If you were on a lake home hunt in 2021 you have likely become familiar with “Coming Soon” as a listing status. It is a listing option that is a fantastic tool for listing agents that will endure even after the lakefront real estate market is less crazy. Ideally a listing is entered into the MLS as ‘Coming Soon’ on a Sunday or Monday with the start date for showings being the coming Friday. More than likely, most of the interested buyers won’t be currently in the Alexandria Area so it allows for scheduling planning and for interested buyers that are working Monday thru Friday to visit during the weekend. The lag before the start date allows time for buyers to figure out a time to visit either Friday, Saturday, or Sunday and an appointment can be booked with the agent the buyers are working with. It also allows time for FOMO. Fear of missing out.
If all goes as planned there will be multiple offers to be reviewed Sunday afternoon or evening. It is frustrating for buyers that are in the home early and make an offer early but have to wait. But as long as the listing agent sets the protocol early on most will understand. Understand with a large dose of frustration. I’ve been on both sides and it isn’t fun dispensing disappointing news as the listing agent and especially not fun when telling your buyers their fantastic offer didn’t win. The goal for the seller and their Realtor is to expose the listing to as many potential buyers as possible. It’d be a mistake to accept an offer before this is done as it has been the case where there are usually one or two offers that will surprise everyone.
When the status in our local MLS is “Coming Soon” the rules are strict. The property can’t be shown and can’t be previewed by any Realtors prior to the “Active” date. The repercussions for breaking the rules are monetary penalties as well as expulsion from the MLS. What has happened, and just happened this past week with a local lake listing, is some buyers are willing to make offers prior to the “Active” date without visiting the lake property. This is legit as the “Coming Soon” status doesn’t preclude offers being submitted. If an offer is received and the seller likes the price and terms they can accept it and everyone that had booked showing appointments is out of luck. Maybe the price brought a smile to the seller’s face and a successful closing felt like a sure thing. There is also the possibility the offer had an expiration prior to the “Active” date and the price was strong enough that the seller didn’t want to risk losing the buyer. My opinion is that if the highest and best price is a priority sellers should wait for all offers as it is unlikely a buyer making an offer before the listing changing from ‘Coming Soon’ to ‘ Active’ will disappear.
Leave a Reply