High Anxiety!

“Were you able to get any more information from the selling Agent?” the client nervously asked, phoning long distance from her meditative retreat. (This was supposed to be a restful outing for her. It wasn't turning out that way.) “The lack of communication has me wondering if there are very few offers coming in, and we're being played.” (That's a distinct possibility, but leveraging the interest - or lack thereof - IS a listing Agent's job.) 

On the other hand, I’ve had Buyers decide not to write because they feared that heavy competition would push the house much further than they were prepared to pay . . . and suddenly, the Sellers are left empty-handed. In other words, there are legitimate reasons a listing Agent holds back such information, as frustrating as that can be for those of us on the buy side. ​

Too few offers, and Buyers wonder what's wrong with the house. Too many, and they're easily scared off. It's a delicate balance to be sure . . . . .

​Additionally, there are a fair number of Buyers' Agents who prefer to keep their cards close to the vest; those who adamantly refuse to respond to any requests for confirmation. Pejoratively labeled "secret agents," these folks operate on the misguided notion that the less others know, the better. Their offers typically show up unannounced and completely off base. To no one's surprise, they are typically haphazardly written and poorly executed. (Not anyone's fave.)

But for those of us who prefer to be more transparent within our practice, the desire for more information (ANY information!) is entirely appropriate given the high stakes. Thus, when our questions are met with stony silence, (Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?) it's often a recipe for high anxiety. In fact, there are few transactions as stress-inducing as purchasing a home, which often requires Buyers to submit an offer in a blind competition; a process, WHICH, for better or worse, has become the home-buying equivalent of a root canal. (Painful.)

Moreover, given that the vast majority of our listings in the East Bay are "strategically priced" - meaning the list price often bears little resemblance to the final sales price - it can be incredibly difficult to instruct Buyers how high the property will trade, or how best to secure the desired result. (If only we had a crystal ball.)

Accepting the premise that all real estate has an "intrinsic value," a neutral, third-party, arm's-length evaluation is the purview of professional Appraisers only, who will factor in square footage, location, condition, and comparable sales to perform their analysis before arriving at a supportable valuation ("supportable" being the operative word). While the Appraiser's task is nuanced, it's not a stab in the dark, as buying often is. Still, it's important to remember that an appraisal is only one person's opinion of value - not the entire herd's - which can add an additional and highly-complex layer to the very idea of a property's worth.

What Realtors® understand (or should) is that "value" is a subjective concept at best. We base our advice using the same factors to "guesstimate" where a property will ultimately trade, but our numbers are more art than science. (Cue the groan from all mathematicians everywhere.) At the end of the day, it often comes down to gut instincts, investigations, information swapping, and years of experience, followed by a fair amount of negotiations, before settling at a number both sides can agree on.

Why the elaborate dance?

Because "strategically pricing" a house works to the Seller's advantage. Therefore, Buyers' Agents start with the list price, the condition, the location, etc., but then factor in the competition and the emotional pull a property engenders. (The process is decidedly NOT zen.)

But to add a twist to the plot (or should I say the plat?), there can be unexpected results that WON'T be supported by other nearby sales, throwing a monkey wrench into the mix. These "outliers" break the ceiling and set a new bar, selling MUCH higher than their counterparts for a variety of reasons; the majority of them have to do with emotions.

This is why Sarah and I work diligently to create nostalgic, desirable, aspirational (insert the appropriate adjective here) narratives on our listings. We know that homes are bought emotionally - not pragmatically. Whether buying or selling, we're aiming for the bullseye, but it's rarely easy to hit.

"So what should I do?" the client asked.

"You should pick a number you feel comfortable with, irrespective of what others may write." I said. "I guarantee you, there's a tipping point where you are relieved to walk away. Find it and you'll know how to proceed. (But also be prepared to throw down and throw up. If you're not a little sick to your stomach, you probably didn't bid high enough.)

Understand that in a world where disclosures are delivered online, and offers are submitted via the push of a button, there can be a tremendous amount of activity around a property that never comes to fruition, which makes it tough for Agents to accurately predict activity.

Long gone are the days when we made appointments and presented our offers in person, not only to the listing Agent, but to their Sellers as well. (Those were the days.) These face-to-face meetings often provided a better sense of what the Sellers wanted and needed, along with what was most important to them. That intel is much more difficult to ascertain without reading the room. Such is the age of computer automation. (Sigh.)

Whatever the circumstances, and with the CLEAR understanding that we don't control other people, places, or things (aka: the Serenity Prayer), we work with the information at hand, and with the knowledge that buying or selling is going to be a roller coaster of emotions, no matter which side of the fence you're on. Amidst the chaos, the unknown, and the ultimate outcome, take a moment to breathe. You're going to need that moment of calm.

Ohmmm . . .

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