Private Exclusives

Since joining Compass, I've had ample opportunity to test out the company's Private Exclusives program, which allows sellers to market their homes to a closed network of Compass agents, as well as to individual buyers their agent may know of. Although some properties do sell during this pre-market phase, most of them end up on the open market eventually. So why bother, right?

For most sellers, the prime benefit is that the Private Exclusive period gives them a chance to glean useful market feedback, from both buyers and their agents, about every aspect of their home, including how it looks in photos and the asking price, before throwing the doors open to the wider public. This way, sellers can be absolutely sure their homes are ready for prime time. Speaking of timing, summer is known to be the worst time to launch a listing because so many New Yorkers travel, so wise sellers avoid the season altogether. But summer can be the perfect time to launch a Private Exclusive, since it lets the seller's agent tighten up the listing media and gather market intel while everyone is away and the fall market has yet to begin.

Other sellers may be drawn to Private Exclusives because they are just that: private. The fact that their home is for sale won't be trumpeted to potentially billions of strangers on sites like Zillow and StreetEasy. For sellers with privacy concerns, who don't want hordes of strangers marching through their home or images of their living space so widely exposed, a Private Exclusive may be the way to go. If they don't get their price, however, they will either need to sell for less or take the listing public, which really is the tried-and-true method of creating the most awareness and the highest price.

Because time spent as a Private Exclusive isn't recorded anywhere, there is no damaging "days on market" clock lowering the value of your property with every tick. In fact, there's no trace that a Private Exclusive ever happened once the listing is either taken public or withdrawn. So whether the goal is gathering intel, keeping your sale quiet or simply testing the market, Private Exclusives are a powerful tool.

The advantages for buyers are even clearer. You get early access to listings, with the opportunity to see and potentially buy a home before anyone outside the Compass orbit even knows about it. The caveat is that some sellers, many of whom ultimately expect to sell on the open market, will be less interested in negotiating during the Private Exclusive period. Remember, they may be using it to test their pricing. So it's a bit of a mixed bag: if you feel a unit is priced above the market, you may need to wait until it reaches the open market, and perhaps lingers there a bit, before making an offer. Still, seeing it early gives you more time to analyze the opportunity before you bid.

With a good agent as your guide, and clear goals in mind, the Private Exclusive program can give both sellers and buyers an edge.