We're supposed to remind you that this is helpful stuff but not legal advice. Let's start with condition . But if they were right, it will be long gone before they ever get that far.
Every area has some neighborhoods that are so desirable, the homes there sell by word of mouth.
The homeowners in areas that are desirable in any way know that it isn't just the realtor's efforts selling the homes, it's the demand for the area. Again, the cream of the crop are sold privately because they can. It's everybody's bottom line, buyer and seller alike. Sometimes they offer it at the lower price and figure they'll have to mark it up later. Either way, keep the seller's bottom line in mind and you'll see it benefits you as the buyer to get to the house while it's still for sale by owner.