What We Look For When a Nashville Home Has Been Sitting — A Buyer Strategy Breakdown
In today’s market, one of the biggest opportunities for buyers in Nashville isn’t the shiny new listing that hits on a Thursday and goes pending by Sunday.
It’s the house everyone else has already scrolled past.
Homes that have been sitting for 30, 45, even 90+ days are where leverage, optionality, and smart negotiation live — if you know how to read them correctly. Most buyers don’t. They either assume something is “wrong,” or they fire off a lowball offer without understanding the real story behind the listing.
At The Costigan Group, this is one of the areas where we add the most value for buyers. We don’t treat “days on market” as a red flag — we treat it as data.
Below is a full breakdown of exactly what we analyze when a Nashville home has been sitting, how we separate real opportunity from false economy, and how we help buyers use these situations to their advantage without stepping into a bad deal.
First: Why Days on Market Matter More in 2026 Than They Used To
In 2020–2022, days on market were almost irrelevant. Everything moved fast, and hesitation cost you deals.
In 2026, time on market tells a story — but only if you understand which story you’re reading.
A home sitting today usually falls into one of five buckets:
Mispriced
Poorly marketed
Functionally flawed
Strategically ignored
Quietly overexposed
Our job is to identify which bucket it’s in before you ever write an offer.
Step 1: We Separate Price Problems From Perception Problems
The first thing we look at is not how long the home has been sitting — it’s why buyers skipped it.
What we analyze immediately:
Original list price vs current list price
Price reductions and timing
Comparable homes that did sell
Showing activity relative to price band
Whether the home missed the initial demand window
A surprising number of “stale” listings aren’t overpriced anymore — they’re mentally mispriced in the market. Buyers anchored to the original number never re-evaluated when conditions changed.
This is where disciplined buyers win.
Step 2: We Audit the Marketing (Most Listings Fail Here)
Before we assume anything is wrong with the house, we evaluate how it was presented to the market.
We look at:
Photography quality and composition
Lighting and time of day shots
Video (or lack of it)
Listing description quality
Whether the home was staged or vacant
Distribution beyond MLS (email, paid, private networks)
Rough truth:
Many homes sit simply because they were never properly launched.
Bad photos can cost a seller tens of thousands of dollars — and create opportunity for informed buyers.
Step 3: We Identify “Good Bones, Bad Execution” Homes
Some of the best buyer wins we’ve had come from homes that:
Are structurally solid
Are in strong locations
Have logical floor plans
But feel dated, dark, or uninspired online
Most buyers shop emotionally first. If a home doesn’t feel right digitally, it gets skipped — even if the fundamentals are excellent.
We walk these properties differently:
Layout > finishes
Location > cosmetics
Replacement cost > current condition
These are high-upside opportunities for buyers willing to see past surface-level issues.
Step 4: We Read Seller Psychology (This Matters More Than Price)
Time on market changes sellers — but not all in the same way.
We look for signals that tell us:
Is the seller motivated or stubborn?
Have they already bought another home?
Are they investor-owned?
Have they emotionally detached yet?
Are they getting realistic — or digging in?
This informs how we structure the offer, not just the number.
Sometimes the best leverage isn’t price — it’s:
Timing
Certainty
Clean terms
Flexible possession
Fewer contingencies (where appropriate)
Step 5: We Pressure-Test the “What’s Wrong?” Question
Every sitting home has buyers asking the same thing:
“Why hasn’t this sold?”
Our job is to answer that definitively, not guess.
We investigate:
Inspection history (if any)
Previous contracts that fell apart
Appraisal issues
Title or zoning concerns
Neighborhood-specific objections
Noise, access, or functional issues
When there is a real issue, we quantify it.
When there isn’t, we use that clarity to negotiate from strength.
Step 6: We Build Asymmetric Offers (Not Just Lower Ones)
Low offers without logic get ignored.
Strategic offers get accepted.
For sitting homes, we often:
Anchor to current comps, not list price
Pair price with clean execution
Offer inspection strategies that protect buyers without spooking sellers
Use escalation selectively (not emotionally)
Time offers to moments of seller fatigue
This is where experience matters. Sitting homes reward precision, not aggression.
Step 7: When We Tell Buyers Not to Buy the Sitting Home
This part matters.
Not every stale listing is a deal.
We will advise buyers to walk away when:
The price still doesn’t reflect reality
The location penalty is permanent
The functional issue is unfixable
The resale risk outweighs the discount
The seller refuses to meet the market
Good buying is not about “winning” a negotiation — it’s about protecting downside.
Why This Strategy Works Better With the Right Representation
Most agents either:
Chase hot listings, or
Encourage low offers without context
We do neither.
Our buyer strategy is built around:
Data
Pattern recognition
Seller psychology
Real transaction experience
Risk-adjusted decision-making
That’s how our buyers consistently:
Avoid bidding wars
Buy below replacement cost
Reduce regret
And feel confident, not rushed
Final Thoughts: Sitting Homes Aren’t the Problem — Misreading Them Is
In today’s Nashville market, time on market is an opportunity signal, not a warning label.
But only if:
You know what to look for
You understand why buyers passed
You can separate noise from real risk
You negotiate with strategy, not ego
That’s where we come in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a home that’s been sitting always a bad deal?
No. Many sitting homes are simply mispositioned or poorly marketed. Some of the best deals come from these situations.
How many days on market is considered “long” in Nashville right now?
Generally 30+ days draws buyer attention, 45–60+ creates leverage, and 90+ requires deeper analysis.
Can you still negotiate hard in 2026?
Yes — but only when the data supports it. Blind lowballing rarely works.
Should buyers avoid homes with multiple price drops?
Not automatically. Price drops can indicate realism setting in — or continued misalignment. Context matters.
Do sitting homes always appraise?
Often yes, if priced correctly. Appraisal risk usually comes from unrealistic list prices, not time on market alone.
Jack Costigan is a top-producing Realtor® and founder of The Costigan Group at Compass Nashville, specializing in short-term rental, investment, luxury, relocation, and residential real estate across Greater Nashville and Middle Tennessee. Known for his data-driven strategy, modern marketing approach, and high-touch client experience, Jack advises homeowners, professionals, and buyers on identifying and executing high-performing, low-risk real estate opportunities. Learn more at jackcostiganrealestate.com.
