During the course of our individual weekly meeting, an agent on the team described the hectic pace to her weekend whereby she fielded four offers on one of her listings. As any agent who is among the best of the best would do, she asked each party to present their highest and best terms as a means to eliminate. Each buyer agent did so on behalf of their client, and consequently the sellers chose the offer that was most appealing to them.
On Second Thought
As is often the case in multiple offer situations, especially when there are as many as four, one of the potential buyers had “second thoughts” once they learned that they were going to lose their dream home. They decided that they wanted to submit another offer, this time significantly above the asking price. By then the seller had already signed off on the offer that they initially committed to, however, and decided to stick with it.
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Counterproductive Approach
As a listing agent, I would often receive calls from a Realtor whose buyer was interested in one of my listings. “My buyer has asked that you call me if another offer is procured on the property,” the agent would anxiously explain. “Why would they want to wait until there’s another offer?” I wondered. “So that they could actually get into a bidding war and pay more?”
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When Does It Begin?
I have two boys who are two and a half years apart in age. I can recall, beginning when they were very young, how a particular toy was never as appealing as when the other wanted to play with it too. Why is it that someone seems so much more attractive when he or she is with a member of the opposite sex as opposed to when they are by themselves?
An Instinctual Component
I suppose there is no sense in fighting it. It’s human nature. It’s in our DNA and there’s just nothing we can do about it. It’s almost as if we need someone else’s opinion to justify the value of something in our minds. There’s an instinctual component to it, and to attempt to deny it would be attempting to deny the child within.
What are some of the things that you wanted more when you found out that someone else wanted them too?
Was it too late or did you find out that it wasn’t worth it after all?
Written by Al N. Filippone. For more information about the local real estate market, contact our Southport office at 203.256.3264 or visit our website at afahomes.com.
