Can a Seller Raise the Price of a House After Listing? Yes (And No)

You settled on what you thought was an appropriate asking price and put your home on the market. You were comfortable with that price when you listed it, but now you’re having second thoughts. You want to get the most money possible out of the sale, and now you’re considering raising the price. But can a seller raise the price of a house after it’s listed?

The answer depends on the specifics. You can raise the price of your home in certain circumstances, but not in others. (And in some situations, you might find yourself in ethically murky territory if you do.)

With expert feedback from top-selling Newark, New Jersey-based agent Ronald Collins, here’s our overview of when a seller can raise the price of a house and the pros and cons of employing the strategy for your specific home sale.

Why would a seller raise the price?

Even if you did plenty of research and measured consideration before you worked with your agent to set a list price, there are situations in which you might still see fit to raise it after it’s on the market. For instance, if it’s a hot seller’s market when prices are naturally rising — sharply and speedily — leading to multiple offers, bidding wars, and other seller-friendly market conditions.

Can a seller raise the price of a house?

There are certain situations in which it is permissible, and others in which raising the price on a home is not allowed. Let’s look into some specific situations more closely.

Can you raise the price on a home after listing it?

If you have listed the house but do not yet have offers on it, raising the price is easily done. “If you list the house and decide to increase the price, you can absolutely do that when an offer hasn’t actually been accepted yet,” Collins says. “Maybe you could just tell by the feedback in the marketplace that perhaps it was underpriced.”

Can a home seller reject a full-price offer?

Theoretically, yes, because the seller might determine that the full-priced offer is not the best among the offers — perhaps because the would-be buyer’s financing looks dicey, or because there’s a slightly lower offer for all cash and with fewer contingencies.

“Ultimately it is at the seller’s discretion to determine what the best offer is, and the decision is not totally based on price,” Collins says.

Can a seller counter a full-price offer?

Yes. Imagine a situation where the seller got multiple full-price offers and is setting up for a bidding war. That seller might counter all of the appealing full-price offers, asking each suitor for a best and final bid, or request a specified higher price.

“If you had a multiple-offer situation, you would let all of the buyers’ agents know of that,” Collins says. “You’d ask for a deadline that gives everybody the opportunity to reevaluate their offer and then the seller can make a decision off of that.”