7 Scenarios When a Seller Might Request a Pocket Listing

When you put your home or investment property up for sale, you usually want as many eyes on that listing as possible. It makes sense that the more people who view it, the faster it'll sell. And if enough potential buyers become interested, it could even start a bidding war.

But there are situations when it may be prudent to keep your listing a bit more private. Let's explore why a seller might prefer to sell their home off-market through private channels with a pocket listing rather than on the multiple listing service (MLS).

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If you're a well-known person like a celebrity or politician, you may want to try to keep all your business dealings as private as possible. News that your home is going up for sale, along with the address, can attract unwanted attention to the neighborhood.

It can also attract a much higher-than-usual number of lookie-loos -- people who want to tour the property because they are just curious and wind up wasting time and resources. A pocket listing can help you avoid all that.

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A bidding war, that is. We're in quite a seller's market, so you have the potential to start a bidding war just by listing your home on the MLS. But if you really want to prime potential buyers, a pocket pre-listing to start spreading the word while you prepare your home for sale could drum up even more interest. Having buyers already lining up before you ever hit the MLS could help drive the price even higher.

As we just discussed, many sellers dream of watching multiple hopeful buyers battle over their homes, driving the price up and up. But if you just want to sell ASAP and get on with your life, a bidding war can drag things out and create more hassle than it's worth.

In a strong seller's market like we have now, it can pay to ask for more than you think you can get with a pocket listing. You can always drop the price or take a lower offer if you find no takers and be done with it.

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And speaking of dropping the price, potential buyers can easily see that you started out asking for more if you do it on the MLS. And if you wind up having to drop the price multiple times, they will be able to see each and every drop.

It's not a good look, and it doesn't put you in the best position at the bargaining table. With a pocket listing, there's no public record of the asking price or any changes you may make to it.

Sometimes, homeowners sell to family or friends. It can be a great arrangement for all involved.

The potential buyers may have spent considerable time at the home over the years and be quite familiar with all its little quirks. And if the sellers have an emotional attachment to the home, as many do, it can be comforting knowing it's still "in the family" and even getting to visit it. If this is the plan, listing the home on the MLS is simply unnecessary.

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Luxury properties that hit the MLS can have the same problem as those owned by celebrities: window shoppers. Touring a multimillion-dollar property sounds like it could be a fun way to spend an afternoon. But those walkthroughs represent time that could be spent nurturing real leads.

Prequalifying leads before walkthroughs is an option, but a pocket listing can be a simpler, more efficient solution.

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Sometimes, your business just needs to stay your business. Maybe you're ending a tumultuous relationship, putting some space between yourself and an overbearing family member, or have another personal reason for needing to get out of Dodge.

If you don't want to publicly announce your plans for leaving town, a pocket listing can make it much less likely that news of your sale will reach the wrong parties.

Most sellers want a big, beautiful For Sale sign and their property splashed across the MLS and every form of social media possible. But there are some situations in which discretion is best.

If you decide a pocket listing is the right choice for your property, you'll want to list with an agent who has experience selling in this manner. That way, they'll have plenty of other channels and connections to work with and will know how to get your property in front of the best leads to get you the best deal possible.

It's a good idea to get advice from your agent before proceeding, but ultimately, only you can decide whether the privacy benefits of a pocket listing outweigh the risk of potentially underselling due to reduced exposure in your situation.

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