Re-Listing Secrets Exposed

Tonight's ABC's Nightline highlighted Realtors' "dirty little secret" for refreshing stale listings featuring NJ's legendary whistleblower--:James Bednar
......[Relisting guru Niece]“So a buyer’s going to be way more positive as they look through a home that says 25 days versus 125 days.”

Niece believes that re-listing is an important marketing tool in tough periods like this, because first impressions are crucial.
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But Bednar says re-listing is simply unethical. “As a buyer, it does make me angry,” he said. “I need to know how long a home’s been on the market or what the original price is.”

“Hiding that market information from consumers is wrong, and it’s got to stop,” he added.
Bednar started blogging in 2005 after growing aggravated with realtors during his own house-hunting search.

“The issue here is that when a re-listed home is sold, it skews the market transaction data,” he said. “When an agent typically says they can sell a home in 30 or 60 days, is that really true? If they’ve re-listed a home, that might not necessarily be true.” In an effort to gain access to market data, he actually got a real estate license and a membership with his local listing service. With a few key strokes he can find the true history of any listing in his northern New Jersey neighborhood.

“The most common outcome is probably that a buyer overpayss...."


We never let our buyers make an offer without first checking the property's MLS history.