Psychology Of MLS Listings

As I wrote about before, I wanted to get this property listed in the MLS using the key words identified in Freakonomics that correlate to a higher sales price. Here is the text of my MLS listing:

YOU MUST SEE THIS NEWLY REMODELED HOME... THIS 3 BEDROOM 2 BATH HOME BOASTS NEW PAINT AND CARPET THROUGHOUT.. NEW OAK KITCHEN CABINETS.. NEW COUNTERTOPS.. NEW RANGE/OVEN.. NEW DISHWASHER.. NEW GARBAGE DISPOSAL.. NEW SINKS.. NEW BATHROOM VANITIES.. GREAT FOR ENTERTAINING FRIENDS AND FAMILY.. THIS HOME IS READY TO MOVE INTO AND THE SELLER CAN CLOSE AS FAST AS YOU CAN...

One of the keywords was maple. That didn't apply to my property, but oak did, so I had my agent substitute that. Also, move-in-ready was a keyword and that was included in a slightly modified form. New, another keyword, was inserted all over the place :-)

So how did the psychology experiment go? Well, it's hard to tell because Phoenix is such a seller's market right now. I received a total of four offers in four days: two were at full price, one was more than list price, and one was under list price with the caveat they would go over list price by a certain amount. All in all, good bids! But it's hard to tell if the wording caused them or market conditions did. I do know I'll keep using these words in future listings, just in case!