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Luxury Home Won't Sell? Raise the Price

More rich homeowners trying the tactic

By John Johnson,  Newser Staff

Posted Oct 12, 2012 2:34 PM CDT

(Newser) – When mere mortals put their home on the market and it doesn't sell, they lower the price. When the uber-rich struggle to unload, they do the opposite and jack the price. The Wall Street Journal reports on the seemingly counter-intuitive trend in the luxury-home market: More and more homes listed above $1 million are seeing their asking price go up the longer they sit.

Does it work? The answer seems to be often enough, especially as overseas hunters of American trophy homes—like this and this—keep entering the market. It also helps that "pricing homes at the extreme high end of the market is a somewhat subjective, and often irrational, process," writes Candace Jackson. That explains why the owner of Jennifer Lopez's former home in Miami Beach put it on the market for $29 million in 2010 and recently relisted it for $40 million.

This house is for sale. But if no one buys it, the price might just go up.
This house is for sale. But if no one buys it, the price might just go up.   (Shutterstock)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 11 comments
Cat-Lover
Oct 14, 2012 8:18 PM CDT
More tax breaks for the rich!
Bundy714
Oct 12, 2012 4:20 PM CDT
It works.  Do you think they buy Prada bags for $2000 because they are so well made?  They buy them to show just how much money they have to burn.  So, the more they pay for a house, the more prestigious it is to them in their twisted little world. This was taught to me in my very first job in retail.  We had some old merchandise that just sat on the shelves collecting dust, and my manager told me he was going to teach me something.  For two weeks we drastically lowered the price and a few items did sell to bargain hunters.......then we marked the price way up, where it was the most expensive item in it's class and it flew off the shelves. It's human nature to think that more expensive = better, and by God, I deserve the best/most expensive. There are LOTS of products out there that are popular only because they are ridiculously expensive.
Scaramouche
Oct 12, 2012 2:46 PM CDT
If this is sane, then I really am a crazy motherfucker.
 

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