Looking to sell a house or condo in a slowing market, but having trouble getting potential buyers in to look at your place? You might try Value Range Marketing a real estate marketing technique in which agents list a price range instead of a fixed price for a property.

“There are still plenty of skeptics and some outright opponents to Value Range Marketing (VRM), and the marketing technique represents just a tiny share of all U.S. property listings. But Lund said VRM is attracting a lot of attention with the slowing housing market.

He rattled off a list of market areas from which real estate professionals have contacted him in the past month about using VRM, among them: Vancouver, Canada; Golden, Colo.; Flagstaff, Ariz.; Ogden, Utah; Minneapolis, Minn.; and Staten Island, N.Y.”

I’m surprised to hear that this would work at all in a slowing market – I can imagine in a sellers market that giving a price range for a property may get more offers, but in a slowing market? Why would anyone offer anything over the lowest range listed?

“It’s the bigger net theory of fishing. It opens up the marketplace to more people looking at the property,” he said. Also, in a market that is subject to major swings in pricing, VRM can reduce the likelihood for price reductions, he said. “When market conditions are changing the way that they are, if you put a fixed price in it might only be valid for that day.”

I’m still skeptical – if prices are dropping in a market I’m not sure how giving a price range would eliminate price reductions, but if you’re feeling desperate give it a try!