It’s best to walk away from an overpriced listing

It’s best to walk away from an overpriced listing

It’s almost always best to walk away from an overpriced listing. I listed a home for a friend and allowed myself to be bullied into overpricing his house – my mistake. Instead of taking the overpriced listing, I wish I had said, “Mr. Seller and Friend – thank you for thinking of me to list your home for sale, but I fear that overpricing your home for sale will adversely affect our relationship.”

I should have walked away from that overpriced listing. Instead, I spent over $6,000 staging the 4,000 square foot home, paid for expensive print advertising and held numerous open houses. We all know – let’s say it together – NO amount of marketing activity is going to sell an overpriced listing.

We can only list properties in Oklahoma for a six-month period. In order to get this Seller to list with me after the first listing agreement expired, I had to agree to have open houses every other Sunday. Yes, we dropped the price to a more reasonable amount by that time, but as you know, the damage had been done. We already lost the Buyers that were interested when the property was new on the market.

To put things into perspective, I told the Seller he should list at $625,000, but absolutely no more than $699,000. Comps are comps, and math is math. If comparable properties in your neighborhood are selling for $100 per square foot, no amount of upgrades are going to make your home worth $125 per square foot – unless maybe you had an entire toilet made of gold. We listed at $799,000 and reduced the price five times during the year.

It’s best to walk away from an overpriced listing

So after several price reductions and paying to market the property for a year, the Seller ditched me and re-listed with a different agent – at a MUCH lower price. Although that eliminated any possibility of recovering my marketing expenses and time, I was almost relieved to be rid of the client.

But, if any good came of the situation, it was a reminder to me that it’s best to walk away from an overpriced listing. Had I been honest and followed my instinct, I might have been the Realtor he called for the third listing period when it was finally priced UNDER market value.

Realtors, remember that you set yourself AND your client up for failure when you take an overpriced listing. We are the experts, and they rely on our guidance. While it wouldn’t have made me popular at the moment, I should have respectfully declined the listing and thanked the Seller for considering me. That would have been the action of a true professional.

If you’re considering selling your home and would like my advice as to your home’s value, please do give me a call. I promise to be painfully honest.  918-852-5036

Content written and published by Lori Cain.