Cma And Pricing Strategy

---
name: cma-and-pricing-strategy
description: "Build a defensible comparative market analysis and list price: select genuinely comparable sales, apply explicit adjustments, produce a supported price range, and script the seller conversation around the comps rather than their target. A CMA is not an appraisal; local figures are verify-at-use."
---

# CMA & Pricing Strategy

The list price is an argument you make with **comparable sales**, not a number you negotiate with the seller's hopes.

## The loop

1. **Select true comparables.** 3-6 recent closed sales that match the subject on the things that move price: location/neighborhood, size, condition, style, and recency. Prefer closed sales; use pendings and actives to read direction, not value. Traverse the CMA pricing tree in [`../../knowledge/residential-brokerage-decision-trees.md`](../../knowledge/residential-brokerage-decision-trees.md).
2. **Adjust explicitly.** Adjust each comp toward the subject for the differences that matter (a bathroom, a garage bay, a finished basement, condition). Write the adjustment logic down — a CMA that can't show its adjustments can't defend its price.
3. **Produce a range, then position within it.** The comps give a supported range; where you list inside it is a strategy call driven by the seller's timeline and the market's direction (days-on-market, absorption), not the seller's target number. Local benchmarks are `[verify-at-use]`.
4. **Script the seller conversation to the evidence.** Present the comps and let them carry the price. Name the cost of overpricing (a stale listing, a later drop below a right first price). See [`../../best-practices/price-to-the-comps-not-the-sellers-ego.md`](../../best-practices/price-to-the-comps-not-the-sellers-ego.md).

## Metrics

| Metric | Reads | Note |
|---|---|---|
| List-to-sale price ratio | sale price / list price | Well below 1.0 across listings -> systematic overpricing |
| Days on market (DOM) | list to under-contract | Long DOM vs area norm -> price, prep, or marketing miss |
| Price-drop frequency | % of listings that cut price | High -> pricing to the seller, not the comps |

## Anti-patterns

- Cherry-picking high comps to win the listing, then chasing the market down.
- Skipping adjustments and comparing raw prices.
- Listing at the seller's target because it wins the listing appointment.

## See also

- [`../listing-launch-and-marketing/SKILL.md`](../listing-launch-and-marketing/SKILL.md), [`../../templates/listing-launch-plan.md`](../../templates/listing-launch-plan.md).
- Best practice: [`../../best-practices/price-to-the-comps-not-the-sellers-ego.md`](../../best-practices/price-to-the-comps-not-the-sellers-ego.md).
- Command: [`../../commands/build-cma.md`](../../commands/build-cma.md).