During a recent coaching call, one of our members shared a victory. He just activated the listing for $635,000. I was proud of his performance. But I asked him a simple question. Is anyone looking for $635,000?
No one does. That’s the point.
Why does round number win?
I asked Sammy, one of the agents who answered the phone, a quick question. “If you were a buyer in the $600,000 range, what search range would you enter?” He thought about it for a moment and said he would probably look for $575,000 to $625,000. If he were to shop in the mid-$66s, his range would go up to $625,000 to $675,000.
The answer says it all.
A listing priced at $635,000 will catch a search between $575,000 and $650,000. Searches between $650,000 and $700,000 are completely missing. At a clean price of $625,000 or $650,000, something is different. Land directly in two search areas instead of one. More searches, more attention, more showings. And more showings is how you get offers.
The agent who listed it for $635,000 had good instincts. We set our prices lower than our competitors and left the negotiation to the buyers. That’s a reasonable idea. However, we assume that buyers are browsing listings and comparing prices the same way they would at a car dealership. it’s not.
They’re entering a range into Zillow, Realtor.com, or an agent’s portal and scrolling through what’s returned. If you get stuck in the gap between two common search areas, it will fall off the screen.
Here’s a mental model you should incorporate into every listing conversation. A portal is a doorway. Before buyers call to schedule a showing or pull up on the street to view curb appeal, they enter a number range in the search bar. If your listing price is not within that range, nothing else matters.
The reason why all of the photographs, staging, and convincing explanations are invisible is because the house never showed up to be searched.
Buyers search by round number. Price your products where searches actually occur, not where sellers feel comfortable doing the math.
price reduction negotiation
This same principle applies when it comes to reductions. If the listing price remains at $635,000, what is the next correct number? Not $619,000. Not $624,900. These numbers exist because sellers and agents think it’s prudent to reach just below the threshold. But buyers aren’t looking for $624,900. They are searching using a round range filter.
The appropriate reduction from $635,000 is $600,000. This is a pretty number that opens up new searches, signals serious movement into the market, and gives your listing new momentum. Buyers notice when the price actually drops to a new tier. They don’t realize, and sometimes resent, the old $99 trick that real estate borrows from retailers.
When discussing price reductions with sellers, you need to be specific. Don’t say “the market has told you.” Say this:
For $600,000, your home will appear in searches starting at $575,000, $580,000, and $600,000. These ranges are the ranges that buyers with your buyer profile are currently actively searching for. At $635,000, all of that is missing.
It’s not a vague appeal to market conditions. We explain in detail how price fluctuations actually affect the market. Most sellers will respond to specificity. They hired you because you know something they don’t, and one thing you know is how buyers search.
You are not asking them to donate money. You’re asking them to price the home based on what it actually looks like to today’s buyers. That’s a conversation worth having, unapologetically and clearly.
Listing presentation example
You don’t have to wait for a price drop to have this conversation. The most effective place to implement the approximation principle is during the property presentation, before the home is occupied.
Sammy will explain to the seller what he explained on the phone. We show you the most common search ranges in your local market for your expected price range. Paint a picture of where different price points land. Next, we’ll show you the number we’re recommending and explain how it positions homes that appear in multiple ranges.
Most sellers never even think about how search works. They’ve viewed Zillow as a buyer, but not as a seller. If you explain the logic, you will achieve your goal. Also, if a pricing recommendation has a clear strategic rationale tied to buyer behavior, it’s much easier to stick with it when a seller tries to nudge prices up.
Adjust to market
The specific number of rounds that is important varies by local price range and state. In some markets, the sweet spot is $350,000 and $400,000. In other cases, it is $1,000,000 and $1,250,000. The principles are the same everywhere. Identify the round number that buyers actually search for and set a price to hit it.
Your job as an agent is to get those numbers right. Please discuss this with the buyer. Pay attention to the search scope of the portal. Consider your own data and ask yourself where buyers in each price range are actually setting their filters.
If you can confidently answer this question, you’ll have a pricing conversation that the seller can’t easily reverse.
