At least not on my end of the deal.
One thing that makes land different from houses is that having it sit on the market a little while usually doesn’t damage it the same way.
A house sitting unsold starts raising questions pretty quickly.
Land is slower by nature.
So after a Land Reality Check, sometimes the conversation becomes:
“Okay, if you think this is worth around $8,500 an acre, why don’t we just throw it out there at $14,000 and see what happens?”
And within reason, that’s not necessarily crazy.
If somebody is willing to sell around market value, but wants to push a little first just to make sure we’re not leaving money on the table, fine. I understand that completely.
You’ve probably noticed if you’ve read any of my Land Reality Checks that I tend to lean conservative anyway.
I’d rather be slightly conservative than explain later why fairy tales didn’t happen.
But there’s another side to this too.
If you’re selling a small residential lot, it usually doesn’t take much more than a yard sign and an MLS listing. Which isn’t free, but usually doesn’t involve substantial upfront expense either.
If somebody wants to throw one of those out there at an unrealistic number “just to see,” I might play along.
Maybe.
But marketing a larger tract correctly usually costs real money up front.
Larger signs.
Drone photography.
Aerials.
Professional brochures.
Landing pages.
Targeted marketing.
Industry websites.
Paid Google ads sometimes.
Mailers sometimes.
It adds up faster than people think.
A decent custom sign can easily run $500 to $1,000 depending on what’s needed. Drone photography might be another few hundred. Professionally printed brochures are expensive if you want them done correctly.
And that’s before getting into the less visible costs, the platforms, memberships, advertising accounts, and all the little things that make the marketing possible in the first place.
Depending on the tract, it’s not unusual for me to spend $1,500 to $2,000 or more getting a property positioned before anything even happens.
When I take a listing, I’m basically betting a substantial amount on my ability to get it done for you.
That doesn’t mean every listing sells.
Markets change.
Sometimes sellers change their minds. Sometimes buyers disappear. Sometimes a property just sits there longer than expected.
That’s business.
But there still has to be some reasonable overlap between where a seller is realistically willing to sell and where the market is realistically willing to buy.
Otherwise everybody is mostly participating in a very expensive form of wishful thinking.
PS – Most landowners are not planning to sell today.
But markets change, family situations change, and sometimes opportunities show up when you aren’t expecting them. The people who already understand roughly where they stand usually make better decisions than the ones trying to figure everything out under pressure.
That’s what the MBR Land Reality Check is for.
It looks at nearby sales, current competition, development activity, utility considerations, and the things affecting value that most people never think about until it matters.
Is it a bad idea to know where things stand?
PPS – If you’re not ready for a Reality Check but enjoy thinking about land, markets, negotiation, and how this business actually works, you can sign up below and get these posts in your inbox.
