All playbooks
    Vendor management

    The vendor who wants to pull the property off the market

    Frustration has set in and they are talking about waiting until next year.

    Do this now — in this order

    1. 1Find out whether the driver is price, process or exhaustion — the fix differs completely.
    2. 2Quantify what waiting costs, including a second campaign's marketing.
    3. 3Offer a reduced-intensity option — fewer opens, off-market buyer work — before agreeing to withdraw.
    4. 4If they must withdraw, agree the return date and stay in contact.
    5. 5Keep working the buyer register even while it's off market, with permission.
    6. 6Leave the relationship intact: withdrawn today, listed with you next season.

    What to say

    The alternative to withdrawal

    "Before we pull it, let me try one thing for a fortnight: no opens, no pressure, and I work the buyers I already have privately. If nothing comes of it, we withdraw with a plan."

    Why it works

    Withdrawal is usually about fatigue rather than price. Offering a lower-intensity path keeps the listing, the relationship and the buyer register alive.