In real estate investing, negotiation is key to being able to buy a deal for pennies on the dollar. You need to ask the right questions to the seller in order to find out how much you’re willing to offer. Asking the right questions also makes you determine the level of motivation of the seller.

This came to mind as I stumbled upon an article on surefire ways to turn off your teen. Pretty enlightening stuff. One of the tips it offered was not asking “deadly” questions to teenagers. And real estate investors will find this useful, too.

“So, how was your day?” topped the list of worst questions a parent can ask his or her teen and who isn’t guilty of this. The article said that if you ask this to your tween, you’ll most likely get a very generic “fine” as answer. Perhaps the lesson here, which those in real estate investing, is to practice more sensitivity.

How will real estate investors be more sensitive though asking questions? Simply ask more specific questions. So instead of asking “How was your day?” to your tween, say “Any luck on that science project?” or something like that. When talking to sellers, you can show that your sensitivity by remembering their kids’ names and asking about them. Then, share your own kids’ stories. While this is personal stuff, it helps build rapport. Remember, the last thing that the seller wants to happen is to sell his house to someone who shows no concern whatsoever about his or her welfare.

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