It’s Saturday. Lights on. Scent set. Cushions fluffed.
The house is styled to sell — fresh, flawless, ready to impress.
Buyers file in. A few nods. A smile here. A polite “just looking” there.
You smile, chat, and give them room to feel it.
Then, the parting shot:
“We’ll think about it.”
Silence.
They’re not ghosting. They’re not tyre-kicking.
They’re just… maxed out. Mentally. Emotionally. Decision-fatigued and drowning in options.
You’re left post-inspection, scratching your head and trying to make sense of a vibe you can’t read to save yourself!
Sound familiar?
This Isn’t About Disinterest. It’s About Decision Fatigue.
Today’s buyers are under more pressure than ever. They’re scrolling, stressing, and second-guessing—caught between dream homes and debt, family feedback, and financial fears.
Before they even get to the open home, they’re running on emotional fumes—overloaded, full of doubt, dread, and deep anxiety about making the wrong move.
They don’t need a push.
They need pause.
And someone who can meet them where they are — not where your pipeline wants them to be.
It’s Not About Saying More. It’s About Saying What Matters.
You’re not transacting Tupperware here.
You’re standing in the middle of someone’s maybe-future — and they don’t have the language for what they’re feeling. Not yet.
Forget the polish. Scrap the script. Lose the open-home autopilot and the brochure voice.
If you can’t read them, it’s not because you’ve done something wrong.
It’s because they’re still trying to read themselves.
They don’t need more information — they need an invitation to help them figure out what’s going on inside:
“I know it’s early… but anything here catching your eye?”
“Where could you see yourself plonking down after a long day?”
“Does this feel like a ‘you’ place… or are we off?”
“Anything bugging you here? Even if it’s small.”
“Could you picture your Friday night here—or nah?”
You’re not trying to close them. You’re trying to open them up.
These kinds of prompts slow the moment down.
They make the property front and centre of the conversation that the buyer didn’t know they needed to have.
Why It Works
Because no one wants to feel sold to when they’re not even sure what they want yet.
Focus on questions to:
- Create trust without pressure
- Cut through the polite noise and get to the heart of things
- Give you data and insight—not guesswork—into what’s landing and what’s not
Here’s the bonus:
No more second-guessing, no more desperate follow-ups, no more “I wonder….?”
It takes the weight off you, too.
You asked. You listened. You left space.
That’s it.
And Yep—It Works With Sellers Too
Different prompt, same principle.
Sometimes the only prompt a vendor needs is:
“Which room will you miss most?”
“What would you love the next owner to ‘get’ about this place?”
You’ve just made it personal. Emotional. Human.
And that’s when they trust you with the big stuff.
Real Estate Has Evolved. So Should the Way You Communicate.
The industry’s come a long way. Initiatives like RiSE have turbo-charged emotional well-being into the conversation—and that’s massive!
Now it’s about carrying that same mindset into the room.
With the buyer. With the seller. With the family member who’s tagging along for emotional backup. With whoever’s standing in front of you.
Being a great agent isn’t about having the perfect pitch.
It’s about knowing when to speak — and when to step back so people can actually hear themselves think.
It’s a win-win.
You’re giving them space to get clear — to walk away with a real sense of what felt right, and what didn’t.
And I don’t know about you — but so many times I’ve answered a question only to realise, mid-sentence, “Wow, I didn’t even know I was thinking that until I said it out loud?
That’s the power of asking well and listening better.
Final Thought
Next time someone goes quiet?
Don’t rush in.
Don’t re-pitch.
Don’t panic.
Pause.
Ask something real.
Let the property speak.
Then wait.
That pause might be the moment they finally hear what they’ve been looking for.
Quickfire Prompts to Keep Handy:
- “What’s clicking with you here?”
- “Where do you feel most comfortable?”
- “What’s missing, even slightly?”
- “How’s this stacking up to what you imagined?”
