Self Help

1. Look for listings that are “stale”: Usually these are the properties that have been listed the longest. A seller who puts a property on the market on Wednesday isn’t likely to cut his price by the following Monday. On the other hand, a seller who’s had her property on the market for three months with no activity is likely to be very anxious to make a deal - and cut her price to do it. In other words, look for the “stale” listings, those that have been out there the longest.

A typical listing is for 90 days. As you get closer to the end of that time, the agent is more likely to put pressure on the seller to accept any offer. After all, unless the seller decides to renew, after 90 days the agent has lost the listing and a commission.

In a normal market, a large number of properties will be in the stale category. Indeed, most properties will take two months or more to sell. In a slow market, you’ll want to extend your time frame to homes that have gone unsold for six months or longer. In a hot market, however, you will have to reduce that time frame, sometimes to a few weeks.

2. Look for listings that have expired: A listing that doesn’t sell goes “off the books.” This doesn’t mean that it disappears. It just means that it’s no longer carried in the computer as an active listing. But it is on a list somewhere.

Typically agents can pull these expired listings. (The agents often use them as a source of possible new listings for themselves.) Check them over carefully. Sometimes, lost among them is a gem. This is typically a property where the price was reduced several times. You might find a property where the owner is still desperate to sell, but simply has given up and doesn’t know how to do it. Have your agent contact the seller, get a short-term (one day) listing, and show you the property. If it looks good, try a low-ball offer. It’s not always going to work. But, then again, you don’t need to get a hit very often to win the game.

3. Look for price reductions: A seller who cuts the price by $500 is merely trying to attract attention. A seller who cuts the price by $20,000 is serious. Multiple price reductions indicate a very anxious seller, particularly when the reductions come close to one another. When you find a property that has been reduced in price and which otherwise seems suitable, don’t feel you have to offer the current asking price. Just because a seller has reduced the price doesn’t mean it’s at rock bottom. Treat a reduced price as you would any other, as the starting point for negotiations. Work down from there.