What Happens When the Seller Still Thinks It’s 2022?

FROM THE GROUND UP Real Estate Insights. Success Mindset. One Step at a Time. Issue No. 12 — June 23, 2025

🏗 MARKET INSIGHTS

What Happens When the Seller Still Thinks It’s 2022?

We’re in the middle of a pricing standoff.

Buyers are underwriting with caution. Sellers are remembering peak values. And the deals that do close? They’re happening when clarity beats nostalgia.

Here’s what we’re seeing across the market:

• 💰 The Bid-Ask Gap Remains Real Many landowners still expect yesterday’s pricing—but buyers are pricing in today’s risk.
• 📉 Low Transaction Volume Is Creating Friction. With fewer comps and less movement, many sellers don’t realize the market has already repriced.
• 📊 Developers Are Selective, Not Desperat.e Construction costs and capital constraints mean they’re only moving on prime opportunities.
• 🧭 Clarity = Confidence. Landowners who understand zoning, density potential, and infrastructure access are the ones getting offers.
• 🔁 Creative Structures Are Back Seller carry, entitlements-in-escrow, and phased options are on the rise as ways to bridge the gap.

If you’re a landowner thinking about selling, here’s the truth: the market doesn’t care what it used to be. It only cares what works now.

🔥 THE ALPHA EFFECT

“Anchoring is not strategy.”

In negotiation, anchoring means clinging to a number, regardless of whether it’s real, relevant, or useful.

Sound familiar?

Too many sellers are anchored to the past. But real power comes from adjusting to what is—not what was.

This week’s mindset challenge: Are you pricing your land based on possibility… or history?

Because clarity isn’t just a valuation tool—it’s a leadership mindset. It means you’re ready to face the market with open eyes and smart positioning.

🪜 ONE STEP AT A TIME

This week, take one action:

➡️ Pull your most recent comp set and compare it to 2022. ➡️ Talk with a broker who actually has deals closing in today’s environment. ➡️ Ask: What would it take to create 15–20% more value before I sell?

That question alone may lead you straight to the buyer you didn’t know was waiting.

🚧 COMING SOON: The Dirt Dawg Clarity Tool If you're unsure what your land is worth—or how to maximize its potential—this is for you.

👊 DM me to get on the waitlist and be first in line when we launch.

Here’s to building your success, one step at a time— from the ground up. Kris "Dirt Dawg" McGee