When it comes to buying a luxury estate in the Philippines, sellers and property agents have to rely heavily on common sense.
This is a stark contrast to the more mature real estate markets (i.e. US) where luxury property buyers go through a vetting process such as showing proof of funds.
In the Philippines, any potential buyer (or poser) can pick up their phone, inquire to an agent, and request a showing. And because it’s a luxury property where the potential commission is a significant sum, more often than not, agents, especially those new in the field, get excited at the prospect.
While it pays to give it the benefit of the doubt, dealing with a real estate bogus buyer is an obvious waste of time and resources on the part of the agent as well as the seller who sometimes even show up during showing appointments themselves.
This is why if you’re wondering the things to look out for to know if it’s worth your time to entertain a prospect, look out for the following signs:
In real estate inquiries, it’s standard practice to call and qualify clients for their full names so agents or seller representatives can note them in their files but more importantly, for agent to register them to the seller for potential showings.
When a prospect is hesitant to give their full name, be alert. It can be one of two things one of which is good and the other one bad. The good is that they’re a big-shot individual who wishes to go incognito to protect their identity. This can be a non-issue if they are disclosing this and are consistent on other information you probe them about.
But the bad, and the particular reason that raises doubts is when fake buyers give a full name on one occasion, and give another variation of the name on a separate time. Often, people who fake their identity on a regular basis use different names that they can’t even track their own web of lies.
Not all clients are active on social media. Some luxury property buyers may not even have any social profile at all. The latter may not be at all surprising since many rich people go out of their way to maintain a low profile.
However, if you do come across a prospect who has social media and has been actively using it, check some of the posts and activities they have. Real and qualified property buyers are likely to have lifestyle postings, especially about their business, travels, events, family, friends, or connections.
On the other hand, a fake buyer’s profile might look like it was only created recently, has few friends, and random posts under the sun with very low interactions. So do your research carefully because you might be dealing with a fake buyer.
Another dead giveaway of a real estate bogus buyer is when they exhibit erratic behavior from the moment you spoke or met with them.
For example, one minute a fake prospect is sharing elaborate stories about their fabricated life, and the next thing you know they get very defensive or give inconsistent answers when you try to do a follow-up question.
Another example is the random outbursts when you disengage and do not tolerate the prospect’s every whim, resulting in gaslighting or calling you names. It may be their way to cope or hide the fact that they are fake buying and so they react desperately for you to stop questioning their motives.
Remember we can never really know the main motivation of people who pose as fake property buyers. In our opinion, it can be one of three things:
When a client starts to show signs of mental disorder or emotional instability, you need to tread carefully and check out other signs of whethere a client might be faking it.
What separates a real buyer from a fake buyer is more often than not, real buyers don’t want to be pressured into buying a property. In fact they prefer not to be bothered by a lot of followup because they are busy people who have so much going on in their lives.
When a prospect demands your time and resources without having shown proof that they are truly capable of buying, be mindful of how you accommodate.
Fake buyers have the tendency to be demanding and will pressure you to give in to their random requests to carry out their hidden agenda, whether that be to con you out of money or be an instrument to their fake persona.
Think of it this way: how can a prospect afford at least Php 50million pesos worth of property if they don’t have a private transportation? Cars are one of the more affordable luxury in the Philippines even by middle-class standards, so if the prospect is a truly rich local Filipino, more often than not having a car is a bare minimum need before they can even acquire an expensive property.
Now the exemption goes for those whose vehicle may be “coding” during the showing or a balikbayan/foreigner visiting that makes it virtually impossible to bring their own car, in which case they will be opting to use a private car service like Grab.
Look out for their transportation during property showings and depending on their age and capability to drive, the rich also get by with a driver instead of driving the car by themselves. If you got wind of the fact that they took a public transportation going to the real estate showing, chances are you’re dealing with a bogus buyer.
One of the more obvious signs that a luxury property buyer may not be who they say they are is in their physical presence. It’s not so much that rich property buyers all wear designer items – ditto to NOT all people who wear authentic designer items can afford to buy or an owner of a luxury property – but it’s in the way they carry themselves.
Bogus luxury property buyers will fake their demeanor to certain extent but at some point there will be little cracks that will show someone whose actions are just make-believe. So be observant of how buyers and how they speak, walk, and relate to others.
Last but certainly not the last, your intuition would be flaring up when you’re dealing with a supposed real estate bogus buyer.
Be mindful of the two-way communication between you and the prospect. It’s true what they say: the devil is in the details. So keep track of your conversation and encounters with the prospect and don’t ignore the loopholes and “buyer facts” that aren’t adding up.
Granted your own thoughts and emotions are not always in absolutes. But with practice and enough experience in the business, at some point your gut will be able to give hints right away when something weird is happening.
Remember, doing your due diligence of knowing whether a buyer is a real buyer is very important because the stakes are high: your reputation as an agent, or your million-peso property as a seller.
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