Buyer Feedback--Not as Valuable as You Think.

In the world of residential real estate, buyer feedback often feels like a valuable commodity. After every showing, sellers eagerly await to hear what potential buyers thought—hoping for validation, constructive criticism, or perhaps a hint of an offer to come. While this feedback can feel important, the truth is that it’s often far from accurate or useful. In fact, overreliance on buyer feedback often leads to confusion and frustration. Remember, if a buyer is interested, you won’t need to beg for feedback; you’ll receive an offer.

Buyer feedback is notoriously subjective and at times inaccurate. Or at least not the reason for their decision. Let me explain. Our example buyer wants to see every house with at least 3 bedrooms in the school district their children attend school. My hypothetical listing at 123 Main Street comes on the market. It has 4 bedrooms and is in the school district they want. Their agent sees that it’s only 1500 sq ft; she knows there’s a good chance it’s not for them, but you really can’t tell until you’re in the house. She sets up the showing. They see the house on Saturday. On Monday, after no news, the seller asks me to find out what the buyers thought of the house. After a few a phone call, email and text message the agent replies, “it’s too small for them.” I relay that to the seller who is immediately frustrated. “The listing says its 1500 sq ft. Why did they even schedule a showing if they knew it would be too small.”

This type of “stating the obvious” is feedback we get so often. It only has 2 bedrooms, it’s too close to the road, the only full bath is on the 1 st floor. All information available to them in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). This, understandably, leaves the seller frustrated and confused. Why would they see the house if they already knew that they weren’t going to like it.

The truth is, they didn’t know. It’s just that the feedback they provided (while accurate about the house) is Not the reason they chose not to make an offer. They aren’t lying. They honestly, don’t even realize it. Buyers, choose a house based on emotion and justify it with logic. They also choose Not to pursue a house based on emotion and justify it with logic. So if they love (emotion) a house, they may say this is exactly what we need, 3 bedrooms and in our school district (logic). But the reality is, they probably turned down other houses with those same features. The one they chose “felt right:” they could picture themselves living there; they envision their future. It is a feeling.

When buyers tour a house that doesn’t feel like home to them, they tell you something negative about it. Because you want them to tell you something. They’re not going to process all their feelings about what felt off in that house for them just so they can tell you why their hearts weren’t in it. As a seller, they don’t owe you that. And it wouldn’t help you sell it to someone else. Because a different buyer will feel different. Buyer feedback is not very useful.

“It’s just not the one for us” is probably the most honest and accurate answer you can get from a residential buyer. The challenge is sellers want buyers to be more specific so they can convince them to like it anyway by describing the good parts or correct them if they feel the feedback is incorrect. Sellers who chase verbal feedback risk losing sight of a sound, well-thought-out strategy. Trying to convince an uninterested buyer to choose your house is a waste of energy.

So what can you do? Prepare your house so that it appeals to the largest group of buyers and then market your property so that the buyer who loves it--finds it. Real estate is not about pleasing every viewer; it’s about attracting the right buyer. They’ll walk in and feel a connection. Sellers should lean on the expertise and experience of their real estate professional—someone who understands market trends, pricing strategies, and how to position a property effectively.