Sometime we are affected by foot and mouth disease which could often lead to the end of a deal. Emotions rise, excitement rises, you feel an explosive tickle in you when the buyers are about to sign the contract. Buyers notice what a great deal they are getting on the house and at such a low price, then you go and say, “Yeah, can you believe I only bought it for $30K!” which apparently implies the obscene amount of profit you’ll make. And with the discomfort of having that knowledge, buyers feel like they’ve been taken advantage of, drop the pen, leave closing documents unsigned, and walk away—all because they felt compelled to disclose how much they bought the property for. Yes, we’ve been there, we’ve done that, and now it’s time to learn from our mistakes. The following are things you should never say when doing a real estate deal.

Buyer: Wow, this is a beautiful home!
You, the savvy investor: Yeah, it’s amazing how they cleaned up all that mold and animal droppings.

(Buyers don’t need to know about the previous state of a home that’s been drastically rehabbed and brought up to code, especially if it wasn’t so nice before.)

Buyer: How much is the house worth?
You, the smart investor: Well, it WAS WORTH $140K, but I think the 2 foreclosures in the neighborhood brought it down.

(Remember that foreclosures and bank-owned homes do not reflect the TRUE value of a property, plus you are giving it a negative connotation about the neighborhood.)

Seller: How much do they pay you?
You, the smart investor: It just depends on how much you can resell it. I expect at least 40K!

(No one needs to know how much you’re making, so it’s best to leave it at “it just depends on how much you can resell it.”)

Buyer: Do you have other houses? This one doesn’t follow us.
You, the smart investor: Of course, we have better houses than this.

(Never devalue your product, especially if you’re trying to sell it.)

Seller: How fast can we do this?
You, the smart investor: You may be able to get a buyer by the end of this week and above your asking price since this is a great property!

(Don’t make unrealistic promises, even if possible. Always UNDER promise and OVER deliver.)

Buyer: What a lovely neighborhood! It seems very calm.
You the smart investor – you are, I think your neighbor is a narcotics officer so you are safe too.

(Try not to divulge any unnecessary information that might imply negativity.)

Buyer: Will you take 80K for it?
Seller: I was willing to go as high as 60K so yeah 80 would be great!

(Go ahead and hit yourself now, you just lost 20K. Ever heard of the term TMI = TOO MUCH INFORMATION!)

So remember, in addition to making wise investments, you should always THINK before you SPEAK.