There’s a conversation going on in the real estate industry right now about “coming soon” properties, and like most conversations in the industry, it’s creating more heat than light.
Some agents use strategies to limit exposure. Some people use this to generate buyer leads themselves. Some brokerages have turned it into a marketing arrangement disguised as benefiting the seller. Criticism of these practices is valid, and sellers are entitled to understand the differences.
But I would like to explain why I use the “coming soon” framework. Because my reason has nothing to do with that. These are all about protecting sellers from the patterns of pressure that are common in this industry and, frankly, shouldn’t be.
48 hour problem
SmartMLS in Connecticut has a rule that once a listing becomes active, it must be viewed within 48 hours. Intentions are healthy. This prevents agents from holding off-market listings indefinitely.
But what I actually observed was something different. Some buyer agents have started taking advantage of that rule. They will seek to draw customers into newly listed homes immediately, sometimes within hours of the listing, before the broader market has had a chance to react.
The goal wasn’t just to satisfy buyers’ interest in viewing the home. The goal was to get in first, control the timeline, and write offers before the competition started.
Being first is a legitimate strategy. What bothered me was what would happen next.
Offers came in early, often with high prices and tight deadlines. Sellers are being asked to make one of the most important financial decisions of their lives under artificial time pressure, with the majority of the market still unaware and the property less than a day old.
It is not a seller-first process. It’s about the buyer’s agent strategizing and doing it well.
The night I decided something had to change
Abstract principles have their limits, so I would like to talk about concrete transactions.
I had a seller who didn’t follow my recommended order. We agreed to start showings on Friday ahead of the scheduled Saturday open house. Within hours, multiple agents introduced buyers, and by 8 p.m., the offer was in.
On the surface, it was a strong offer. But the real question was whether that was the best offer the seller could achieve.
This is the most important part. The deadline was 11pm. This was an obvious attempt by the buyer’s agent to apply pressure and secure the property before the competition for the next day’s open house became a reality.
Let me dwell on this point for a moment, because it deserves more attention than our industry usually gives it. A homeowner is being told at 8pm on a Friday night that he has until 11pm to decide whether to accept an offer on a home he could live in for 20 years.
Instead of processing the moment clearly, we were panicking. I called every agent who had shown properties that day, trying to generate a competing response before 11 p.m. My seller was supposed to be relaxing in the evening, but instead he was making one of the biggest financial decisions of his life by the light of his cell phone.
As an industry, we need to honestly ask ourselves: Why create a situation where this is acceptable, a reactive, pressured and exhausting process? It doesn’t have to be like that.
What Structured “Coming Soon” Actually Does
Connecticut’s SmartMLS allows a pre-marketing period of “up to 14 days” with “Coming Soon” status, with clear rules of no showings, no open houses, and no offers accepted during that period. I’m using this framework and using it exactly as it was designed to be used.
This is my standard sequence. I choose a working day that is usually set around a Saturday open house. Six days before that date, I put the property in “coming soon” status. During these six days, marketing begins across all channels. A sign will go up. Neighbors will be notified. Digital and print promotions will begin. Buyer agents know that something is going to happen and can help prepare their clients.
When a property is activated, it is also activated for already engaged viewers. Open houses create real energy. Private screenings are held in organized windows. And when offers arrive, sellers evaluate them from a position of information and calm rather than reaction and panic.
A 14-day grace period is not a delay. I’m ready. And due to the rules of the system, no one can get around that by joining early and forcing a timeline.
This study is worth knowing
I like to be transparent about counter-arguments because sellers have a right to know the full story.
A study of pre-market properties by Zillow found that if exposure is truly limited, meaning a home is sold within one broker’s network or is kept completely private, sellers can see their final sales price drop by 1.5% to 3.7%. Separate data from Bright MLS found that pre-market listings took a median of 37 days to close, compared to 20 days for a full MLS listing.
These findings are important, which is why I do not support strategies that limit listings to a single brokerage firm’s buyer pool or hide them from the broader market. Structured “coming soon” with SmartMLS is the antithesis of that approach. The list will be publicly available. A buyer agent can prepare it for you. The house is not hidden. It is scheduled.
The difference is between restricting markets and ordering access to markets. One is to reduce competition. The other one allows you to build before someone shorts you out with a midnight deadline.
The difference is not the tools. it’s an execution
“Coming Soon” is not inherently good or bad. When used as a private listing strategy, it can limit exposure and reduce competition. If used improperly, it can benefit the agent more than the seller.
But with clear rules, disciplined execution, and a focus on maximizing buyer participation, it becomes a powerful part of a larger strategy.
That’s the difference. The goal is not just to put the house on the market. The goal is for all eligible buyers to have the opportunity to compete to win it. Because at the end of the day, the most powerful results don’t come from the first offer.
They come from the best.
Linda Edelwich is an agent for William Laveis in Glastonbury, CT. Connect with us on LinkedIn and Instagram.
