A good example of the places that could be undervalued is Terramar in Carlsbad. It’s a neighborhood of 240 homes near the beach, and the living is so good that there is rarely any turnover. Without a flow of recent sales, who knows what the market will bear – especially when every house has been uniquely customized.

Two months ago we set out on our journey of price discovery.

The sellers have a genuine reason to move, but wanted to really test the market on price. When you have active oceanfront listings of $12,750,000 and $25,000,000 in the neighborhood, the curiosity is real!

Everyone gets attached to their zestimate. In this case, my seller had her eye on the zestimate range, and suggested that we start at the high end, which we did:

But you have to read the room, and adjust accordingly.

All we had to do was follow my List Price Accuracy Gauge:

• If you are getting showings and offers, then the list price is within 5% of being right.
• If you are getting showings but no offers, then the list price is 5% to 10% off.
• If you’re not getting any showings, then the price is more than 10% wrong.

Lowering the price early and often is prudent too. The initial urgency wears off quickly, and once a home has been on the market for months, it invites lowball offers because buyers know it’s just a sitting duck.

We lowered early and often, and in meaningful amounts:

Boom, now we’re in escrow!