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Several weeks ago I met with a couple about the possibility of listing their home in 45 to 60 days. They were thinking of downsizing, a popular sport these days. We actually had a great chat and they seemed pleased with some of the things that I shared with them about how I approach the process a bit differently. The home was nice with good updates. As we were finishing up Mrs. seller gave me a flyer from her 'for sale by owner' days. The list price on the sheet was 16% higher than the most expensive sale ever in her legally described area. She added 'well of course we'll have to raise the price if we list it.' Didn't everyone know that home buyers are willing to pay a seller over 20% more for a home because it's in the MLS/BLC? I smiled, took the flyer, thanked them as I left with the understanding that I would begin sending them information by email until they were ready to talk further. I wanted to say, but held my tongue, that things were better but that didn't change that we had to be priced competitively. I decided to save that and see how the conversation went and they were ready to go.
I sent the first email about a week later. We're in January and the sales numbers were thin....not a surprise. Good or bad, I'm in favor of playing it straight and tell a seller the truth rather than what they want to hear. I'm too busy to try and bogus the info up to buy listings which my industry is infamous for. Mrs. Seller's response to the first email was 'WE WILL NOT SELL UNLESS WE GET OUR PRICE!' Now to be fair everyone wants their price but considering I sent the information in a positive vein and just said it was early, the market was slow, I was just passing on the information, the response was a bit odd. I was starting to sense an issue. A week later I sent the next update. The sales news was about the same. Mrs. Seller's response this time? "Apparently you are missing some of the information because I'm getting sales from other agents that you are not sending me.' Of course!! I was busted!! She had figured out that I was intentionally not giving her good information in an attempt to win her business!! Perhaps she thought I was incompetent and couldn't accurately search her area. Six letters searched her neighborhood and it was clear I was holding info back or just clueless. I did ask her politely to share which homes she had gotten from the OTHER agents that I hadn't given her. As you would guess, crickets.
Having the privilege of working with a home seller or buyer is a great honor. I understand that selling a home requires a lot of things from a seller along the way. Going hand in hand is a motivation to sell along with accepting what the market will bear. Those two issues must be right in a seller's head or you can forget it. You will sell at the price the market is willing to bear or you are free to keep your home. You must make a rational judgement about values notwithstanding what some less than reputable agent is telling you. You must be willing to recognize and be willing to work through the inspection process in a compromising way or else you will keep your property. While I want to get every seller the most dollars possible, NOBODY else cares what you need as a price to sell. I've successfully helped thousands of people sell and buy homes who were very happy at day's end. I've also learned to recognize the signs coming from someone who will never be happy because they have expectations that are totally unreasonable. I'm fine with letting the next agent waste three months, get their butt chewed countless times and have their reputation smeared by a seller who never really was prepared to sell. All I can say to those former prospective clients is, no thanks. greg cooper, east carmel indiana homes for sale, east carmel indiana neighborhoods, top selling carmel indiana broker agent realtor
