“It Only Takes One”

Q: What do you call the person who finishes last in their medical school class?
A. “Doctor.”

It may surprise non-Realtors to hear that even well-prepped, well-priced homes ” destined to sell quickly for full price or very close ” typically collect more “Nay’s” than “Yea’s” from prospective Buyers.

But it’s true.

In fact, the ratio of negative to positive feedback can be 5:1, 10:1, or even more lopsided.

Imagine a politician trying to get reelected with a 10% approval rating.

Parsing “Negative” Feedback

As a long-time listing agent, however, I know that often times what is really happening isn’t that Buyers are trashing the house or the price (both of which certainly can happen).

Rather, they’re simply saying (or not, based on their silence) that the particular home isn’t what they’re looking for.

When that’s the case, the appropriate Seller response is . .  nothing.

That’s especially true for a genuinely unique home, that’s looking for a unique Buyer.

When I list such homes, I counsel the owner ahead of time not so much to alter their price expectations, but rather to anticipate longer market time.

See also, “Showing Feedback: Looking for “The Glass Slipper”; and “The ‘My-client-didn’t-like-it stop-bugging-me’ Showing Feedback.”

About the author

Ross Kaplan has 19+ years experience selling real estate all over the Twin Cities. He is also a 12-time consecutive "Super Real Estate Agent," as determined by Mpls. - St. Paul Magazine and Twin Cities Business Magazine. Prior to becoming a Realtor, Ross was an attorney (corporate law), CPA, and entrepreneur. He holds an economics degree from Stanford.

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