It’s. The. Price. one more time: It’s. The. Price.

Kindness Is the Truth

There’s a moment in every listing where I take a deep breath, look at the data, look at the showings (or the lack of them), and I know exactly what the issue is.

And it’s never fun to say out loud.

It’s the price.

I wish it were something else.
I wish I could say it’s the photos, or the weather, or the marketing, or Mercury in retrograde.
But nine times out of ten, when a home isn’t selling or leasing, the truth sits quietly in the corner… waiting for someone to acknowledge it.

And that someone is usually me.

Here’s the part most people don’t know:
I want to be kind. I want to protect my clients’ feelings.
I see how much their home means to them: the memories, the upgrades, the stories, the pride.
I don’t ever want a seller to feel judged or dismissed or like their home isn’t good enough.

So sometimes I soften the message.
Sometimes I hint instead of saying it plainly.
Sometimes I hope the market will give us a miracle and prove me wrong.

And you know what happens?

It backfires.

The longer a home sits, the more anxious the seller feels:

They look at me like I’m not doing enough…
Like the marketing is off…
Like the buyers don’t understand the value…
Like something is broken in the process and I’m the reason.

Meanwhile, the truth is still sitting there — the kindest truth of all, even though it doesn’t feel kind:

If the price is too high, nothing else works.

I’ve had clients leave me in frustration and hire another agent… and guess what the new agent does?
They list the home at the price I recommended.
And the home sells.

Not because the agent is better.
Not because the marketing magically improved.
But because the price finally aligned with reality.

Here’s what I’ve learned:
Telling the truth is kindness.
Gentle honesty early on saves time, stress, and disappointment later.
It keeps expectations grounded.
It keeps relationships solid.
And it gives the home the best chance to shine.

I care too much about my clients to tell them what they want to hear.
I tell them what will help them.
And sometimes that means saying:

“I know this number feels right… but the market is telling us something different.”

It’s not judgment.
It’s not criticism.
It’s clarity.

Because at the end of the day, the goal isn’t to protect an ego — it’s to get the home sold.

And the kindest thing I can ever offer is the truth.