you're
talking to the agentsrepresenting the seller right?
(05:12):
Now you may decide, okay, inTexas, you cannot represent the
seller and the bottom, notallowed. I didn't know that.
Yeah, a lot of people don't. Soyou have to go intermediate. And
intermediary only puts you inthe position of negotiating the
contract, can't represent theseller or the buyer, you're just
in the center, bringing theparties together, and you have
(05:33):
to stay neutral, which I decidedmany, many years ago. Now,
that's kind of impossible. Well,a lot of people do it. And I
don't do it anymore. My attorneysaid, You're just waiting for a
lawsuit. So stay out of thatjust and I realized two, buyer
really needs representation.
There's a lot going on, there'sa lot of legal papers that
(05:54):
you're dealing with, and a lotof knowledge that I've gained
over the 30 years, that buyersreally need to be represented.
And you need fullrepresentation, and you need
someone negotiating on your bestinterest on your behalf. And in
your corner, and I get areputation as a tough
negotiator. Well, that's whatyou hired me to do.
Laura Fisher (06:11):
So you you lean more towards the buyer. Now both
pretty much
Suzette Peoples (06:15):
both, but you know, again, I think the hardest
thing and is remembering who yourepresent. And that's why don't
do intermediate or because youcan't represent either party,
you're bringing them together.
So there's too many veryvariations in there that come up
in complex to me. So I alwaystell when I have a listing and
somebody calls about my listing,I tell them, do you have an
(06:36):
agent to represent you, I'll behappy to get you somebody refer
him out.
Laura Fisher (06:42):
And that's unusual. That's not common.
Suzette Peoples (06:44):
That's pretty unusual. Most Realtors want to
make a double deal, because thecommission is let's just say
it's all negotiable. But let'sjust say it's at a 7%
commission. So if I don't have abuyer agent that I have to share
it with, I can take supposedlythe whole 7% Well, it's not
about money. It's aboutrepresentation. So many, many
years ago, I decided that thisis not in the best interest of
(07:07):
the consumer, or even theseller, because nobody's really
going to bat for you. And right.
I mean, I just did a deal withmy son. And boy, that other
agent didn't like me, I get areputation out there that I'm
actually have a reputation oneoffice, I found out that a sous
that's a tough negotiator. Andshe's tough to deal with. And
I'm like, okay, but that'sbecause I'm representing my
(07:28):
seller. I'm not representingyour buyer, and I happen to know
more than you do in thisprocess, then I'm gonna win in
this game that we're playing ofnegotiating. And I just take
care of my clients, and it comesback to me most of my business
is all referrals.
Laura Fisher (07:44):
So when you negotiate, you're not just
negotiating on price. What arethe kinds of things? Well,
you're negotiating
Suzette Peoples (07:50):
on repairs, you're negotiating on the whole
contract and how it's writtenand written to the best interest
of the seller. I can't tell youhow many times I've had agents
miss things, and then they getmad at me. And I'm like, Well,
you missed it, you were supposedto give me this document in a
certain amount of time. And youdidn't get it to me. So now you
owe me or they don't read them?
Well, and I think a lot of themget lazy, and they don't think
about how responsible it is towrite a contract and follow that
(08:13):
contract. And I think too manytimes agents are all in the same
office. They're all buddies witheach other. And they're all
friends and they socialize. AndI'm like, but that's not what
I'm here for. I'm here to takecare of my client, and you
didn't do what you were supposedto do. Yes, I could have called
you and said you missed this,can you get this to me. But that
was not my responsibility. Ifyou didn't get it to me, then
(08:33):
there's a repercussions to whathappens when you didn't do it.
And then they were all grumpy atme because they're like, all you
had to do is pick up the phoneto set and I'm like, but that's
not my responsibility. Now youowe my son this. Right? And it's
gonna cost you $250. Right?
Better than a new survey. Sothat's that's what my
(08:54):
responsibility is. And there aremany times where even my seller
negotiating repairs. Just theylook at me and go, Sue said, I
would take this deal. I'm done.
I said, No, we're gonna get yousome more money. This is not
going to cost as much to fixthese things. Let's give them
try this allowance. Right? Andthen we get it done. They're
like, Oh, my God, you just savedme five grand, right? Like,
well, that's my job. Right? Ilove saving my
Laura Fisher (09:18):
money. Right? You can't do that. If you're
representing both sides.
Suzette Peoples (09:21):
You cannot. And I loved I think the biggest
thing I get is helping my sellersave money. And or my buyer, you
know, getting a better deal andnegotiating. You know, we have
multiple offers going in and myson got the deal. Right? And so
I still can't believe out ofthat deal went down but we were
very lucky. And he's as we keptsaying, you got the best Realtor
(09:43):
in Houston. And you betterlisten to her. So he did and it
worked out well. He got a reallygood deal.
Laura Fisher (09:48):
So let's talk about your your business. So it
is people's people's property.
That's pretty easy to rememberpeople
Suzette Peoples (09:56):
I got lucky I got a husband that last name of
people so it worked
Laura Fisher (09:59):
out So, so you're the broker, right? Does that
mean you have agents,
Suzette Peoples (10:04):
I used to have a whole team. When I was with
REMAX, I had a whole team. Ifound that with the team, yes, I
became top 1% in the nation, Igot all the awards you could
get. And the problem I had, andthis was 10 years ago, was, and
I'm finding it's happening now alot of teams are dissolving. And
because what happens is, itbecomes a business that you run
(10:27):
instead of selling real estate,and talking her clients one at a
time. So you do that muchvolume, you're too busy managing
people, right? I hate to do,right, I am not the manager, my
husband manages people, and hedoesn't Well, I'm in sales. And
I love marketing. And I loveselling, I don't like managing
women or men or whoever. And itjust drove me nuts, because I
(10:49):
spent more time in the officemanaging right than I did
getting to talk to my customersand deal with my clients on a
one to one. So about 10 yearsago, I said, Okay, we're done
with the team dissolved, theteam, went back to myself as an
individual did more quality thanquantity, pick and choose who I
take and list and buy and workwith. And it works. I mean, I
(11:10):
have the best client, if theyknow they get me, they don't get
somebody learning, they don'tget an assistant. And I think
that's what the consumer wantsright now. I think they realize
these big teams are great.
Because you can always reachsomebody, but Right. Okay, but
are you getting the rightperson? Or it's, you know, you
get my knowledge, my experiencemy attention to your property.
And so I don't have a lot ofvolume. So it's wonderful.
Laura Fisher (11:36):
When you're not a part of something like REMAX,
are you giving up on marketing?
Or are you able
Suzette Peoples (11:41):
to at all didn't hurt me a bit, actually,
the and I'm not saying anythingnegative about any of the
franchises but what worried methe most was a client had said
to me, if you were with XYZcompany, I wouldn't list with
you. And I went, Wow, he's justbecause this I had a bad deal
with this agent at that company.
And I went, Okay, now you'restarting to socialize me with a
name and a brand that couldchange. And I've worked too hard
(12:03):
with my name and my brand, tolet that happen. So that's when
I went independent and said, youknow, what they're hiring me and
who I am not who my company is.
And they know I can get in thesame exact not knowledge,
experience marketing exposurethat they can get, because we
have technology. So it's outthere.
Laura Fisher (12:23):
So all the follow up and everything you get well,
what are your tools that youuse?
Suzette Peoples (12:29):
Well, I have great software company called
Top Producer. And that is whereall my marketing, okay, keep in
touch with my clients and allthat.
Laura Fisher (12:36):
Is that specifically for real estate? It
is doesn't
Suzette Peoples (12:39):
need for that.
And like right now I'm doing ahuge bailout, I do a calendar
magnet every year. And so I'mpushing that out right now to
past clients and some farmingareas, meaning I pick
neighborhoods that I like that Iwork in, I live near, so I get
them the calendars every year.
Laura Fisher (12:55):
So you can have gone out on your own if you
weren't a broker. Is that right?
That's correct. So you had yourplanning ahead. Worked for you?
Yes. And it also allowed you tohave that leadership role with
big franchise. Right, right.
Well,
Suzette Peoples (13:09):
I think it's just a matter of if I was always
concerned. And it happened, thefranchise I was with was sold to
another franchise and didn'ttell anybody. It's just the next
morning, if anybody was movingover, and they were mad, I'm
glad I got out of there when Idid. But that was my other
concern is that at any timeyou're with a franchise, that
franchise could be sold, thingscould change, and then you're
left in the cold, right? So Ithought, No, I'm gonna take care
(13:30):
of me and get my broker'slicense be independent, and you
Laura Fisher (13:33):
don't have any of the tools because I'm sure the
franchise has all the tools orsoftware.
Suzette Peoples (13:37):
I have access to all the same tools. That's
good. Yeah. So that's what I sawto the technology was coming in,
I knew it was there. And I coulduse all the same tools. I mean,
it's just not it's the name isdifferent.
Laura Fisher (13:50):
So, alright, so we're gonna take a quick break.
And when we come back, I wantedto talk to you a bit more about
what is negotiable. When you'reselling a house or you're buying
a house, maybe from the consumerside, okay, the best way to work
with a realtor. Okay. All right,so we'll be right back right.
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(14:27):
Insights.
Laura Fisher (14:30):
Alright, we're back with Suzette people's from
people's property here in SugarLand is Your is that your home
base? Sure. Yeah, yep.
Suzette Peoples (14:37):
We're Ben County.
Laura Fisher (14:38):
So Oh, that's pretty large territory.
Suzette Peoples (14:40):
Yes, I'll go all the way up to full sure if I
have to. Well, that's a growingI got new clients out there too.
Now. That's awesome.
Laura Fisher (14:46):
are so we weren't talking about the consumer side
of dealing with a real estateagent or real estate broker. So
tell us what's how do we start?
How does someone start andwhat's negotiable? Those are the
Suzette Peoples (14:59):
Okay, well The first thing I would do is
interview realtors. Findyourself a good realtor that's
been in the business long enoughthat has the experience the
knowledge, the credentialsbehind them, and that you're
comfortable with. Becausethey're going to represent you
and you want them to have thesame personality, as you know,
those the business enough torepresent your best interest and
(15:21):
knows what you want. Okay? Ithink that's the first key is
finding and being loyal to thatone realtor, if you like that
realtor, and you get alongreally well, because this is a
long term relationship.
Sometimes I can be with clientsfor six months to a year, okay,
but you don't want themmotivated just by money only.
And then it's like, you're justanother number, and they have
510 buyers are working with. Andit's a relationship that you
(15:45):
have to create with them, thatyou have to feel honest with
them. And they're honest withyou, and they're looking out for
your best interest. So when youtell them what you're looking
for, then they know what to lookfor out there in the
marketplace. And I think that'sthe key because right now, the
market has changed a little bit.
But we're still in a hot market300,000 or less. There's still
(16:06):
bidding wars going on. So Imean, I have two clients right
now yet one looking under three.
And you know, every time we lookat a property, is it we're not
gonna be there long. Any andhe's like, Oh my gosh, I already
have offers. I'm like,
Laura Fisher (16:20):
yes. So there's really kind of a, like 350 and
below a 300.
Suzette Peoples (16:25):
And below, right in that 325? Yes, because
that's your first timehomebuyer, okay, that's your
investors are buying, they'restill buying out here, they're
paying cash. So, and there's avery limited market. It's very,
very slim pickins. And so that'swhere, you know, a buyer twins,
how motivated they are, how fastthey need to sell. But you my
son was a perfect example. Itwas like, Oh, hurry and find me,
(16:45):
some hurt me find me something,I'm like, I only want you to be
in a certain project. I onlywant you in this neighborhood.
No other neighborhood. This ismy favorite. I picked it up. And
we had to wait till somethingcomes on the market. And you
have to have patience. And whenone came back on the market, I
say, Oh, this is the one. Let'sgo after it. So I think the key
is, is again, keeping an eye onthe market. hjr.com is our
(17:08):
Houston Association of Realtors.
I like that that's the bestsite, because that is our
mothership. When I take alisting, I put it in there
first, all your other likerealtor.com homes.com Yeah, they
all go in there, and they Minekoin there every day. So you want
to get in there go fast, you goto H ar.com. That's a good tip.
Yes, because that's the mostrecent of anything new coming.
(17:30):
And I even have access asrealtors, we have access to what
is called coming soon. Theconsumer does not have access to
that. We know when something'scoming on the market, right? So
we can actually get a hold ofthat realtor and say I got a
buyer let me know when you'recoming on the market, what are
you waiting for? And then I canget that information to my
client as quickly as possible.
(17:50):
So the best thing to do is get agood realtor, get a loan
relationship. I even have abuyer's agreement that says
you're hiring me as your agent,I recommend every consumer do
this. If you're going to hire arealtor, get a buyer's
agreement, the buyer's agreementactually specifies what my
responsibility is to you to tothe consumer. So the buyer, so
(18:12):
the buyer can say, Well, I doyou have to tell me if the guy
died in there? No, legally, I donot have to tell you that unless
I know it. The seller doesn'thave to tell you that unless the
property caused the death. Soyou see, buyers don't know this.
If it's bothers you enough, thatyou say Suzanne, I don't wanna
buy any house that someone diedin natural causes or whatever.
(18:34):
Then I need to tell them we haveto do our due diligence and find
out what happened. So you
Laura Fisher (18:40):
would you would you're saying let's talk about
this stuff before we startlooking at houses natural buyers
agreements because
Suzette Peoples (18:46):
I could be with Fung Shui. I mean, they really
they have Fung Shui. And I had abook on Fung Shui because I had
to like okay, what are wetalking about here? That's
interesting. I'm like, okay, thestairs can't go out the front
door. Okay. Then, you know, Iknow properties because I've
sold so many. I mean, I thinkI've sold I was thinking the
other day, how many have Iactually sold it on 30 years,
it's over almost 700 homes. Soit was kind of nice to know that
(19:10):
my mom was hit the 1000. But Iknow the inventory. They know
the neighborhoods, I know thefloor plan, right. And I think
that saves time too. Because ifthey're telling me they have to
face a certain direction, orthey, you know, don't want to to
store they don't want the masterup or down, then I can look at
those things. So just save time.
So you're not just I call themtour guides. And it drives me
nuts when realtors are showingmy listings. And I'm like, could
(19:31):
you not see that this had themaster was up? Right? And they
wanted the master down? Why arewe looking at my listing. But
again, I think a lot of timesyou have to stop, talk to the
consumer. See what he wants. Getyour list of must have and the
wish list? Yeah, because there'sa big difference between what we
must have and what our wish listis. So we just try to get that
(19:53):
information to the consumer andsit down with them. And I think
that's the most creative corepoint, when you get a client,
you have to listen. And you haveto really know what, who, who's
making the major decision,especially if it's a couple,
right? And you're going, okay,who's gonna really make this
decision here goes, you know,who's gonna win? Now,
Laura Fisher (20:15):
before they come and talk to you, you should
already have some kind ofsomething from the bank that
says, Yeah,
Suzette Peoples (20:20):
well, once I get with them, you know, even if
they haven't talked to themortgage company, I give them
lender suggestions, okay?
Because I have some good lendersout there. And that's another
thing you got to be carefulwith. Some of these lenders are
saying it's the bait and switch.
Okay, we're gonna, you know, ourinterest rate is now 5%. And
like, no, Mark, it's five and ahalf. Well look at the closing
costs, because I used to be aloan officer and a processor. So
(20:41):
I kind of know these littletricks of the trade. So I said,
Well, wait a minute, let'scompare you to two different
lenders, and see who's reallygiving you the better deal.
Because you may be thinking therates lower, but then your
closing costs are high. Yeah,it's Yeah. So you gotta really
look at the bottom line, becausethat's the key is, is they're
trying to get you in the door atfive and a half. Now, how
Laura Fisher (21:01):
would I even know that about all those different
fees in that trick?
Suzette Peoples (21:06):
Well, because what I do with my with my client
is I go ahead and get yourclosing cost estimate from the
lender. And they may come down,they don't even meet him in
person anymore. It's terrible.
Everything's online. So you haveto go online and make loan
application with them and askfor a closing statement. They
should give you a closing costestimate, and then get it from
the several and then I'llcompare them all and let's look
(21:28):
at the bottom line. I mean, whatare they charging you for this?
Five and a half? 2% 1%? Right.
Let's see what you're reallypaying for.
Laura Fisher (21:37):
Man, that is it scary. That's the value that you
offer right there?
Suzette Peoples (21:41):
Well, I used to be a loan officer Prosser worked
for a mortgage company. Andduring the foreclosure days, it
was one of those tough times Ithink the hardest part in real
estate. I think every religionshould go through a tough time.
Because boy, do you learn how tomarket in a foreclosure market.
Every other house was onforeclosure and you're trying to
sell against foreclosureproperties. I learned all over
(22:01):
Houston because I worked for themortgage company. Once I got my
license, they said, you have toleave because conflict of
interest. So they gave me allthe listings. Oh, so they said
can you go to Clear Lake I'msure I'll go anywhere. That's
right. So I went anywhere. Idrove all over Houston. And I
learned every market in Houston,I think I was sold in every
subdivision. But it was a it wasit was an easy way to get
business. But it was a hard wayto keep it. Because they after
(22:24):
it took you six months to sellthe house back then. Minimum.
And after six months, if youdidn't sell it, they're moving
on to another realtor.
Laura Fisher (22:30):
That's right, because it's your fault is
right.
Suzette Peoples (22:34):
So that that toughened me up real quickly in
the business, but back tobuyers. So once you establish
what you want, where do you wantto go? And again, the knowledge
of a realtor knowingneighborhoods because, you know,
I don't sell in The Woodlandsbecause that's just out of my
territory. I don't know itenough. And again, I think
Laura, my my concern is toconsumer, what I know about four
(22:56):
pin County in everyneighborhood. Okay, let's just
say for instance, Missouri Cityversus Sugarland. There's
different entities over there.
There's different homeownersassociation, maybe there's a
different city. There'sdifferent rules and guidelines,
and how's that value holding upin this market? Versus
Sugarland, so I know thisbecause I live here I work here
I sell here. I don't know whatthe woodlands I don't know which
(23:17):
neighborhood is higher priced orlower price or the lot sizes and
traffic problems or all thatman, how long is really going to
take you to get out of there.
That's right. But you know, Iknow a lot sizes of it. Each
neighborhood I know the buildersin the neighborhood. I mean, I
have a filing cabinet full fromback in the 19 from 1990. A
(23:38):
floorplans. I'm all the buildersso I even may have your
floorplan. So that's knowledgethat I have that I thought,
well, I shouldn't be selling inanother neighborhood that I know
nothing about. Right? Especiallywith all the flooding going on.
You can ask neighbors, but it'sstill okay. When they say their
house flooded. You're like,Okay, your property line is your
property and that goes to thecurb. So if that water came over
(24:01):
that curb and come in to yourproperty, your property flooded.
Laura Fisher (24:06):
Yeah, I wouldn't.
During Harvey our house did notflood but it did come up.
Suzette Peoples (24:11):
So the seller disclosure, they changed it now
to say property and versushouse. I'm like, Okay, there's
difference if your house floodedversus your property. But see,
people were getting confused andsaying, Oh, my house never
flooded. So my property didn'tflood no your property flooded
if it came over the curb, andwent onto your property line. So
now they just make thedifference of the two. Because
(24:31):
every all the realtors werecomplaining and all the sellers
were complaining because
Laura Fisher (24:34):
well now we all know what our elevation is.
Suzette Peoples (24:37):
Exactly. Your insurance company is happy to
tell you. Yeah, so that'sinformation to me is knowledge
that, you know, I get nervouswhen I see you know, people
working with a realtor thatdoesn't even know the area and
like they had no clue about ourhomeowners association, and
that's another thing I got.
That's a big deal. Oh, yeah. Andthey were laughs analogies
doesn't have to be incompliance. It's not it's not
written in the contract. Andthey're like, I thought it's
(24:59):
required not not required. So,again, knowledge is king. And I
think if you're gonna get arealtor, make sure they know the
area, they know that I mean, Idon't sell. I mean, I'll refer
them out if they say they'regoing to Conroe or something, I
don't know that nipro not gonnabe of good help you unless
you're building a brand newhome. That's a different story.
Like Del Webb right now, I saw aclient, she's moving to Fulshear
Del Webb, I haven't even seenthe property yet. But I know
(25:21):
from the floor plan and theneighborhood map, I knew where
she was going what she wasdoing. But that's buying a new
home. That's totally fromballparks. So we do represent
buyers with new homes as well.
So you're hiring Realtorsknowledge, negotiating, you were
talking asking aboutnegotiating? You know, you have
to look at every transaction, isit I look at as like my money.
(25:44):
See, my husband handles ourmoney. And he worries about that
money. I worry about my clientsmoney. And I worry about every
time I had a client once he wasbuying a brand new home, and the
builder was supposed to pay this$50. So we got to closing I'm
like, why is this $50 on herside? And she's like, well, I
don't know if the builder put itthere. So no, it's not supposed
to be there. So she went back tothe builder. And sure enough, it
was supposed to be the builder.
And the mind buyer looked at meand said You are worried about
(26:06):
$50 that's it your money? Yeah,it should. I should. That's what
I'm here, it's what you hired meto do, is to worry about your
money. That's dinner one. Sothat's my thought process is I
like to worry about my clientsmoney. And I like to make sure
they're getting a good deal. Andeven if it's a buyer, like my
son, it was like, Okay, let'ssee what we can negotiate here.
(26:26):
You know, we got a new roof onthe deal. And I mean, why not?
And I had a good roofer that putit on there gave us all a good
deal. I mean, that's myresponsibility is to take care
of the negotiating. And, yes,there are times when I get
frustrated with my sellers, andthey're going to just let it go,
let it go. We want to close wedon't want to lose, this buyer
will pay it we don't mind. I'mlike, Oh, you shouldn't have to
pay it. But I have to let go andtheir money like my husband's
(26:50):
it's their money. They want toget that fire an extra five, let
them have it.
Laura Fisher (26:56):
So how do you make money. So you get always a
commission, a percentage of
Suzette Peoples (27:01):
the well, as a listing broker, we go to the
seller, and we sit down withthem and say, Okay, here's what
I charge. And whether it's 7%,then it's a matter of my side is
four, and then the buyer's agentwho I bring in, or somebody
brings in, we're gonna pay themthree. Okay, okay. So that way
that buyer agent is getting paidright now, a lot of that some of
(27:24):
that softball changing becausesome, I can't even get into
that. But it's all negotiable.
But right now, once a listing isin the MLS, which is our H AR,
it says on there, how much we'repaying the co op agent, whether
it's a co op, being Co Op, Ireally don't do Co Op anymore,
everybody's kind of going awaywith that, that means that
agents is cooperating with me.
So it's still representing mebecause they don't have a
(27:45):
representation with the buyer.
We don't really do that anymore.
We pay a buyer's agent. So wewant you to represent the buyer.
Now, they may not have it inwriting with a buyer's
agreement. But I'm notrepresenting that buyer. You are
Laura Fisher (28:01):
so on those upfront agreements, yes. Is that
when you negotiate thepercentage? No,
Suzette Peoples (28:08):
it's actually already, when I sit down with
the seller, that's when wenegotiate to commission, what
I'm gonna get paid and what thebuyer's agents gonna get paid.
Laura Fisher (28:15):
What if you have some of these really expensive
houses? $1,000,000.02 milliondollar home? So it's the same
7%?
Suzette Peoples (28:23):
It's all negotiable. Okay, it really is.
It depends on the client,whether if the past client,
whether they're buying anotherhouse for me, I mean, it's all
between me and that seller whatwe want to do. Okay, I get that,
you know, when I tell this iswhat I tell sellers, you get
what you pay for. And I've seenmany, many times discounts,
agents, discount buyers,sellers, whatever. And they all
(28:46):
cried to me later, I'm goingwell, they weren't getting paid
much. What do you want them todo? Yeah, you know, it's like,
it's like, you go to anattorney. He charges a retainer
fee. He charges you a fee? Doyou want that attorney that wins
all the cases. And you know,he's not gonna be cheap, because
he wins. And he knows thatjudge. And how many times do you
go to court? Right? So it's thesame thing. I feel like when you
hire a real estate agent, we'reprofessionals, and do you want
(29:09):
the best, then you're going topay for the best. And I'd be
nervous if they werediscounting? Because I'd be the
one Why are you discounting? Ifyou're really good at what you
do? You shouldn't have todiscount, right? So I look at
that. I know what I do. And Iknow I'm good at what I do. And
I've saved my clients. 1000s Sothey're looking at me going Oh,
you were worth every penny,because you just saved me five
grand. Well, I knew
Laura Fisher (29:29):
we were talking earlier. Before we started
recording, you have a lot ofrepeat business, lots of
referrals. 90% Yeah. And it'snot just like, it's not repeat
Well, referrals and repeat. Likepeople are moving around. And
like we talked about Ericblossom, who's been a guest on
my show. You've sold him whatfive?
Suzette Peoples (29:50):
Yeah, five times.
Laura Fisher (29:52):
That's not right.
Suzette Peoples (29:54):
She said that.
We're now at seven times withher.
Laura Fisher (29:57):
Oh my goodness.
Yeah, she's
Suzette Peoples (29:59):
still got one more house to Yo, she's got it
rented right now. So I, I helpedher buy an investment property.
And that was the best thing sheever did, because she was making
good money on that one. So it'sa good feeling when they're
loyal, they come back to me andthey know I did a great job and
I make them money. Right. And Ithink that's the key is what I
love doing is the best. The bestform of advertising is past
(30:19):
clients talking about you, inthe best way.
Laura Fisher (30:21):
100% Yeah, so people's property is who we're
talking to today. Suzettepeople's and I certainly have no
reservations, I would call you100%. Ready? Absolutely. Because
you are an advocate that can youlove what I do? Yeah,
absolutely. So before we closeyou, you mentioned to me that
(30:41):
you wrote a book. Oh, yes, Idid. I'm not here to promote
your book. But I mean, it well,it's, it's Oh, my gosh,
Suzette Peoples (30:47):
it was supposed to find it on Amazon, if you
want to, there's none left, thatI have a few originals left. But
it's a women's book, motivatingwomen. Because I was in American
business women association forover 30 years. And I saw women
not having a lot of confidence.
And the success of being abusiness owner or being
independent or doing what youneed to do to be successful. And
not loving what they saw in themirror. So the book is actually
(31:10):
it's all about U U. U is thename of it. And it says love
what you see in the mirror.
Awesome. That was a great littlebook, fun to read. Well,
Laura Fisher (31:20):
I need to check it out.
Suzette Peoples (31:21):
You do I got one for you. Don't
Laura Fisher (31:22):
worry. Oh, good.
Alright, so tell my listenershow they can reach you. The best
way
Suzette Peoples (31:26):
to reach me is people's properties.com. Or you
can you can definitely call meon my cell phone is
832-573-8230. My email addressis Suzette people's at a let's
see, I'm at comcast.net.
Laura Fisher (31:42):
Okay, well, I'll have that all in the show notes.
So okay, if you're in the car,you can just scroll down. And on
the end, you can read all thenotes and a little bio about her
as well. Well, Suzette, I reallyenjoyed this.
Suzette Peoples (31:55):
Well, thank you. I enjoyed it too, Laura,
Laura Fisher (31:56):
thanks for asking me. You're welcome. Now, there
is something I do at the end ofmy show. Okay. And we didn't
talk about this earlier, but Ihave a closing line. And I
didn't know if you wanted to trysaying it. Okay. It says because
at the end of it, I always sayUntil next time, you better be
up to something. Do you want totry that? Because the reason why
I have that saying is becauseany entrepreneur, any business
(32:19):
owner I've known they're alwayswhat? They're always up to
something. Yes, we are. Yes. Socan you try saying it until next
time,
Suzette Peoples (32:26):
you better be up to something sounds good. All
right. Thanks, Laura. All right,y'all
Laura Fisher (32:30):
have a good week.
Bye. Bye. Thank you. Thanks forjoining us this week on Small
Business Insights, make sure youvisit our website at Fisher
podcast.com where you can followthe podcast on iTunes or your
favorite podcast platform soyou'll never miss a show. If you
enjoyed and found value intoday's episode, we'd appreciate
a rating and review on iTunes orsimply share it with a friend
(32:53):
that would help us out to makesure you tune in next week for
our next episode. Until then,you better be up to something
Welcome to small business insights where back
office conversations give usinsight to what's really going
on. Is it grit or luck? Thatgives a small business owner an
advantage? Let's find out. I'myour host, Laura Fisher. Well,
welcome today I have in thestudio Suzette people's from
(00:25):
people's property, she's a realestate broker and owner say
hello, Suzanne.
Suzette Peoples (00:30):
Hello there, Laura. How are you?
Laura Fisher (00:32):
I'm good. So this is our first time in the studio
and a long time, so we're gonnaget used to this. So Suzanne,
you were recommended to me byKen Qasr. And he said, This is a
fascinating lady, your selfstarter, would you say that's
true? Oh, yeah, definitely.
Let's start off. How long haveyou been in Texas
Suzette Peoples (00:51):
since 1981. got here as fast as I could.
Laura Fisher (00:54):
Where did you grow up
Suzette Peoples (00:55):
in Florida?
Miami is the last place I wasliving.
Laura Fisher (00:57):
So were you in high school at that time?
Suzette Peoples (01:00):
No, I was out of high school by then.
Laura Fisher (01:01):
So I graduated in 1982. From high school and get
rid of my 40th high schoolreunion. Wow. And I lived in
Daytona Beach, Florida. Okay,that time when I was there, it
was not a good time to be inMiami because of all the
refugees. Yes, yes. Is that oneof the reasons why you left
Florida?
Suzette Peoples (01:19):
Yes. Because everybody kept asking me if I
spoke Spanish. So it was gettingkind of frustrating. And when I
came to Texas, it was like,especially Houston. I was so
amazed how friendly everybodywas. Yeah. When they move over
when you're driving. I'm like,Oh my gosh, they move over.
Yeah, I loved it here.
Everybody's very friendly. Soyou haven't left Texas since
then? Nope. Stayed on the northside, then moved to the south
side. And so you have familyhere and Sugar Land? Well, my
(01:40):
son is here in Houston, and mydaughter is in Dallas. So she
loves Dallas.
Laura Fisher (01:46):
We were talking earlier and you're an Aggie mom.
So you got an Aggie in thefamily. Yep,
Suzette Peoples (01:50):
that was a nice thing to see my daughter do it
engineering and got a master. Sowe're proud of her. And my son
is doing real well. He's in themedical field. So we couldn't be
prouder.
Laura Fisher (01:59):
That sound like some high achieving children.
Yeah, we were lucky. All right.
So Suzette, let's talk aboutyour business. So tell you are
now a broker. But that's not howmost people start off. Everybody
starts out, you have to be arealtor first. For those that
don't know, just kind of walk usthrough the process of the
career development of howsomeone becomes a broker?
Suzette Peoples (02:17):
Well, you have to be a realtor, I think the
criteria now is at least twoyears or so many hours. And you
have to take a class and test.
So you have to actually get abroker's license, and you have
to as a realtor, you have to besponsored by a broker. So to
become a broker, you have tohave been a real estate agent
for a while. And then you take alot of tests and pass those
tests. What's more fees?
Laura Fisher (02:38):
Yeah. What's the difference between a real estate
agent and a broker?
Suzette Peoples (02:43):
Well, a real estate agent is just your
average realtor that gets alicense and practices real
estate, they can sellcommercial, residential,
whatever. There's differenttrade real tour and then an
agent, real tours associatedwith the National Association of
Realtors. So that's a differentdesignation. So
Laura Fisher (02:58):
they're like certified. Yes.
Suzette Peoples (03:00):
It's a different organization, we're
actually in a different level, Iwould say. But then, you know,
you have to work under a broker.
So that's why I got my broker'slicense, because I always
thought well may not stay withthis company. If I want to go
independent, I need to be abroker.
Laura Fisher (03:13):
So he said, It sounds like a mentor, but it's
really not a mentor.
Suzette Peoples (03:17):
Well, there's supposed to be monitoring
agents. I mean, that's whatthey're there for is to
regulate, monitor train, youknow, they're responsible for
those agents that are beneaththem.
Laura Fisher (03:27):
Do they have legal differences between an agent and
a broker?
Suzette Peoples (03:32):
As far as well the broker is responsible for
the realtor so everything theydo, they can be liable for
everything that that agent isdoing right or wrong. So they
all have to have theresponsibility. Yes.
Laura Fisher (03:42):
Okay. So so back back to the just general real
estate. So what there's REMAXthere's all these different
franchises? Yes, franchises thatso how does the franchise work
and then the broker because thenI see you know, a name
associated with REMAX,
Suzette Peoples (03:58):
right and when I was with REMAX, it was a co
broker. So you you are notresponsible. You have brokers
that are responsible for theagents. So if you work for
REMAX, they have a designatedperson who is the broker for
those agents and they'reresponsible for them. You can be
a co broker. So there's severalagents out there who are co
brokers, we have our broker'slicense, but we're not
(04:21):
responsible for those agents.
Okay, so does it just pay morefees? And just it's a different
designation? Okay. Yeah.
Laura Fisher (04:29):
So as a consumer me not knowing any difference I
call, let's just say I call on alisting, right? Because then
that happened, people will lookit up and they don't really know
the difference. So I'd say I seesomething on Windsor Park Drive
and Houston and I call thelisting agent. Right, right.
What what does that mean? Imean, well, they're not usually
(04:51):
this. What does that mean?
Suzette Peoples (04:52):
Okay, you have a listing agent who is
responsible for the listing.
They represent the sellers bestinterest, they have listed the
property With that seller ownerof that property, the seller,
right, so they have hired thatrealtor as a listing broker to
represent them. Okay. And whenyou call that broker, you're
talking to the agentsrepresenting the seller right?
(05:12):
Now you may decide, okay, inTexas, you cannot represent the
seller and the bottom, notallowed. I didn't know that.
Yeah, a lot of people don't. Soyou have to go intermediate. And
intermediary only puts you inthe position of negotiating the
contract, can't represent theseller or the buyer, you're just
in the center, bringing theparties together, and you have
(05:33):
to stay neutral, which I decidedmany, many years ago. Now,
that's kind of impossible. Well,a lot of people do it. And I
don't do it anymore. My attorneysaid, You're just waiting for a
lawsuit. So stay out of thatjust and I realized two, buyer
really needs representation.
There's a lot going on, there'sa lot of legal papers that
(05:54):
you're dealing with, and a lotof knowledge that I've gained
over the 30 years, that buyersreally need to be represented.
And you need fullrepresentation, and you need
someone negotiating on your bestinterest on your behalf. And in
your corner, and I get areputation as a tough
negotiator. Well, that's whatyou hired me to do.
Laura Fisher (06:11):
So you you lean more towards the buyer. Now both
pretty much
Suzette Peoples (06:15):
both, but you know, again, I think the hardest
thing and is remembering who yourepresent. And that's why don't
do intermediate or because youcan't represent either party,
you're bringing them together.
So there's too many veryvariations in there that come up
in complex to me. So I alwaystell when I have a listing and
somebody calls about my listing,I tell them, do you have an
(06:36):
agent to represent you, I'll behappy to get you somebody refer
him out.
Laura Fisher (06:42):
And that's unusual. That's not common.
Suzette Peoples (06:44):
That's pretty unusual. Most Realtors want to
make a double deal, because thecommission is let's just say
it's all negotiable. But let'sjust say it's at a 7%
commission. So if I don't have abuyer agent that I have to share
it with, I can take supposedlythe whole 7% Well, it's not
about money. It's aboutrepresentation. So many, many
years ago, I decided that thisis not in the best interest of
(07:07):
the consumer, or even theseller, because nobody's really
going to bat for you. And right.
I mean, I just did a deal withmy son. And boy, that other
agent didn't like me, I get areputation out there that I'm
actually have a reputation oneoffice, I found out that a sous
that's a tough negotiator. Andshe's tough to deal with. And
I'm like, okay, but that'sbecause I'm representing my
(07:28):
seller. I'm not representingyour buyer, and I happen to know
more than you do in thisprocess, then I'm gonna win in
this game that we're playing ofnegotiating. And I just take
care of my clients, and it comesback to me most of my business
is all referrals.
Laura Fisher (07:44):
So when you negotiate, you're not just
negotiating on price. What arethe kinds of things? Well,
you're negotiating
Suzette Peoples (07:50):
on repairs, you're negotiating on the whole
contract and how it's writtenand written to the best interest
of the seller. I can't tell youhow many times I've had agents
miss things, and then they getmad at me. And I'm like, Well,
you missed it, you were supposedto give me this document in a
certain amount of time. And youdidn't get it to me. So now you
owe me or they don't read them?
Well, and I think a lot of themget lazy, and they don't think
about how responsible it is towrite a contract and follow that
(08:13):
contract. And I think too manytimes agents are all in the same
office. They're all buddies witheach other. And they're all
friends and they socialize. AndI'm like, but that's not what
I'm here for. I'm here to takecare of my client, and you
didn't do what you were supposedto do. Yes, I could have called
you and said you missed this,can you get this to me. But that
was not my responsibility. Ifyou didn't get it to me, then
(08:33):
there's a repercussions to whathappens when you didn't do it.
And then they were all grumpy atme because they're like, all you
had to do is pick up the phoneto set and I'm like, but that's
not my responsibility. Now youowe my son this. Right? And it's
gonna cost you $250. Right?
Better than a new survey. Sothat's that's what my
(08:54):
responsibility is. And there aremany times where even my seller
negotiating repairs. Just theylook at me and go, Sue said, I
would take this deal. I'm done.
I said, No, we're gonna get yousome more money. This is not
going to cost as much to fixthese things. Let's give them
try this allowance. Right? Andthen we get it done. They're
like, Oh, my God, you just savedme five grand, right? Like,
well, that's my job. Right? Ilove saving my
Laura Fisher (09:18):
money. Right? You can't do that. If you're
representing both sides.
Suzette Peoples (09:21):
You cannot. And I loved I think the biggest
thing I get is helping my sellersave money. And or my buyer, you
know, getting a better deal andnegotiating. You know, we have
multiple offers going in and myson got the deal. Right? And so
I still can't believe out ofthat deal went down but we were
very lucky. And he's as we keptsaying, you got the best Realtor
(09:43):
in Houston. And you betterlisten to her. So he did and it
worked out well. He got a reallygood deal.
Laura Fisher (09:48):
So let's talk about your your business. So it
is people's people's property.
That's pretty easy to rememberpeople
Suzette Peoples (09:56):
I got lucky I got a husband that last name of
people so it worked
Laura Fisher (09:59):
out So, so you're the broker, right? Does that
mean you have agents,
Suzette Peoples (10:04):
I used to have a whole team. When I was with
REMAX, I had a whole team. Ifound that with the team, yes, I
became top 1% in the nation, Igot all the awards you could
get. And the problem I had, andthis was 10 years ago, was, and
I'm finding it's happening now alot of teams are dissolving. And
because what happens is, itbecomes a business that you run
(10:27):
instead of selling real estate,and talking her clients one at a
time. So you do that muchvolume, you're too busy managing
people, right? I hate to do,right, I am not the manager, my
husband manages people, and hedoesn't Well, I'm in sales. And
I love marketing. And I loveselling, I don't like managing
women or men or whoever. And itjust drove me nuts, because I
(10:49):
spent more time in the officemanaging right than I did
getting to talk to my customersand deal with my clients on a
one to one. So about 10 yearsago, I said, Okay, we're done
with the team dissolved, theteam, went back to myself as an
individual did more quality thanquantity, pick and choose who I
take and list and buy and workwith. And it works. I mean, I
(11:10):
have the best client, if theyknow they get me, they don't get
somebody learning, they don'tget an assistant. And I think
that's what the consumer wantsright now. I think they realize
these big teams are great.
Because you can always reachsomebody, but Right. Okay, but
are you getting the rightperson? Or it's, you know, you
get my knowledge, my experiencemy attention to your property.
And so I don't have a lot ofvolume. So it's wonderful.
Laura Fisher (11:36):
When you're not a part of something like REMAX,
are you giving up on marketing?
Or are you able
Suzette Peoples (11:41):
to at all didn't hurt me a bit, actually,
the and I'm not saying anythingnegative about any of the
franchises but what worried methe most was a client had said
to me, if you were with XYZcompany, I wouldn't list with
you. And I went, Wow, he's justbecause this I had a bad deal
with this agent at that company.
And I went, Okay, now you'restarting to socialize me with a
name and a brand that couldchange. And I've worked too hard
(12:03):
with my name and my brand, tolet that happen. So that's when
I went independent and said, youknow, what they're hiring me and
who I am not who my company is.
And they know I can get in thesame exact not knowledge,
experience marketing exposurethat they can get, because we
have technology. So it's outthere.
Laura Fisher (12:23):
So all the follow up and everything you get well,
what are your tools that youuse?
Suzette Peoples (12:29):
Well, I have great software company called
Top Producer. And that is whereall my marketing, okay, keep in
touch with my clients and allthat.
Laura Fisher (12:36):
Is that specifically for real estate? It
is doesn't
Suzette Peoples (12:39):
need for that.
And like right now I'm doing ahuge bailout, I do a calendar
magnet every year. And so I'mpushing that out right now to
past clients and some farmingareas, meaning I pick
neighborhoods that I like that Iwork in, I live near, so I get
them the calendars every year.
Laura Fisher (12:55):
So you can have gone out on your own if you
weren't a broker. Is that right?
That's correct. So you had yourplanning ahead. Worked for you?
Yes. And it also allowed you tohave that leadership role with
big franchise. Right, right.
Well,
Suzette Peoples (13:09):
I think it's just a matter of if I was always
concerned. And it happened, thefranchise I was with was sold to
another franchise and didn'ttell anybody. It's just the next
morning, if anybody was movingover, and they were mad, I'm
glad I got out of there when Idid. But that was my other
concern is that at any timeyou're with a franchise, that
franchise could be sold, thingscould change, and then you're
left in the cold, right? So Ithought, No, I'm gonna take care
(13:30):
of me and get my broker'slicense be independent, and you
Laura Fisher (13:33):
don't have any of the tools because I'm sure the
franchise has all the tools orsoftware.
Suzette Peoples (13:37):
I have access to all the same tools. That's
good. Yeah. So that's what I sawto the technology was coming in,
I knew it was there. And I coulduse all the same tools. I mean,
it's just not it's the name isdifferent.
Laura Fisher (13:50):
So, alright, so we're gonna take a quick break.
And when we come back, I wantedto talk to you a bit more about
what is negotiable. When you'reselling a house or you're buying
a house, maybe from the consumerside, okay, the best way to work
with a realtor. Okay. All right,so we'll be right back right.
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(14:27):
Insights.
Laura Fisher (14:30):
Alright, we're back with Suzette people's from
people's property here in SugarLand is Your is that your home
base? Sure. Yeah, yep.
Suzette Peoples (14:37):
We're Ben County.
Laura Fisher (14:38):
So Oh, that's pretty large territory.
Suzette Peoples (14:40):
Yes, I'll go all the way up to full sure if I
have to. Well, that's a growingI got new clients out there too.
Now. That's awesome.
Laura Fisher (14:46):
are so we weren't talking about the consumer side
of dealing with a real estateagent or real estate broker. So
tell us what's how do we start?
How does someone start andwhat's negotiable? Those are the
Suzette Peoples (14:59):
Okay, well The first thing I would do is
interview realtors. Findyourself a good realtor that's
been in the business long enoughthat has the experience the
knowledge, the credentialsbehind them, and that you're
comfortable with. Becausethey're going to represent you
and you want them to have thesame personality, as you know,
those the business enough torepresent your best interest and
(15:21):
knows what you want. Okay? Ithink that's the first key is
finding and being loyal to thatone realtor, if you like that
realtor, and you get alongreally well, because this is a
long term relationship.
Sometimes I can be with clientsfor six months to a year, okay,
but you don't want themmotivated just by money only.
And then it's like, you're justanother number, and they have
510 buyers are working with. Andit's a relationship that you
(15:45):
have to create with them, thatyou have to feel honest with
them. And they're honest withyou, and they're looking out for
your best interest. So when youtell them what you're looking
for, then they know what to lookfor out there in the
marketplace. And I think that'sthe key because right now, the
market has changed a little bit.
But we're still in a hot market300,000 or less. There's still
(16:06):
bidding wars going on. So Imean, I have two clients right
now yet one looking under three.
And you know, every time we lookat a property, is it we're not
gonna be there long. Any andhe's like, Oh my gosh, I already
have offers. I'm like,
Laura Fisher (16:20):
yes. So there's really kind of a, like 350 and
below a 300.
Suzette Peoples (16:25):
And below, right in that 325? Yes, because
that's your first timehomebuyer, okay, that's your
investors are buying, they'restill buying out here, they're
paying cash. So, and there's avery limited market. It's very,
very slim pickins. And so that'swhere, you know, a buyer twins,
how motivated they are, how fastthey need to sell. But you my
son was a perfect example. Itwas like, Oh, hurry and find me,
(16:45):
some hurt me find me something,I'm like, I only want you to be
in a certain project. I onlywant you in this neighborhood.
No other neighborhood. This ismy favorite. I picked it up. And
we had to wait till somethingcomes on the market. And you
have to have patience. And whenone came back on the market, I
say, Oh, this is the one. Let'sgo after it. So I think the key
is, is again, keeping an eye onthe market. hjr.com is our
(17:08):
Houston Association of Realtors.
I like that that's the bestsite, because that is our
mothership. When I take alisting, I put it in there
first, all your other likerealtor.com homes.com Yeah, they
all go in there, and they Minekoin there every day. So you want
to get in there go fast, you goto H ar.com. That's a good tip.
Yes, because that's the mostrecent of anything new coming.
(17:30):
And I even have access asrealtors, we have access to what
is called coming soon. Theconsumer does not have access to
that. We know when something'scoming on the market, right? So
we can actually get a hold ofthat realtor and say I got a
buyer let me know when you'recoming on the market, what are
you waiting for? And then I canget that information to my
client as quickly as possible.
(17:50):
So the best thing to do is get agood realtor, get a loan
relationship. I even have abuyer's agreement that says
you're hiring me as your agent,I recommend every consumer do
this. If you're going to hire arealtor, get a buyer's
agreement, the buyer's agreementactually specifies what my
responsibility is to you to tothe consumer. So the buyer, so
(18:12):
the buyer can say, Well, I doyou have to tell me if the guy
died in there? No, legally, I donot have to tell you that unless
I know it. The seller doesn'thave to tell you that unless the
property caused the death. Soyou see, buyers don't know this.
If it's bothers you enough, thatyou say Suzanne, I don't wanna
buy any house that someone diedin natural causes or whatever.
(18:34):
Then I need to tell them we haveto do our due diligence and find
out what happened. So you
Laura Fisher (18:40):
would you would you're saying let's talk about
this stuff before we startlooking at houses natural buyers
agreements because
Suzette Peoples (18:46):
I could be with Fung Shui. I mean, they really
they have Fung Shui. And I had abook on Fung Shui because I had
to like okay, what are wetalking about here? That's
interesting. I'm like, okay, thestairs can't go out the front
door. Okay. Then, you know, Iknow properties because I've
sold so many. I mean, I thinkI've sold I was thinking the
other day, how many have Iactually sold it on 30 years,
it's over almost 700 homes. Soit was kind of nice to know that
(19:10):
my mom was hit the 1000. But Iknow the inventory. They know
the neighborhoods, I know thefloor plan, right. And I think
that saves time too. Because ifthey're telling me they have to
face a certain direction, orthey, you know, don't want to to
store they don't want the masterup or down, then I can look at
those things. So just save time.
So you're not just I call themtour guides. And it drives me
nuts when realtors are showingmy listings. And I'm like, could
(19:31):
you not see that this had themaster was up? Right? And they
wanted the master down? Why arewe looking at my listing. But
again, I think a lot of timesyou have to stop, talk to the
consumer. See what he wants. Getyour list of must have and the
wish list? Yeah, because there'sa big difference between what we
must have and what our wish listis. So we just try to get that
(19:53):
information to the consumer andsit down with them. And I think
that's the most creative corepoint, when you get a client,
you have to listen. And you haveto really know what, who, who's
making the major decision,especially if it's a couple,
right? And you're going, okay,who's gonna really make this
decision here goes, you know,who's gonna win? Now,
Laura Fisher (20:15):
before they come and talk to you, you should
already have some kind ofsomething from the bank that
says, Yeah,
Suzette Peoples (20:20):
well, once I get with them, you know, even if
they haven't talked to themortgage company, I give them
lender suggestions, okay?
Because I have some good lendersout there. And that's another
thing you got to be carefulwith. Some of these lenders are
saying it's the bait and switch.
Okay, we're gonna, you know, ourinterest rate is now 5%. And
like, no, Mark, it's five and ahalf. Well look at the closing
costs, because I used to be aloan officer and a processor. So
(20:41):
I kind of know these littletricks of the trade. So I said,
Well, wait a minute, let'scompare you to two different
lenders, and see who's reallygiving you the better deal.
Because you may be thinking therates lower, but then your
closing costs are high. Yeah,it's Yeah. So you gotta really
look at the bottom line, becausethat's the key is, is they're
trying to get you in the door atfive and a half. Now, how
Laura Fisher (21:01):
would I even know that about all those different
fees in that trick?
Suzette Peoples (21:06):
Well, because what I do with my with my client
is I go ahead and get yourclosing cost estimate from the
lender. And they may come down,they don't even meet him in
person anymore. It's terrible.
Everything's online. So you haveto go online and make loan
application with them and askfor a closing statement. They
should give you a closing costestimate, and then get it from
the several and then I'llcompare them all and let's look
(21:28):
at the bottom line. I mean, whatare they charging you for this?
Five and a half? 2% 1%? Right.
Let's see what you're reallypaying for.
Laura Fisher (21:37):
Man, that is it scary. That's the value that you
offer right there?
Suzette Peoples (21:41):
Well, I used to be a loan officer Prosser worked
for a mortgage company. Andduring the foreclosure days, it
was one of those tough times Ithink the hardest part in real
estate. I think every religionshould go through a tough time.
Because boy, do you learn how tomarket in a foreclosure market.
Every other house was onforeclosure and you're trying to
sell against foreclosureproperties. I learned all over
(22:01):
Houston because I worked for themortgage company. Once I got my
license, they said, you have toleave because conflict of
interest. So they gave me allthe listings. Oh, so they said
can you go to Clear Lake I'msure I'll go anywhere. That's
right. So I went anywhere. Idrove all over Houston. And I
learned every market in Houston,I think I was sold in every
subdivision. But it was a it wasit was an easy way to get
business. But it was a hard wayto keep it. Because they after
(22:24):
it took you six months to sellthe house back then. Minimum.
And after six months, if youdidn't sell it, they're moving
on to another realtor.
Laura Fisher (22:30):
That's right, because it's your fault is
right.
Suzette Peoples (22:34):
So that that toughened me up real quickly in
the business, but back tobuyers. So once you establish
what you want, where do you wantto go? And again, the knowledge
of a realtor knowingneighborhoods because, you know,
I don't sell in The Woodlandsbecause that's just out of my
territory. I don't know itenough. And again, I think
Laura, my my concern is toconsumer, what I know about four
(22:56):
pin County in everyneighborhood. Okay, let's just
say for instance, Missouri Cityversus Sugarland. There's
different entities over there.
There's different homeownersassociation, maybe there's a
different city. There'sdifferent rules and guidelines,
and how's that value holding upin this market? Versus
Sugarland, so I know thisbecause I live here I work here
I sell here. I don't know whatthe woodlands I don't know which
(23:17):
neighborhood is higher priced orlower price or the lot sizes and
traffic problems or all thatman, how long is really going to
take you to get out of there.
That's right. But you know, Iknow a lot sizes of it. Each
neighborhood I know the buildersin the neighborhood. I mean, I
have a filing cabinet full fromback in the 19 from 1990. A
(23:38):
floorplans. I'm all the buildersso I even may have your
floorplan. So that's knowledgethat I have that I thought,
well, I shouldn't be selling inanother neighborhood that I know
nothing about. Right? Especiallywith all the flooding going on.
You can ask neighbors, but it'sstill okay. When they say their
house flooded. You're like,Okay, your property line is your
property and that goes to thecurb. So if that water came over
(24:01):
that curb and come in to yourproperty, your property flooded.
Laura Fisher (24:06):
Yeah, I wouldn't.
During Harvey our house did notflood but it did come up.
Suzette Peoples (24:11):
So the seller disclosure, they changed it now
to say property and versushouse. I'm like, Okay, there's
difference if your house floodedversus your property. But see,
people were getting confused andsaying, Oh, my house never
flooded. So my property didn'tflood no your property flooded
if it came over the curb, andwent onto your property line. So
now they just make thedifference of the two. Because
(24:31):
every all the realtors werecomplaining and all the sellers
were complaining because
Laura Fisher (24:34):
well now we all know what our elevation is.
Suzette Peoples (24:37):
Exactly. Your insurance company is happy to
tell you. Yeah, so that'sinformation to me is knowledge
that, you know, I get nervouswhen I see you know, people
working with a realtor thatdoesn't even know the area and
like they had no clue about ourhomeowners association, and
that's another thing I got.
That's a big deal. Oh, yeah. Andthey were laughs analogies
doesn't have to be incompliance. It's not it's not
written in the contract. Andthey're like, I thought it's
(24:59):
required not not required. So,again, knowledge is king. And I
think if you're gonna get arealtor, make sure they know the
area, they know that I mean, Idon't sell. I mean, I'll refer
them out if they say they'regoing to Conroe or something, I
don't know that nipro not gonnabe of good help you unless
you're building a brand newhome. That's a different story.
Like Del Webb right now, I saw aclient, she's moving to Fulshear
Del Webb, I haven't even seenthe property yet. But I know
(25:21):
from the floor plan and theneighborhood map, I knew where
she was going what she wasdoing. But that's buying a new
home. That's totally fromballparks. So we do represent
buyers with new homes as well.
So you're hiring Realtorsknowledge, negotiating, you were
talking asking aboutnegotiating? You know, you have
to look at every transaction, isit I look at as like my money.
(25:44):
See, my husband handles ourmoney. And he worries about that
money. I worry about my clientsmoney. And I worry about every
time I had a client once he wasbuying a brand new home, and the
builder was supposed to pay this$50. So we got to closing I'm
like, why is this $50 on herside? And she's like, well, I
don't know if the builder put itthere. So no, it's not supposed
to be there. So she went back tothe builder. And sure enough, it
was supposed to be the builder.
And the mind buyer looked at meand said You are worried about
(26:06):
$50 that's it your money? Yeah,it should. I should. That's what
I'm here, it's what you hired meto do, is to worry about your
money. That's dinner one. Sothat's my thought process is I
like to worry about my clientsmoney. And I like to make sure
they're getting a good deal. Andeven if it's a buyer, like my
son, it was like, Okay, let'ssee what we can negotiate here.
(26:26):
You know, we got a new roof onthe deal. And I mean, why not?
And I had a good roofer that putit on there gave us all a good
deal. I mean, that's myresponsibility is to take care
of the negotiating. And, yes,there are times when I get
frustrated with my sellers, andthey're going to just let it go,
let it go. We want to close wedon't want to lose, this buyer
will pay it we don't mind. I'mlike, Oh, you shouldn't have to
pay it. But I have to let go andtheir money like my husband's
(26:50):
it's their money. They want toget that fire an extra five, let
them have it.
Laura Fisher (26:56):
So how do you make money. So you get always a
commission, a percentage of
Suzette Peoples (27:01):
the well, as a listing broker, we go to the
seller, and we sit down withthem and say, Okay, here's what
I charge. And whether it's 7%,then it's a matter of my side is
four, and then the buyer's agentwho I bring in, or somebody
brings in, we're gonna pay themthree. Okay, okay. So that way
that buyer agent is getting paidright now, a lot of that some of
(27:24):
that softball changing becausesome, I can't even get into
that. But it's all negotiable.
But right now, once a listing isin the MLS, which is our H AR,
it says on there, how much we'repaying the co op agent, whether
it's a co op, being Co Op, Ireally don't do Co Op anymore,
everybody's kind of going awaywith that, that means that
agents is cooperating with me.
So it's still representing mebecause they don't have a
(27:45):
representation with the buyer.
We don't really do that anymore.
We pay a buyer's agent. So wewant you to represent the buyer.
Now, they may not have it inwriting with a buyer's
agreement. But I'm notrepresenting that buyer. You are
Laura Fisher (28:01):
so on those upfront agreements, yes. Is that
when you negotiate thepercentage? No,
Suzette Peoples (28:08):
it's actually already, when I sit down with
the seller, that's when wenegotiate to commission, what
I'm gonna get paid and what thebuyer's agents gonna get paid.
Laura Fisher (28:15):
What if you have some of these really expensive
houses? $1,000,000.02 milliondollar home? So it's the same
7%?
Suzette Peoples (28:23):
It's all negotiable. Okay, it really is.
It depends on the client,whether if the past client,
whether they're buying anotherhouse for me, I mean, it's all
between me and that seller whatwe want to do. Okay, I get that,
you know, when I tell this iswhat I tell sellers, you get
what you pay for. And I've seenmany, many times discounts,
agents, discount buyers,sellers, whatever. And they all
(28:46):
cried to me later, I'm goingwell, they weren't getting paid
much. What do you want them todo? Yeah, you know, it's like,
it's like, you go to anattorney. He charges a retainer
fee. He charges you a fee? Doyou want that attorney that wins
all the cases. And you know,he's not gonna be cheap, because
he wins. And he knows thatjudge. And how many times do you
go to court? Right? So it's thesame thing. I feel like when you
hire a real estate agent, we'reprofessionals, and do you want
(29:09):
the best, then you're going topay for the best. And I'd be
nervous if they werediscounting? Because I'd be the
one Why are you discounting? Ifyou're really good at what you
do? You shouldn't have todiscount, right? So I look at
that. I know what I do. And Iknow I'm good at what I do. And
I've saved my clients. 1000s Sothey're looking at me going Oh,
you were worth every penny,because you just saved me five
grand. Well, I knew
Laura Fisher (29:29):
we were talking earlier. Before we started
recording, you have a lot ofrepeat business, lots of
referrals. 90% Yeah. And it'snot just like, it's not repeat
Well, referrals and repeat. Likepeople are moving around. And
like we talked about Ericblossom, who's been a guest on
my show. You've sold him whatfive?
Suzette Peoples (29:50):
Yeah, five times.
Laura Fisher (29:52):
That's not right.
Suzette Peoples (29:54):
She said that.
We're now at seven times withher.
Laura Fisher (29:57):
Oh my goodness.
Yeah, she's
Suzette Peoples (29:59):
still got one more house to Yo, she's got it
rented right now. So I, I helpedher buy an investment property.
And that was the best thing sheever did, because she was making
good money on that one. So it'sa good feeling when they're
loyal, they come back to me andthey know I did a great job and
I make them money. Right. And Ithink that's the key is what I
love doing is the best. The bestform of advertising is past
(30:19):
clients talking about you, inthe best way.
Laura Fisher (30:21):
100% Yeah, so people's property is who we're
talking to today. Suzettepeople's and I certainly have no
reservations, I would call you100%. Ready? Absolutely. Because
you are an advocate that can youlove what I do? Yeah,
absolutely. So before we closeyou, you mentioned to me that
(30:41):
you wrote a book. Oh, yes, Idid. I'm not here to promote
your book. But I mean, it well,it's, it's Oh, my gosh,
Suzette Peoples (30:47):
it was supposed to find it on Amazon, if you
want to, there's none left, thatI have a few originals left. But
it's a women's book, motivatingwomen. Because I was in American
business women association forover 30 years. And I saw women
not having a lot of confidence.
And the success of being abusiness owner or being
independent or doing what youneed to do to be successful. And
not loving what they saw in themirror. So the book is actually
(31:10):
it's all about U U. U is thename of it. And it says love
what you see in the mirror.
Awesome. That was a great littlebook, fun to read. Well,
Laura Fisher (31:20):
I need to check it out.
Suzette Peoples (31:21):
You do I got one for you. Don't
Laura Fisher (31:22):
worry. Oh, good.
Alright, so tell my listenershow they can reach you. The best
way
Suzette Peoples (31:26):
to reach me is people's properties.com. Or you
can you can definitely call meon my cell phone is
832-573-8230. My email addressis Suzette people's at a let's
see, I'm at comcast.net.
Laura Fisher (31:42):
Okay, well, I'll have that all in the show notes.
So okay, if you're in the car,you can just scroll down. And on
the end, you can read all thenotes and a little bio about her
as well. Well, Suzette, I reallyenjoyed this.
Suzette Peoples (31:55):
Well, thank you. I enjoyed it too, Laura,
Laura Fisher (31:56):
thanks for asking me. You're welcome. Now, there
is something I do at the end ofmy show. Okay. And we didn't
talk about this earlier, but Ihave a closing line. And I
didn't know if you wanted to trysaying it. Okay. It says because
at the end of it, I always sayUntil next time, you better be
up to something. Do you want totry that? Because the reason why
I have that saying is becauseany entrepreneur, any business
(32:19):
owner I've known they're alwayswhat? They're always up to
something. Yes, we are. Yes. Socan you try saying it until next
time,
Suzette Peoples (32:26):
you better be up to something sounds good. All
right. Thanks, Laura. All right,y'all
Laura Fisher (32:30):
have a good week.
Bye. Bye. Thank you. Thanks forjoining us this week on Small
Business Insights, make sure youvisit our website at Fisher
podcast.com where you can followthe podcast on iTunes or your
favorite podcast platform soyou'll never miss a show. If you
enjoyed and found value intoday's episode, we'd appreciate
a rating and review on iTunes orsimply share it with a friend
(32:53):
that would help us out to makesure you tune in next week for
our next episode. Until then,you better be up to something
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