Offering Solutions to Candidates in Today’s Housing Market
November, 2007. In last month’s issue, we tackled the subject of the sagging housing market and how it’s affecting your ability to recruit top talent. We discussed the many challenges that candidates are facing and how those challenges are affecting the decisions they make when it comes to accepting offers . . . or turning them down.
In this issue, we’re going to look at some of the ways companies can increase the number of offer acceptances. By offering practical, concrete solutions to candidates’ relocation problems and challenges, you’ll set yourself apart from your competition and increase the likelihood that your offer is the one that they ultimately accept.
The assessment
The first thing you must do is accurately assess the situation. There are two reasons for this. First, no two situations are exactly the same, even though the circumstances might seem similar. Second, by assessing the situation to the best of your ability, the solutions you offer will be targeted solutions which will more effectively address the challenges a candidate is experiencing at a particular moment in time.
During the screening process, you should already be asking the candidate a series of detailed questions, some of which involve the topic of relocation. If you’re not already doing so, be sure to include additional questions about the housing market. Not just surface-level questions, though. You’ll have to step it up and pose the hard-to-ask, nitty-gritty questions that will help reveal possible conditions and objections. Some questions you should ask include the following:
- Have you talked to a realtor about the state of the housing market in your area and the estimated length of time it might take to sell your house?
- Would your inability to sell your house affect your decision to relocate?
- If you aren’t able to sell your house, would you consider renting it out?
- Are there any other factors that would affect or influence your decision to relocate?
- Is there any other information that you believe would be pertinent?
Of course, if you’ve enlisted the services of an executive recruiter for the purposes of conducting the search, they would handle this line of questioning.
The solutions
Now that you’ve assessed the situation, what solutions do you have from which to choose? Fortunately, there are many, but depending upon the resources and flexibility you have at your disposal, not all of them will be viable options. The key is to identify which ones are a fit for your company, select which of those will best address the challenges of the candidate, and then present them.
However, as the saying goes, “Necessity is the mother of invention,” and in today’s housing market, creative solutions are invented on a consistent basis. It would be a good idea to brainstorm with your team for additional ideas, and feel free to contact me if you have any questions or want somebody who will act as a sounding board. Below is a starter list of solutions.
- Candidates renting out their house. This is something that should definitely be considered on a case-by-case basis. Sometimes it’s a feasible solution, but other times it doesn’t make sense for the candidate.
- Signing bonuses that cover the expected loss on a real estate sale. Once again, you can ascertain that loss by asking detailed questions at the beginning of the process.
- Bridge loans. This is a short-term loan intended to provide or extend financing until a more permanent arrangement is made.
- Companies actually buying the candidate’s house. As the housing market continues to tighten, this is becoming more and more of a viable solution for companies.
- Allowing employees to work remotely, at least on a temporary basis. Of course, the type of work being done and the distance involved are factors to consider, but this could provide a workable solution.
- Extending temporary housing allowances. Many companies provide funds for 90 days of temporary housing. Extending this timeframe to 120 or 180 days might be easier than offering a bridge loan or buying a house.
- Using a contractor to fill the position. Once again, this can serve as a temporary, stop-gap measure until the proper perm candidate is found. (Of course, if the contractor works out, you can always hire them a permanent basis, as well.)
- Know your housing market inside and out. What are houses selling for in your market area? You’ll want to know so that you can educate candidates during their decision-making process. For example, they could sell their house at a loss in California and still buy a larger house in a smaller market somewhere else.
- Using a relocation coaching service, or using a recruiter who’s affiliated with one. This is more of a supplemental solution. In other words, this should be done in addition to the main solutions you and the candidate have chosen.
And here’s a bonus solution, one that you wouldn’t present but might still solve your hiring problem. Re-level the position and run the search locally. If you find a strong candidate, place this person with an experienced mentor and in a training program. Perhaps this candidate will be able to grow into what the position was initially supposed to entail. This could prove to be the best solution in the long run.
A peek at 2008
Through undertaking this two-step process, first assessing the situation and then offering targeted solutions, you can greatly reduce the effect that the housing market has on your efforts to recruit top talent. By most estimates, the market is going to worsen in 2008 before it rebounds on the road to recovery. If that happens, stability may not return until the second half of next year-at the earliest.
Can you weather another year of possibly losing top-notch candidates? The challenges that these candidates are facing will become more numerous and in some cases, more severe. Are you prepared to help them meet those challenges? Have you identified which possible solutions are viable ones for your company to offer? It’s time to put together a formal plan to address these issues.
We occasionally collaborate with a small, select group of other recruiting firm owners to create content of interest to our respective clients. This article is a collaborative piece. If you have suggestions for future articles please email dharper@harperhewes.com.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.