MAGIC WORDS THAT MAKE MILLIONS I 've just finished reading (for the second time) a book called Magic Words That Bring

M AGI C W ORD S TH AT M AKE M I LLI ON S

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've j ust finished reading ( for t he second t im e) a book called Magic Words That Bring You Riches, aut hored by m y good friend Ted Nicholas, a m em ber of our Board of Direct ors. Ted has sold over 200 m illion dollars wort h of inform at ion product s worldwide by direct m arket ing. Over t he years he put t oget her a collect ion of Magic Words t o get people t o do t hings t hey ordinarily wouldn't do. gain financial int erest s in ot her people's com panies wit hout invest ing one red cent . Pret t y cool st uff, huh? And t hat 's j ust t he first few chapt ers. This book is also a m ast erful direct m arket ing bible covering every aspect of t he business by a consum m at e professional. Like I said, I read it t wice.

Okay, let s say you've asked 'I s t hat t he best you can do,' and t he seller says yes. A good follow- up line t hat works for m e is . . .

" So you 'r e sa yin g if I don 't give you $ _ _ _ _ _ , you w on 't se ll t he h ouse ?"

Now if t he answer is st ill yes, you won't be buying t oday unless you're willing t o change t he focus t o a t erm s deal rat her t han a price deal.

A good icebreaker t o use when you want t o m ake it clear t hat you're not happy wit h t he num ber you've been quot ed is . . .

'W h a t 's you r se con d ch oice ?'

I usually chuckle or use a hint of hum or when I ask t his. I t 's bet t er t han sim ply saying I won't pay t he asking price.

Let 's say you're t rying t o get a seller t o nam e t he asking price and t hey won't . You know bet t er t han t o pressure t hem , but you j ust can't get t hem t o break. Try t his . . .

" How about a dollar?"

This will get t hrough t o t hem and probably produce an answer. I f so, you're back in t he screening process and you know where you st and. I f not , you can com e back wit h . . .

" I sim ply h a ve t oo m a n y pr ospe ct s t o w or k w it h t o w a st e t im e on t hose I ca n 't buy. I f you 'll t e ll m e w ha t you 'r e a sk in g, I 'll k n ow qu ick ly if w e ca n do bu sine ss. I s t h a t fa ir ?"

By t his t im e, t hey're usually in or out . You can't buy houses from uncooperat ive sellers. By t he way, did you not ice som e powerful m agic words hidden in t here? Take not e of how I t end t o answer a quest ion wit h a quest ion. 'I s t hat fair?' t urned m y response int o a quest ion and put t he responsibilit y t o answer back on t he seller. I t also soft ened t he blow and m ade m e seem m ore warm and fuzzy. 'I s t hat fair?' is a powerful set of m agic words t hat should becom e a part of your everyday vocabulary wit h alm ost everyt hing you negot iat e.

Let 's say you're pre- screening a seller who has a house wit h a m ort gage balance. First , you want t o know what 's owed on t he propert y or you can't possibly det erm ine whet her it 's a deal or not . These aren't m agic words, but are crit ical ones:

" W h a t do you ow e on t h e hou se ?"

What if t hey say it 's none of your business? You say . . .

" I bu y _ _ _ _ h ou se s pe r ye a r a nd u se m a ny diffe r e n t m e t hods. I 'm pr oba bly t h e m ost se r ious buye r you 've t a lk e d t o ye t . H ow e ve r , I 'll n e e d t h e fa ct s t o be a ble t o pr e se n t you w it h a n in t e llige n t offe r . W ill t h is be a pr oble m for you?"

Frankly, anyone who won't give you t he fact s is not ready t o sell yet . You got your answer . . . m ove on. You can't m ake un- m ot ivat ed sellers m ot ivat ed.

Now you have your answer. You know t he loan balance. Now it 's t im e t o find out where you're headed wit h t his deal, so ask . . .

" W ill you se ll t h e house for w ha t you ow e on it ?"

Those m agic words can m ake you $500,000 per year if you ask t hem on all your deals. Wit h j ust t hose t welve lit t le words, you'll inst ant ly know whet her you'll be get t ing a free house by t aking over t he debt or an alm ost - free house wit h debt plus a lit t le cash t hrown in. Of course, you m ay also learn t hat t he seller want s full price and is not flexible. Again, you found out what you needed t o know wit h t welve words. Now you know whet her t o proceed wit h t he deal or m ove on.

Now let 's say you can't get a deed because of t he due on sale clause or t he seller won't t rust you wit h t heir credit . But you see opport unit y t here and a lease / opt ion m akes sense. Here's t he opening line t o present t he offer . . .

" I w ill le a se you r house w it h t he r igh t t o bu y it for t h e loa n ba la n ce w he n I pu r cha se . I 'll gu a r a nt e e you r pa ym e nt a nd m a in t e na n ce u n t il t h e loa n is pa id off a nd t h e hou se is ou t of your life . H ow doe s t h a t sou nd?"

Not ice how all t he benefit s com e before t he quest ion. The seller has enough inform at ion t o encourage a posit ive response. I sn't t hat bet t er t han will you lease/ opt ion your hom e t o m e?? Anot her good quest ion t hat will ease t he seller's m ind and m ake you seem genuine is . . .

" I f it doe sn 't w or k for bot h of us, t h e n w e don 't w a nt t o do it , do w e ?"

That m akes it pret t y clear t hat you're not desperat e t o m ake t he deal. Anot her version is . . .

" I f t his will cause you t o lose sleep at night , I 'd rat her not do it . I s it going t o be a problem ?"

Here's a good one t o break a st alem at e and get you back in negot iat ion as well as collect m ore fact s t hat m ight lead t o different offers . . .

" I f you a nd I ca n 't do bu sin e ss t oda y, w ha t w ill you do w it h t he h ouse ?"

This also get s t he seller t hinking, part icularly about all t he ugly answers t o t hat quest ion. Their answer m ay be, 'I 'll put it on t he m arket or list wit h a Realt or unt il it sells.' Your response . . .

" An d w h a t if it doe sn't se ll?"

At least you'll get a feel for whet her t his seller is wort hy of your follow- up list . I hope you know by now t hat . . .

Here's one you'll love if you're a beginner and worried about t he seller finding out t hat you don't exact ly know what you're doing. First , don't sweat it . You don't have t o appear t o be an expert . You can t ry t o fake it , but if you're confront ing an

int elligent seller, m any t im es t hey'll see t hrough you and t ry t o ask you

em barrassing quest ions. So if you're asked if you've ever done t his before, use t hese words . . .

" W e ll a ct ua lly, no. Th is is m y fir st de a l a ft e r gr a du a t in g fr om som e r a t he r in t e n se t r a in in g. I w a s h opin g you 'd he lp m e do it r igh t , OK?"

Asking for help brings you down t o t he seller's skill level and you've built t rust by answering t rut hfully. Don't worry about t he seller expect ing you t o be an expert . I f you seem sincere and excit ed, you'll usually get t he deal. I n fact , being t oo sm art or seem ing t oo confidant will oft en t urn off m ore people t han if you appear t o be a novice. They'll t hink you're t oo green t o cheat t hem .

Now let 's say you're t alking t o a seller about carrying a m ort gage and t he subj ect of int erest com es up. Your goal is zero int erest , so you shouldn't be t he one t o init iat e conversat ion on t his t opic. I f t he seller doesn't m ent ion int erest , you shouldn't , eit her.

When present ing an inst allm ent offer, t he m agic words are . . .

" I 'll pa y $ _ _ _ _ pe r m on t h u nt il you 'r e pa id in fu ll."

Of course, t his m eans you've divided t he loan am ount by t he m ont hly principal paym ent you want t o pay, excluding int erest . I f t he seller com es back wit h “ what int erest rat e is t hat ?” Your response is . . .

" W h y do you n e e d int e r e st ?"

Then if you get m ore argum ent and it becom es a st icking issue, you could respond by saying . . .

" W h a t 's m or e im por t a n t , you r in t e r e st or ge t t ing t he h ouse sold n ow ?"

I f t hat doesn't get t he j ob done, say . . .

" I f I give you int erest , how m uch can we lower t he price?"

Or . . .

" W ill you se ll t o m e w it h no dow n pa ym e n t ?"

Or . . .

" W ou ld you w a it six m on t h s( or a ye a r ) for you r fir st pa ym e n t ?"

Or . . .

Of course, t hese sam e t act ics can be used if t he seller is asking you t o raise your offer. You'll not ice it all com es down t o som e very powerful m agic words t hat can be adapt ed t o m any uses ( I f I . . . , Would you . . .) . How about when you're raising privat e m oney and approaching pot ent ial lenders? Here's m y icebreaker t hat hasn't changed one whit in 16 years . . .

" D o you ha ve a n I RA or a ny ot h e r inve st m e n t ca pit a l t ha t 's not ge t t in g you a 1 5 % r e t u r n sa fe ly?"

These m agic words will get you all t he m oney you need assum ing you ask at least som e people who have m oney t o invest .

Now let 's look at t he selling side and discuss a few choice words I use t o find good buyers. When wholesaling, I want t o know m y buyer will com e t o closing wit h t he m oney and isn't sim ply t rying t o j erk m y chain. I n t his case, t he m agic words are . . .

" W h e n do you w a n t t o close ?"

I f t hey need m ore t han t en days, t hey're a t im e wast er and I 'm at risk. I f t hey say " ASAP" , I know t hey're serious.

There are so m any m agic words t o use when pre- screening buyers, it 's easier t o sim ply use t he whole script because t hese words are all m agic. I can't t ell you how m any hundreds, m aybe t housands of buyers ( idiot s) I t alked t o before I developed t he words and t he order in which I use t hem . Here we go . .

" D o you w a n t t o buy or r e n t ?"

I f t he answer is rent and you want t o sell, t he rest is wort hless conversat ion. But before giving up, use one m ore line . . .

" I f I ca n sh ow you how t o bu y a n d ge t you fina n ce d, w ou ld you r a t he r ow n t h a n r e n t ?"

I f yes, cont inue. I f no, save your breat h. Next . . .

" H a ve you e ve r t r ie d t o buy be for e ?"

" Ye s."

" W h a t st oppe d you ?"

This let s you know im m ediat ely what you're dealing wit h.

" I s you r cr e dit good, fa ir or poor ?"

Don't ask how's your credit .' Som e people are asham ed t o t ell you it 's ugly and will sim ply lie. Give t hem a m ult iple- choice quest ion so t hey know you won't be shocked if t hey have poor credit . I f it 's bad . . .

This breaks t he ice and get s t he cust om er t o open up.

Now t he big quest ion . . .

" H ow m u ch m on e y ca n you r a ise for a dow n pa ym e n t ?"

What ever t he answer . . .

" Ca n you ge t a ny m or e ?"

" Ca n you bor r ow fr om r e la t ive s?"

" D o you ha ve cr e dit ca r ds?"

" D o you ha ve som e t h in g you cou ld se ll or t r a de t o m e ?"

" Ca n you r e pa ir hou se s or h a ve ot h e r sk ills t o e a r n m or e ?"

" Ar e you w illing t o r ob a ba n k t o r a ise ca sh ?"

Oops! Got a lit t le carried away on t hat last quest ion. I t m ight not be appropriat e.

Now let 's assum e you see som eone you can work wit h and you want t hem t o get excit ed and realize t hat you are t heir solut ion t o hom e ownership. Here are t he words t hat will glue t hem t o you . . .

" I f you ca n convin ce m e you w a n t t he hou se a n d m a k e a com m it m e n t t o bu y, I 'll ge t you fina nce d on e w a y or a not h e r . Eve n if I ha ve t o be t he ba n k . I f I ca n 't ge t you in a h om e of you r ow n , no one in t his cit y ca n ."

These words have sold a lot of real est at e for m e. They really m ake an im pact on your buyer's level of hope. Follow t hem up wit h assurance t hat you are easy t o work wit h and very flexible and t he prospect will be put t y in your hands.

" W e ca n do w h a t e ve r you a n d I a gr e e . I ow n t h e hou se a nd I 'll do w ha t it t a k e s if you w ill. I s t h a t fa ir ?"

Well t hat ought t o be enough m agic t o keep you pract icing awhile. Of course, t hese words aren't really m agical unt il you begin t o act ually use t hem and m ake t hem work.

Abou t t h e Au t h or . . .

Aut hor, t rainer, lect urer, consult ant and ent repreneur ext raordinaire, Ron has earned a reput at ion as t he best in his field. His one- day workshops are rout inely st anding-room - only and his Boot Cam ps cont inue t o grow in popularit y. Ron’s secret is sim ple: his program s work - - as evidenced by t he t housands of successful real est at e

ent repreneurs all across Nort h Am erica who call him by t he affect ionat e t it le, “ The Guru” . Ron is lit erally creat ing m illionaires all over Nort h Am erica.

Learn More About Ron LeGrand at ht t p: / / www.ronlegrand.com