There’s a disturbing practice occurring all too often, which is padding the pockets of some unethical agents at the cost of their sellers. If you’re considering selling a home you should know about it and make certain it doesn’t happen to you.
We are currently in a market of low supply and high demand. It doesn’t take an economist to understand that good homes that are well exposed to the market have the potential to draw multiple offers at or above the listed price. If agents and buyers are aware that your home is for sale there’s a pretty good chance that they’ll be lining up to view your property. Of course, that’s good for you! The problem, in my opinion, is that some agents may be making an effort to ensure that buyers working with other agents are unaware that a property has been offered for sale, hoping to get the jump and sell the home themselves. On the surface, they may come off looking like a real go-getter. In fact, such practices are only good for the agent and potentially they could cost you thousands of dollars.
In a recent post titled, “Can’t Find a House? It’s Time to Get Ugly,” I shared a story of an agent who listed a fine little property for $239,900 which sold very quickly for $260,010. I’m sure that this agent probably had a buyer which would have been happy to purchase this home quietly before it actually hit the market. Had she behaved in a sneaky and deceptive manner, she would have brought her own buyer before anyone else knew it was for sale and written an offer herself. In a case like that, the dynamics of the negotiation would have been far different than they actually were. In all likelihood, the buyer would have offered somewhere below the list price and the seller may have been prepared to accept that. It’s very doubtful that the seller would have held out for more than the listed price. However, this agent understood her duty to act in the best interest of her seller and placed the property on the open market as she had promised to do and as a result, the buyer who was prepared to pay the most for the home was made aware of its existence and bought it. Both buyer and seller are pleased with the deal that they struck.
All too often, new listings are appearing on the MLS® with a note which says, “Sorry, this one is conditionally SOLD!” Well, I say, “How proud you are for selling your client’s home before 99% of the market even knew it was for sale.” Not something I’d want to brag about.
There have been many instances lately where homes are sold before the close of business on the day that they’re listed. While I wouldn’t go so far as to call this unethical, I’m not sure that it’s a sound strategy for the seller’s interests. The home is sold and most of the market is still stuck at work. It seems to me that we should at least allow some evening showings before we jump on an offer. Wouldn’t you think?
It’s time that agents came up with some kind of a pre-listing marketing strategy to expose upcoming listings to buyers so that more of them have an opportunity to see and consider the home. I plan to do that over the next couple of days and I will share the details with you when I do. Meantime, if you’re placing your home on the market, ask your agent to submit the listing to the Multiple Listing Service® immediately to ensure that as many buyers as possible know it’s for sale. Try not to be so eager to sell that you accept an offer before most buyers can even see it. Yes, you need to deal with offers in a timely manner, but late tonight is as timely as early today and if you give them a chance to see it, the best buyer for your home will step forward and put their money where their mouth is.
Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra
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