Interested in "Buying a listing?"  We're looking to sell homes, not deceive people.  We want to be able to look ourselves in the mirror and like who we see!  We have at one time or another gone up against other agents on a listing appointment that have played these games with the seller.  We diligently prepare our presentation and we run our comparables to present the most accurate market analysis to the seller.  We get in the car and drive by homes in the neighborhood, take photos, and then prepare our presentation. We use REAL homes in the neighborhood that compare to the home of the seller who requested our opinion and expertise.  We check tax records, active listings, recent sales, expired listings of over-priced homes that didn't sell, we compare lot sizes and so much more. This way we can give the most accurate picture of what a seller can realistically expect to obtain when selling their home. Does that sound reasonable?  From time to time we go up against other agents that have a different way of acquiring a listing. Their strategy is lying. WHY? The commission of course.

They lie to the seller and give them the false hope that their home is worth substantially more than any other agents are quoting.  These agents are so optimistic about the lie that the seller believes their optimism instead of seeing it for the deceit it is.  When one agent gives a much higher number, they automatically eliminate all of the other agents out of the running.  It is called "Buying the Listing!"  It is also a violation of the Realtor Code of Ethics.  It gives false hope to the seller that really wants to believe that obtaining the higher sales price is realistic.  What does the seller know about prices anyway?

The next part of the game that takes place when an agent buys the listing is to let the seller beat themselves up about price.  The seller notices no one is coming by, and asks the agent what improvements could they make to enhance the sale of their home?  Maybe even what about a price reduction?  Would that help?  What is happening here? If the agent had been HONEST in the first place, the seller would have listed their home correctly, they wouldn't have to be "on guard" 24/7 waiting for buyers to come by, and they would have saved themselves $1000s of dollars, headaches, and time.

The more obvious approach of the deceptive listing agent is to comeback to the seller in a few weeks, and say "No one is looking at your home, we need to lower the price.  The reason no one is looking and you are not getting any offers is because your HOME IS OVER-PRICED!!! Instead of falling for this "trickery" (which gives even the best agents a bad name), perhaps the seller should look at the marketing plan, the Internet presence, the testimonials or references of the Realtor(s) they plan to interview, and the market data that speaks VOLUMES!!!

If the home is priced right from the get-go, national statistics show a seller will NET 97.43% in the first 30 days. After 60 days...only 95.19%, 120 days...94.75%, 250 days...94.66%, and after 1 year....94.89%. Do the math!!! If your home was worth 300K...in the first 30 days you would have netted $292,303. After 250 days only $283,973...by any calculator, that is a loss of $8330.00. Not to mention having to pay principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and utilities. Your life is on hold thanks to the "scrupu-less", deceptive Realtor.

It is your financial future. Don't trust the sale of your home to just any agent. Do some research. Do ALOT of it. Ask for references...check out their website...view their listings...don't take chances and fall for the agent who is trying to "Buy Your Listing".