Lies, Damn Lies, and Realtor Statistics
What’s the best way to tell if a “saved” MLS search is in fact a prospective home Buyer, who’s watching the property in the hopes that the price drops?
Reduce the price.
If the price reduction triggers a wave of showings (and ideally, offers!) . . . the “saved” MLS searches were for real.
If there’s no discernible response . . . they weren’t.
Real Estate Red Herring
Most veteran agents (myself included) will attest that scenario #2 is far more common than scenario #1.
Which begs the questions, “Exactly who is watching the listing?; and, “What are they watching for?”
Here are some educated guesses, courtesy of my Edina Realty-City Lakes colleagues at this morning’s weekly meeting: “Neighbors”; “Buyers who already bought”; “Buyers who stopped looking” (i.e., didn’t buy); and “Insomniacs.” 🙂
Bottom line: “Saved” searches on MLS are not especially useful as an indicator of latent Buyer demand for any given “For Sale” home.
