An increasing number of estate agents now refuse to accept new listings when price demands are too high. It’s about time - but it won’t last!
Le Parisien, a French national daily, explained a few days ago (here) that an increasing number of estate agents now refuse to accept new listing when they think that sellers’ price requirements are unrealistic.
Brokers are saying that taking on a new “mandat de vente” means investing some time (to take pictures, learn – a little bit – about the property, write up a listing) and money (advertise and show the properties) – and that they are no longer willing to do that when they are convinced that they will not sell the property because of too high an asking price. It used to be that in some areas, properties sold whatever the price – to a wealthy foreigner or somebody who just sold a Paris flat (at 25,000€/m² - US$2,461/sq.ft). But no longer, they say. Listing agents hate to disappoint. But within a context where sales have slowed by a least a third nationwide, some are making though decisions. This is the first time in 13 years I hear or read about such a phenomenon.
With one exception. A good colleague of mine in Uzès has been doing just that for years – and it’s working very well for him. His listings are all realistically priced, and (surprise) they sell quickly. This has become a USP for him: often people come to him after they have wasted a year or two trying to sell their house at a stupid price – thanks to unprofessional estate agents.
Because in Languedoc in my home corner of France, everyday I see listings 5%, 10% or even 25% too expensive. For properties I know or have even sold in the past – so I am pretty confident here. I have seen that for the whole 13 years I have been in business. That’s not new – what’s new is that some agents stop doing it…
But I can tell you it’s not going to last. Because as soon as sales rebound, brokers and agents will again start competing with each other for listings, and their main weapon here is to accept pretty much whatever price the sellers want. Very often agents don’t know what they’re doing (due to inexperience and/or lack of training) and often enough (for brokers mainly) it’s plain simple cynicism – "hey, I have to listing, the seller will tire at some point, why not…"
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