This posting does not fit into the category of Tools for Real Estate Agents, nor in the Investor Zone section of this site, yet it is of importance to both, real estate agents and buyers/sellers. So we will place this in the Uncategorized section of this blog till a suitable zone is formed (your suggestions are welcome!)

The team @ Realvisionhomes.com was invited last week to share in some informal chatter over coffee with some real estate agents in Dubai. Discussions were the usual, on where the market is heading… would regulations that are being put in place really straighten out and ‘professionalize’ the way the market functions etc…

Amongst this chatter, the only small discussion that lingered with us was a brief complaint from one real estate agent who was (obviously) new to the market here, but she was a professional. Why did we think so?

The reason was because according to her, people didn’t seem to respect time and punctuality in the industry. Her story was that on numerous times, she was called for viewings, but given the run-around by the buyer, who never intended to make it to the site on time or even show up.

Everyone knows that venerated excuse in Dubai, - The Traffic. But now it comes down to the art in how you use that excuse effectively.

This post is not about the art of the excuse, it’s about whether indeed this phenomenon exists or are these just a few stray incidents.

We have on several occasions faced similar situations, where clients(and sometimes even the ones who need you more than you do them) simply do not think that being punctual or, respecting such a thing as a person’s time is important. It seems to be the rule of thumb that if you are the one paying out the money, you win and can call all the shots! Time and knowledge is a cheap commodity for these people.

{mosgoogle}

The question being asked here is, as a real estate professional, do you think:

1. It’s part of life, being an agent that you have to put up with this sort of attitude?
2. Would you be willing to walk away from a client if he/she did not respect your time and left you stranded at a viewing for no reason?
3. Is it the norm here in the local market? or is it not as severe as it sounds?
4. Have you personally disrespected another person by not being punctual? or has it never occurred to you until you read this post?