The Seller and Buyer Dualism 25 September 2022

One of my mentors has over 50 years in the industry. Way back, when I first came under his tutelage, I used to think that the training we received was pretty basic, and I objected to having to learn the patois by rote. But later on I surprised myself when I realized how often I ended up quoting this doyen, word for word.
Of the things he was often heard to say was “ There is an inherent contradiction in real estate. The Seller always wants as much as he can get and the buyer wants to pay as little as possible.”. This is true of course, not only of real estate, but of most transactions.

This statement in relation to real estate, is perhaps an oversimplification. If we apply Ockham’s razor too zealously we in fact lose the true, intrinsic nature of the event.
We will lose why this occurs.

Whilst the initial statement is true, so to, is in fact, that the Seller has in his mind how much his home means to him and that he expects the buyers to see the same value, as this sense of "home".

The buyer similarly is not miserly and simply looking for a bargain but certainly feels that he is stretching as much as he can, to get what he needs.

The Seller will see the transaction from a different perspective to the buyer. Both parties will look at the property portals and see the adverts.

The Seller will see the prices at the top end of the market and think: "My property compares favourably or even better than some if these.".

The Buyer will look at the adverts and think: "These properties are lovely, I could see myself living here, but they are asking a lot, are they really worth as much as that?"".

What we do need to be wary of is justifying the price. The price is going to be determined by the market value, which will fluctuate with the market.

But surely if one house has 5 bedrooms and another only 4 this will change the price?
Not necessarily.
But if one house is on a busy road an another on a cul-de-sac.
Not necessarily.


The collective appraisal by the buyers within a market, at a time will determine the asking price.

This is where the value of an estate agent is crucial.

The ability to bridge these two expectations and allow both parties to understand each other, to realise where the market is. That is where the deal begins.

I am not talking about lengthy discussions around a table, about feelings and other touchy feelie nonsense, but simply being able to convey the market response to the Seller in a way he is able to appreciate and accept that response. Also to be able to raise the buyers awareness that although there are other similar homes on the market this is the one that appeals to him and no doubt for a reason. That the purchase of the property is a long term commitment and the value of the home and the suburb is in more than simply a price now.



If you have questions, drop me a line.