When do you turn down a listing?

Great story, James.

You can't sell them all, so you might as well avoid the unsellable ones.

 

Love it, love it, love it.

Happens every day.  AgentS buying listings and sellers disappointed.  Homes sitting and sitting and sitting. 

Folks call me regularly and want to know what they can do to sell their home.  I send them right back to their listing agent. 

"THAT IS AGENCY LEVEL ADVICE, CALL YOUR AGENT". 

In this time of where the market is and how slow the houses are moving, I feel just as bad for the seller as the agents - being one I know that it is hard to get them to see that their lovely home might be sitting on the market for no apparent reason at all.  There are just not enough willing, able and ready buyers for all the homes that are out there accumulating DOM #s.  I look at the price reduction numbers often and they are just climbing on a daily basis. And by comparison, most homes are NOT priced too high, its the market!

So hang in there and don't take on someone's headache - if another agent has the listing... they would need to work it, work it, work it.  And that seller just need to be guided right back to the one those chose to represent them.  Keep pointing them back, they will learn.

 

I would have taken the listing anyway, but with the following statements having been made to the people.

Up front I would tell them:

If the home is over priced it will get very few showings by other agents.

A home will always sell for the highest price it is going to sell at in the first 2 or 3 weeks on the market, after that it is just a down hill battle to get it sold at the price a less motivated buyer is willing to pay.

A over priced home is only of benefit to the listing agent (I will likely get buyers from the home, but not buyers for your home) I am telling you this up front, it is not really what I want for you though.

Yes I will list the home at the price you are asking, be aware I am not going to spend more money marketing your home than I spend on any other home. (It does not matter how much you spend marketing a over priced home, it will not sell until it is priced properly)

If they still want to list with me, great.  If not well, great.

If they call me later after having listed with someone else asking the question you stated, I would not turn them back on their current realtor with advice to press on marketing, that is not what is needed and you know it.  I would remind them of the price they should have listed the house at to start with, and leave it at that. (remember they called you, you did not call them).

 

Jim 

My new standard saying is, " I sell homes, I don't list homes."  They kinda look at me and ask again if I would be willing to try x dollars to list it.  If it's a reasonable starting point, I'll go ahead and humor them, as long as they sign something that says we'll be adjusting our price strategy within 3 weeks.  If they're what I consider well overpriced, I tell them I can't sell it at that price and they need to talk with someone else who has the power to do it.

I typically dont take overpriced listings. I do not want to waste time with an overpriced listing, then having to adjust it later either. I not only track my record for selling homes, I track it based on price adjustments.

I seriously think it does the seller no justice just to "try out the market". We have wasted the whole time it was priced incorrectly. I have a heart-felt personal experience to share with my sellers, something I am not proud of. Usually after I share that story, they accept my answer for why I think it is worth what it is worth.

Good post!

Great post.  This situation is happening all over our area.  I had a conversation with a top Realtor the other day and we came to the conclusion that it is better to be the third agent to get the expired listing. The clients are by that time convinced they must lower the price.

It is funny, I think that they go to another agent and lower the price to save face??? Even though the original agent diligently tried to get the client to lower the price.  I think it is important to really educate our listings about PRICE.  In the past the houses were selling like hotcakes, it is a very hard pill for most people to swallow. Their houses are not worth what they thought..... then of course many owe more than their house is worth in todays market.  I spoke with a title company rep who said more and more sellers are bringing money to the closing table.  Times are changing, thats for sure.

Nancy Lohman

www.nancylohman.com

 

I agree, but for us newbies, we are hungry for anything. I have little inventory and trying to get my name out there,.

I have been able to educate the sellers once I take their listing then to come down on price. 

 

P.S. Thank you James for your comment. It is priced right.

Well - I just turned down a listing that ended up going to a new comer. My only problem with taking a listing at any price is that it skews the market data for people pricing new listings that havn't actually seen that particular listing. I guess it might be OK if you are 20 or 30,000 over, but in a specialty market when you are 150,000 over? It just doesn't make sense.

Well this is like what the appraised values did back the 2004/05 - its the start of a mess.  Now we are all suffering from the too high values and high number of sales at those higher price tags.  I don't think we will be able to stop it, if its not the appraised value, its the listing agent that will go higher knowing that it is too high for the comps and the areas.  BUt then the house will sell.  So how do you stop it?

If a listing isn't going to MAKE you money, it will COST you money.  Best advice I have for everyone is... NEXT!  Some might be thinking  "easy for you to say - you have lots of listings".  That's why I can say it... I know from experience.

Having no listings is stressful.  Having listings that are over priced and cost money to market without selling is even more stressful.

Always have the courage to walk away if the sellers won't agree to your terms.  Remember:  YOU are the professional.

I haven't had to turn one down yet.  And probably would be nervous to do so in this day and time.  But I sure have had to prove what I am saying to the seller.  I guess it is just as easy to not give up so easily and remember to make a good impression at the beginning so that they stay with you and what you have to say when needed.

But I am sure if I lose one or a few because they wanted to control the situation, I'd be disappointed for a minute then I'd get over it because I'd figure that one was not for me.