Hey, thanks for sticking around.
Speaker A:This is our exclusive bonus section.
Speaker A:We're here to continue our wonderful conversation with Alex Wolking.
Speaker A:So I have a few more fun questions.
Speaker A:We're loosey goosey now.
Speaker A:We're opening it up.
Speaker A:Give me.
Speaker A:I want.
Speaker A:I want some stories.
Speaker A:We've been talking about stories this whole time.
Speaker A:What's the wildest thing that's happened in a showing?
Speaker B:Oh, Jesus.
Speaker B:How much time we have?
Speaker A:Let's rank the stories in order of amazing.
Speaker B:Okay?
Speaker B:So I can't tell you how many times I've walked in on people butt, ass naked, you know, coming out of the shower, having.
Speaker B:Did they forget that?
Speaker A:There was.
Speaker B:A lot of times, Grant, they are.
Speaker A:Did they want you to see it?
Speaker B:No, a lot of times, Grant, they are tenant occupied properties rentals that no one communicated that there was a showing or frankly, they just didn't care if there was a showing.
Speaker B:I've had some of that before.
Speaker B:People that are coming out of the shower, wrapping themselves up in towels.
Speaker B:People that are having an afternoon delight I've walked in on.
Speaker B:I had a listing once about eight years ago, where it was a big old mansion.
Speaker B:Oh, my God.
Speaker B:It was a really cool house.
Speaker B:Stunning architecture.
Speaker B:But I walked up to the attic, and it was an Italian villa style of architecture.
Speaker B:So you had this big central tower, like a cupola, basically.
Speaker B:Me being the naive young broker I was at the time, I was like, I just wanted to go see.
Speaker B:The house is, like, perched really high up on a hill, and I go up the windy.
Speaker B:You know, the circular staircase to get to the tower, and there's a noose hanging from the rafters.
Speaker B:I still have a picture of on my phone that still freaks me out to this day.
Speaker B:That was freaky.
Speaker A:Did we ever learn the story behind that?
Speaker B:I had.
Speaker B:I.
Speaker B:I walked in on a.
Speaker B:At least walked in on something.
Speaker B:But I definitely.
Speaker B:I was with clients showing a house and later found out that, you know, there was.
Speaker B:Well, there was a couple there.
Speaker B:They were like, you know, scurrying away to the car.
Speaker B:So, sorry, we're on our way out, like, okay, fine.
Speaker B:And then the showing didn't last too long, but my clients liked the house.
Speaker B:We're standing out in the driveway, and another car pulls in the driveway, and this woman gets out and she's like, oh, I'm so sorry.
Speaker B:Are you guys still looking like.
Speaker B:No, no, no, we're good.
Speaker B:We're good.
Speaker B:We later found out that the older man and the younger woman, that was actually the husband and his mistress and the wife had come Home and just missed them.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Did not know because I explained to the listing agent what happened.
Speaker B:She's like, I knew something was going on.
Speaker A:I wonder if she shared.
Speaker A:I, you know, wow.
Speaker B:There's a lot of that happens at realtors.
Speaker A:I mean, they were selling their homes.
Speaker B:That could be a way out too.
Speaker B:Who knows?
Speaker B:But I just found that very funny.
Speaker B:I showed a condo once that was haunted and I became a believer in haunted properties after as many historic homes I've sold, you would think I'd believe it goes.
Speaker B:Yeah, I didn't really think much about it.
Speaker B:I always thought the paranormal shows were until 1.
Speaker B:Until 1.
Speaker B:And it was a condo that was built in like the late 90s.
Speaker B:And I walked in and I just make it a quick story.
Speaker B:My client, who.
Speaker B:She's like, why is this condo still on the market?
Speaker B:It's priced really well.
Speaker B:And I was like, I don't know, let me look.
Speaker B:So I started looking through the disclosures and I saw a disclosure I had never seen before.
Speaker A:Ghosts.
Speaker B:It was a stigmatized property disclosure.
Speaker B:It was the owner disclosing that even though it's not material to the home, it was still something that could adversely affect a buyer's decision to purchase the property.
Speaker A:Is that really.
Speaker B:It's not necessary.
Speaker B:Not in the state of Illinois, in California, New York.
Speaker B:It is.
Speaker B:Texas, I think it is as well.
Speaker B:There's a couple states where you have to disclose it, but not in Illinois.
Speaker B:And at that time, this is in Iowa.
Speaker B:Not in Iowa either.
Speaker B:And my client, who was a member of the local paranormal service, she's like, I don't care.
Speaker B:Because we found out that the husband had died by suicide in the basement or something.
Speaker B:So like, okay, well, as long as you know that going into it, she's like, all right, well, as long as he moves out when his wife leaves, when his widow leaves, then I don't care.
Speaker B:All right, fine.
Speaker B:So go and look at it.
Speaker B:There was stuff kept going off randomly.
Speaker B:There was like some Disney toys that must have been their grandkids.
Speaker B:That the only way, I forget there was like a Merlin or something in like a globe.
Speaker B:The only way you could make this thing go off is if you put your hand on it and touched it.
Speaker B:Then we go down to the basement and as we approach the basement steps, the steps started making noise like somebody was walking on them.
Speaker B:You're like, well, this is freaky Merlin.
Speaker B:We get down to the.
Speaker B:Must have been.
Speaker B:We go down to the basement.
Speaker B:Oh, we also heard footsteps.
Speaker B:This is a one story condo.
Speaker B:We heard footsteps in the attic above.
Speaker B:That was creepy, too.
Speaker B:So we get down to the basement, and we go around, and there was just this presence that was so palpable.
Speaker B:And I was like, why do I feel like we're not the only ones here?
Speaker B:Like, I feel like someone else is here.
Speaker B:There's a room in the back of the basement that was like a storage room.
Speaker B:We get up to the door, and the door on it said, dad's room.
Speaker B:I was like, dad's room?
Speaker B:And the guy died.
Speaker B:Oh, God.
Speaker B:So we opened it up.
Speaker B:It was Dad's.
Speaker B:It was his workshop.
Speaker B:He had all his tools in there.
Speaker B:And there was, you know, the tools along all the wall, and there was, like, some, you know, stuff in the middle of the room.
Speaker B:So that kind of.
Speaker B:You walked around the room in, like, a circle.
Speaker B:Second we open that workshop, the temperature changed by a good 10 degrees.
Speaker B:And we.
Speaker B:So then we walked around to the other side to see the rest of the room.
Speaker B:Cause there was a closet and everything else.
Speaker B:I'll never forget this for as long as I live.
Speaker B:My client, she gets to that spot.
Speaker B:She turns and looks at me with this, like, deer in the headlights look.
Speaker B:And she's like, I think I'm standing right where he is.
Speaker B:And I was like.
Speaker B:Her teeth started chattering because the temperature dropped another 10 to 15 degrees.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:And by the way, the air was not on.
Speaker A:Ghosts are real.
Speaker B:Totally.
Speaker B:So she's like, I've seen enough.
Speaker B:So we start going up the stairs.
Speaker B:Well, and we go back upstairs.
Speaker B:And again, even back in, like, the rec room area in the basement, the temperature had changed about a good 20 degrees.
Speaker B:So we go upstairs, and we're putting our shoes on and putting our shoes on to leave.
Speaker B:Me, being the smart ass that I am, had my hand on the doorknob.
Speaker B:I'm like, all right, well, have a good day.
Speaker B:The Merlin thing went off again, and I went to go, like, pull the door.
Speaker B:I was just slowly pulling it, and I felt the door get shoved, Shot, basically, get out is what it was.
Speaker B:I was like, okay, well, I've seen enough.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah, I have seen enough.
Speaker A:That's solid.
Speaker B:That was.
Speaker B:That was.
Speaker B:That was my haunted ghost story that makes.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah, I found sex toys.
Speaker B:I found.
Speaker B:Oh, my.
Speaker B:I'll never forget.
Speaker B:I had a client's home that was being staged.
Speaker B:And, you know, the photographer was coming, and I walk in on some fun from the night before that was left over and, like, make the bed.
Speaker B:And it was all in a day's work.
Speaker A:Apparently ghosts and sex toys.
Speaker A:Lay out.
Speaker A:Are There times where I always think about this because I think about my relationship with other stylists or designers.
Speaker A:And from the designer standpoint, I think there are incredible designers out there and they have nothing to do with what.
Speaker A:There are plenty of people that are, you know, getting.
Speaker A:Getting things.
Speaker A:But I often look at other stylists.
Speaker A:I'm like, yeah, really are.
Speaker A:Really.
Speaker A:Do you feel that way about other brokers?
Speaker A:Are there some that you see that come into it, whether it's your listing or you're going to theirs regularly, that you're just like.
Speaker B:There's definitely some cringe moments and it's.
Speaker A:You have a nemesis.
Speaker B:You know, I used to.
Speaker B:And then it kind of fizzled out.
Speaker B:It was kind of fun though.
Speaker B:I enjoyed having an arch nemesis.
Speaker A:I mean, something extra.
Speaker A:It does.
Speaker A:I mean, when you're building house of style right now, like the broader business, I mean, there's so many revolutionary things to it that there are plenty of haters and the naysayers that this isn't gonna work.
Speaker A:I am sure I'm doing this because I believe in it wholeheartedly.
Speaker A:But I'm also doing it a little bit to stick it to you.
Speaker B:Sure.
Speaker B:Competition really happens at the bottom and collaboration happens at the top.
Speaker A:Interesting.
Speaker B:And that's the thing I've noticed is.
Speaker B:And that was when I was like scrappy and just let me at em.
Speaker B:There's one agent, he and I definitely sparred.
Speaker B:It was kind of fun.
Speaker B:Cause it made me sharper.
Speaker B:It was great.
Speaker B:Just get pissed at the time.
Speaker B:Kept him on it.
Speaker B:Oh yeah.
Speaker B:But also kind of kept him on his toes, kept me on my toes.
Speaker B:And then it just ended up not being fun anymore.
Speaker B:So he just kind of gave up.
Speaker B:Well, there went my fun.
Speaker A:So you gotta instigate it with somebody new.
Speaker B:Well, I thought about that.
Speaker B:And then the more I thought about it, I'm just like most of the agents.
Speaker B:Really.
Speaker B:The thing that I've seen more than anything is so many agents just do so many cringe things where I just kind of, you know, have a face palm moment where I see, you know, I'm never gonna knock an agent who's trying.
Speaker B:If an agent's trying, you know, they're trying with video, they're trying with marketing, whatever.
Speaker B:I've been that agent.
Speaker B:So I mean, by all means, I'm not gonna sit and judge somebody.
Speaker B:Cause I've definitely been in their shoes.
Speaker B:I see it a lot on the high end when you can tell when an agent doesn't necessarily work with a lot of clients in that Price point in that space, you can kind of tell.
Speaker B:And it's not necessarily a bad thing.
Speaker B:They're learning.
Speaker B:But what's really bad is when agents start pretending like they know everything and they end up getting information wrong and.
Speaker A:Don'T have the ability to pull.
Speaker B:They don't have.
Speaker B:Or ask the right questions or ask somebody who would know the right questions.
Speaker B:I've been guilty of that.
Speaker B:And it's a.
Speaker B:I see it a lot, especially with newer agents getting their license.
Speaker B:And, you know, there's some agents who just talk too damn much.
Speaker B:They.
Speaker B:They.
Speaker B:They won't shut up because their clients like, trying to place, oh, I want.
Speaker B:I could put my furniture here.
Speaker B:I could change the wall color to this.
Speaker B:And then agents just yammering, yammering, yammering, yammering.
Speaker B:I mean, how many times did you and I go into showings from, like, this agent will not shut up.
Speaker B:Oh, my.
Speaker A:Just like, I just want to walk through the house really quickly.
Speaker B:Well, especially.
Speaker A:I'll make my own decision.
Speaker A:I don't need you.
Speaker A:Like, tell me how wonderful everything is.
Speaker B:Especially suburban agents, because they are so nosy, like, well, how many kids do you have?
Speaker B:And where do kids go to school?
Speaker B:Like, God bless them.
Speaker B:They're just trying to make conversation.
Speaker B:But sometimes that information is just not necessary.
Speaker B:And also, it's none of your business, too.
Speaker B:So it's just a little invasive sometimes.
Speaker B:So sometimes I just gotta.
Speaker B:I did have a showing a couple weeks ago where I actually told an agent, I pulled them aside.
Speaker B:I'm like, hey, just let them look.
Speaker B:Just.
Speaker B:You may want to pull back a little bit.
Speaker A:And they were.
Speaker B:They were kind of offended at first, but I said in a very friendly, disarming way.
Speaker B:And they actually, they called me later, like, hey, just thanks so much.
Speaker B:Like, and they opened up like, this is my first big client I ever had.
Speaker B:And I was like, listen, I've been in your shoes.
Speaker B:Try this next time.
Speaker B:But I always.
Speaker B:I didn't just offer up advice like, do you want my opinion on this?
Speaker B:And they're just like, oh, yeah, sure, that'd be great.
Speaker B:And they like, you know, very sweet.
Speaker B:They followed my career and they saw some other listings I had, and they were, you know, I found, you know, I had so many great mentors growing up.
Speaker B:When I was coming up in the business, even before, when I was going, I went to open house because.
Speaker B:Not just to see the product, but to learn about the agent and watch them work.
Speaker B:And I learned from just watching people.
Speaker B:I think mentorship seems to be gone in a Lot of the new generation, across all industries, people just want to go and be a star.
Speaker B:They don't want to actually grind and hustle to get to where they, you know, where we've all had to work really hard to get to.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker B:I mean, my joke last year when I made the top 100 in Chicagoland by Chicago Magazine, I was like, well, if that isn't my brand, I don't know what is top 100.
Speaker B:But we came in right at number 100.
Speaker A:That's all that matters.
Speaker B:So on brand.
Speaker B:But that was a.
Speaker B:But that took a lot of hard work.
Speaker B:And also.
Speaker B:And people go find somebody to help you if you don't know what you're doing for sure.
Speaker B:I cannot preach that.
Speaker B:I think people are too.
Speaker B:I think especially younger people are just too proud to ask.
Speaker B:God, I sound like, what do you want to know, kid?
Speaker A:That's okay.
Speaker A:That's okay.
Speaker A:It's partially your vibe.
Speaker B:It really is.
Speaker B:It really is.
Speaker B:Well, I remember there was that one broker that I sent you.
Speaker B:She was wearing some flats, like, had this fabulous scarf.
Speaker B:And I was like, grant, make me look like her.
Speaker B:I was like the description and shout out to Marlene St.
Speaker B:George with Jameson Sotheby's.
Speaker B:I want to be her when I grow up.
Speaker B:Her style is incredible.
Speaker B:She had this fabulous gray hair and she's very like Palm beach, but also Midwest.
Speaker B:And like just her house was phenomenal.
Speaker A:Like, oh my God, I love the direction.
Speaker B:I think I sent you her headshot multiple times.
Speaker B:Like, her jewelry was phenomenal.
Speaker A:All right, he's serious about this.
Speaker B:She just.
Speaker B:She had it.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah, right.
Speaker B:It was like, this is a very sophisticated woman, probably in her 60s, 70s if I had to guess.
Speaker B:I'm like, God, I want to be her.
Speaker B:I want to be her now.
Speaker B:I don't want to be her when I grow up, I want to be her now.
Speaker B:But that was.
Speaker B:And of course, like, what other 30 year old millennial saying that about and like it Me.
Speaker A:Hell yeah.
Speaker B:It is.
Speaker A:Hell yeah.
Speaker B:Go look her up.
Speaker B:Marlene St.
Speaker B:George with Jamison.
Speaker B:That's the only other broker I'm gonna plug.
Speaker A:There you go.
Speaker B:She's got style, man.
Speaker A:Oh, she does, yeah.
Speaker A:Lastly, what is your biggest pet peeve of clients that they do that you're like, oh, man.
Speaker B:Oh.
Speaker B:When they don't listen, like, we have been over this multip.
Speaker B:Or I think in any industry, whether it's.
Speaker B:I'm sure all of your medical clients can tell you, well, Google said this or I googled this and I researched that and all of A sudden, now they're the expert.
Speaker B:Like, no, that's not how this works.
Speaker B:Is what you just researched an option?
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:In this particular situation, it does not make sense.
Speaker B:And here's why.
Speaker B:And a lot of times they'll back off because they're just like.
Speaker B:Well, they just had to ask.
Speaker B:They're just like, you know, if you Google your symptoms, you're always going to have cancer.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:So I'm like, that's.
Speaker B:It's no different.
Speaker B:And that is so frustrating.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So frustrating.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:It's just like, really?
Speaker B:Or, you know my other favorite, don't.
Speaker A:You know who I am?
Speaker B:That's right.
Speaker B:Or you.
Speaker B:When clients want to ask your advice, especially if they're selling their house.
Speaker B:Well, what do we need to do to sell this?
Speaker B:Well, you need to paint this, you need to clean this, you need to update that.
Speaker B:Well, we don't want to do all that.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:Then you're not going to get top dollar and you're not going to sell right away.
Speaker B:So just be prepared for that.
Speaker B:It's like they want your advice, but they don't actually want to take it and implement it.
Speaker B:People have to.
Speaker A:They want to know, but make their own decision.
Speaker B:Correct?
Speaker B:Correct.
Speaker B:So, you know, I think that's probably.
Speaker B:And listen, I'm guilty of it, too.
Speaker B:We're all guilty of it.
Speaker A:That's natural.
Speaker B:Totally.
Speaker B:That's probably my biggest frustration.
Speaker A:I like that one.
Speaker A:That's a good one.
Speaker A:I resonate with that.
Speaker B:Of course.
Speaker A:Definitely hits.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Well, thank you so much.
Speaker A:You have been absolutely fabulous.
Speaker B:Thank you, Dan.
Speaker A:I appreciate it.
Speaker B:It was a pleasure seeing you.
Speaker A:For all the viewers and listeners, thank you for hanging out with us for this extra exclusive bonus content.
Speaker A:If you like this, keep coming back for more exclusive content each week.
Speaker A:And tell your peeps to check out the House of Style podcast.
Speaker A:I can't wait to see you there.