Mind the Gap: Why Pricing Sincerely Is the Key to Selling
Your Home Faster
After more than 40 years in real estate, I’ve watched
thousands of listings come and go. One truth remains constant: most homes
are not priced correctly when they first hit the market.
Even experienced listing agents sometimes struggle with
pricing strategy. But there is one issue that quietly
kills more deals than anything else.
I call it the Sincerity Gap.
Understanding this concept can dramatically improve your
chances of selling your home quickly and at the best possible price.
The Sincerity Gap is the distance between where
buyers are willing to buy and where homes are listed for sale.
This gap exists when:
If listing agents were more sincere about true market
value, and sellers were more realistic about their home’s condition and
competition, the gap would shrink — and more homes would sell.
Real estate transactions aren’t just about numbers — they’re
about buyer psychology.
When buyers see a list price, they immediately ask
themselves:
“Is there a realistic path to a deal here?”
If the answer is no, most buyers won’t make a low
offer. Instead, they simply move on to another property.
Why?
Because buyers don’t want to:
When pricing creates a large Sincerity Gap, buyers
disappear before negotiations even begin.
Most buyers believe negotiations should land somewhere in
the middle between the list price and their opening offer.
Let’s look at a typical example.
List Price: $750,000
Buyer’s Target Price: $680,000
To “meet in the middle” at $680,000, the buyer would need to
start around $610,000.
But here’s the problem:
No buyer is comfortable offering $610,000 on a $750,000
listing.
It feels insulting and unrealistic. Buyers assume the seller
will never bridge a $140,000 gap, so they never submit an offer at all.
The result?
The deal dies before it even begins.
When a home sits on the market, many sellers make small
price adjustments to “test the market.”
I call this “crabbing sideways.”
Just like a crab walking across the sand, the home is
technically moving — but it’s not actually getting closer to a sale.
Example:
If your home is listed at $750,000, a $10,000
price reduction won’t meaningfully change buyer behavior.
It doesn’t move your home into a new price bracket or reach
a new pool of buyers.
In higher price ranges, price drops must be meaningful
to attract attention.
My general rule:
If a home is listed around $750,000,
price reductions should be at least $25,000 or more to create a
noticeable shift in buyer interest.
More importantly, sellers need to identify their “walk
number” — the absolute minimum price they would accept.
Getting closer to that number sooner can often trigger:
Ironically, pricing more sincerely from the start can
sometimes result in higher final sale prices.
When offers finally come in, negotiation strategy matters.
I follow what I call The One-Way Street Rule.
Instead of sending written counteroffers
back and forth, I often communicate directly with the buyer’s agent about the
exact number that will work for the seller.
For example:
If a buyer offers $650,000 and the seller wants $680,000,
I don’t immediately send a counter.
Instead, I ask the buyer’s agent to bring back a clean
contract at the acceptable number.
This approach:
Selling a home requires patience, but it also requires honest
pricing and strategic negotiation.
If your home is sitting on the market:
When pricing reflects true market reality, buyers regain confidence, offers begin to appear, and deals get done.