In This Market, Clarity Wins: Adjust the Price, Not the Wording

If you’ve been watching listings in our market lately, you’ve probably noticed a phrase that pops up when a home isn’t getting the traction the seller hoped for:

“Entertaining offers.”

It sounds flexible. It sounds cooperative. It sounds like: “We’re open—bring it.”

But in today’s market, that wording usually does the opposite of what the seller intends.

Instead of creating urgency, it often signals uncertainty—sometimes even weakness—and it rarely produces the clean, confident momentum sellers actually need.

Here’s why.

1) Buyers Don’t Read “Entertaining Offers” as “Opportunity”

Most buyers interpret that phrase as:

• “This home isn’t moving.”

• “The price is too high.”

• “The seller might be difficult—or unrealistic.”

• “We’re going to have to negotiate just to get to a reasonable number.”

That mindset doesn’t create urgency. It creates hesitation.

And hesitation is deadly in a market where buyers have options and are already cautious (especially in a mountain community where many purchases are discretionary).

2) It Makes Your Pricing Look Uncertain—Not Strategic

Pricing is one of the strongest signals a listing sends.

When a listing says “entertaining offers,” buyers don’t see a strategy. They see a seller who isn’t sure where the home should be priced—or worse, a seller who wants to “try a number” and hope someone overpays.

In practice, that language often reads like:

“We don’t really believe the price either, but we’re starting here anyway.”

That’s not a confident position to negotiate from.

3) It Turns a Transaction Into a Negotiation Before Anyone Even Tours

A buyer’s first step should be: “Do I want to see this home?”
Not: “How much can I talk them down?”

But “entertaining offers” shifts the focus immediately from the home’s value to the seller’s flexibility.

That means:

• more lowball offers,

• more tire-kickers,

• more back-and-forth,

• and fewer serious, qualified buyers who simply want a clear path to purchase.

4) In This Market, Ambiguity Gets Ignored

Right now, buyers are sensitive to anything that feels unclear:

• unclear price positioning,

• unclear motivation,

• unclear condition,

• unclear concessions.

When buyers have choices, they gravitate toward listings that feel decisive and properly positioned.

“Entertaining offers” isn’t decisive. It’s vague.

And vague listings don’t win attention—they get mentally filed under “maybe later.”

5) It Doesn’t Solve the Real Problem: The Home Isn’t Converting

If showings are light, offers are absent, or traffic has cooled, it’s almost never because you didn’t sound “open-minded” enough in the remarks.

It’s because one of three things is off:

1. Price

2. Presentation (photos, staging, curb appeal, showing readiness)

3. Perceived risk (repairs, disclosures, location objections, financing friction)

“Entertaining offers” tries to fix conversion with a sentence.

But the market doesn’t respond to sentences. It responds to signals.

And the strongest signal you can send is price positioning.

What Works Better: A Smart Price Adjustment

Price reductions get attention for one simple reason:

They change the math.

A price adjustment doesn’t just say “we’re flexible.”
It says: “We understand the market, and we’re positioned to sell.”

And that does three important things:

1) It Re-enters the Listing Into New Buyer Searches

Many buyers set filters tightly. If you’re priced just above a common threshold—say $700K, $800K, $1M—you can be invisible to a large portion of the market.

A strategic adjustment can put you back into the pools of buyers who actually have the budget for your home.

2) It Creates Urgency Instead of Debate

A well-positioned price can trigger the exact reaction you want:

• “We should go see that.”

• “That’s now in range.”

• “This might be a good value.”

That mindset leads to showings and clean offers—not endless negotiations.

3) It Protects Your Final Sales Price Better Than “Testing the Market”

This part surprises people:

Often, sellers who resist adjusting price lose more in the end.

Why?

Because the longer a home sits:

• the more buyers assume something is wrong,

• the more aggressive offers get,

• and the harder it becomes to get a strong contract without concessions.

A timely adjustment can actually reduce days on market and protect your leverage.

The Bottom Line

In our market, “entertaining offers” is rarely interpreted as an invitation.

It’s interpreted as a sign the listing is overpriced or stalled.

If your goal is to sell—not just be listed—your best move is almost always one of these:

• Improve the presentation (photos, staging, showing readiness), and/or

• Adjust the price to match the current market reality

Because the market rewards clarity.

And price clarity is what gets you showings, offers, and a clean path to closing.

If You’re Not Sure Whether a Price Adjustment Is Needed…

A quick way to diagnose it is this:

• If you’re getting showings but no offers → price or terms are slightly off.

• If you’re getting no showings → price is off (or the presentation is).

• If you’re getting lowball offers only → buyers are telling you where they think value actually is.