"It is what it is"

That's a direct quote from an agent.  One I'd like to recommend for early retirement.

It's an interesting market -- changes almost daily as the summer season nears.  Sales are increasing, more buyers are looking and actually making offers now.

And because of the economic climate and because I take my profession seriously, I provide a comparable market analysis as well as a market absorption analysis for my buyers and my sellers.  Facts are hard to argue with.

When a buyer I'm representing wants to make an offer on a house, I contact the listing agent and ask if he/she would mind sharing the comparables that were used to determine the list price.  It helps provide perspective and can be valuable to assist a buyer in being realistic.  Their shared comps, however, never take the place of my own analysis and market evaluation.

Lately I've been getting some interesting responses to my request for comp information.  One recent reply was, "it was the price the seller wanted to list for".   But last week when I asked for comparable information from a listing agent because the price was significantly above the market, the reply was "it is what it is".   More accurately, "[the seller] bought it for $x, put $y into it, so it is what it is".

At first I laughed.  Then I realized that any response I gave would most likely offend so I determined to let it go and we passed on the property.

Call me obsessive but I want facts.  I want numbers.  I want professionalism from other agents, not some mumbo-jumbo that would indicate to me you really don't care that I have a buyer for your property.

It's a disservice to your clients if you don't do your job professionally and are able to substantiate your list price.  I, for one, am a strong proponent of cooperating with agents on transactions and doing everything possible to make a transaction work.  Here's to all of you agents who are professional, cooperative and take your role seriously.