Y'know, it's tough being a listing agent. No matter how good of a job you do, the margin for error is huge. If you sell the house too fast … you blew it on the price and "cost your seller money." If the house takes too long to sell, well, we all know what happens then. We didn't live up to our promises and we disappointed our seller.

I just had a listing go under contract with multiple offers. Fortunately (for me), a good friend of mine had the same thing happen to him just a few days earlier and (unfortunately for him), his seller wasn't prepared. She blasted him for underpricing her home and told him, rather snottily, that she had no intention of making any repairs at inspection.

So, Miss Smarty Pantz me, I warned my sellers up front about what I call "Seller's Regret."

Here's the thing. In today's market, almost every seller will experience Seller's Regret. But it's their choice (sort of) which type of Seller's Regret they'll experience.

Type 1: "Darn! We underpriced our home! We should have priced it higher! That lousy Realtor – she cost us money!"

Type 2: "Blimey. I wish we'd listened to our Realtor upfront. We should have made the repairs, staged it right away and priced it lower. Now, five months later, our listing is stale, we've paid $9000 of our interest-only mortgage and are fair game for low-ball offers, if we get any at all. Let's look into renting it out."

If your seller is lucky enough to experience Type 1, he may never know the pain and angst of Type 2 and he may always wonder if he should have/could have priced it higher.

If a seller is lucky enough to experience Type 1, he may never know the pain and angst of Type 2 and he may always wonder if he should have/could have priced it higher. And that's okay -- pricing homes is an art and, in most markets, there is no One Price for a home.

But I find that when my sellers understand upfront what might happen, they're much less likely to "blame" you when it does!

Published: July 24, 2008

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Jennifer Allan is a former top producing real estate broker, a published author, a speaker and a trainer. She has written five books a bout the business of selling real estate, including her flagship book: Sell with Soul: Creating an Extraordinary Career in Real Estate without Losing Your Friends, Your Principles or Your Self-Respect. Her new book entitled "If You’re Not Having Fun Selling Real Estate, You're Not Doing it Right!" will be released in early 2010. Jennifer believes that the secret of success for real estate agents is not in aggressive marketing techniques or hard-core sales pitches, but rather in being competent in one's craft. Competence begets Confidence. And in today's world of increasingly suspicious and ad-weary consumers, having an air of self-assurance and enthusiasm will be far more effective than a slick sales campaign. Jennifer writes and speaks with this philosophy in mind. She preaches that salespeople should follow the Golden Rule in their day-to-day practice of business - treating clients and prospects respectfully, as the salesperson him or herself would like to be treated. Being competent, reliable and fair, and motivated by a true desire to earn a paycheck, not just show up at closing with hand outstretched. She is a regular contributor to several real estate newsletters and magazines, a member of the RE/MAX Hall of Fame and one of the industry's most popular bloggers. You can learn more about Jennifer's "soulful" philosophies at www.SellWithSoul.com. Subscribe to Jennifer Allan's Newsletter for SOI'ers Tips & Strategies for Generating Business from Your Sphere of Influence Your Email Address: Your Name: