When it’s time to sell, some homeowners will go to great lengths to get the best price, from producing short films to renting drones to get that perfect aerial shot. But not everyone wants the whole world to know what they own or how much money they stand to make. Celebrities, high-profile business people and divorcees, in particular, often fall in this category. This is where off-market listings come into play. Often referred to as “secret,” “whisper” or “pocket” listings, these properties are not advertised publicly or listed in the usual places. In fact, often just a handful of people are even aware these homes are on the market.
While recent years have seen secret sales at lower price points across the U.S., especially in Washington, D.C. and New York, they typically come with multi-million dollar price tags. In Los Angeles’ posh west side neighborhoods, for example—Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Malibu, Brentwood—nearly half of the $20 million-plus homes sold last year were off-market listings. “Over the past five or six years, the number of off-market listings has increased, while around 10 years ago there were not so many. The hotter the market, the more there are,” said Christophe Choo, a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker in Beverly Hills. “There are currently more high-end sales over $20 million on the west side of L.A. than ever before. The higher up you go in price, the more likely it is a pocket listing.” According to Choo, many secret sellers are celebrities or business people who don't want the public to see inside their homes. They may also be trying to keep their property’s value hidden from friends—though, quite often, it’s these friends who end up becoming buyers. It’s a similar story in Miami, according to Audrey Ross, senior vice president at EWM Realty International, a Berkshire Hathaway Affiliate. Ross is seeing a jump in the number of off-market listings. “There have always been a few in our top areas, but lately, there appears to be an increased number. In fact, I am working with two of them at the moment, but cannot really comment on either,” she said. And the trend isn’t limited to the U.S. In the last two years, nearly half the sales handled by the U.K.’s Private Property Search, the independent buying agent from realtor Strutt & Parker, have been off-market (and primarily in the countryside). A secret sale may sound very cloak-and-dagger, but is actually a fairly simple process of agents making discreet phone calls to a select handful of potential buyers, according to James Mackenzie, head of Strutt & Parker’s Country Department. In addition to being more private, Mackenzie says secret sales can be more efficient. There’s less fuss and processing time when both parties are motivated to keep a property off the open market. But there are downsides, too. Without competition in the open market, premium prices are often kept out of reach. It’s not uncommon for secret sellers to wonder whether they might have gotten a better price by selling publicly. For international buyers trying to tap into this secret world of off-market listings for the first time, Ross says it’s vital to be connected to a top broker in their chosen market. To find “those in the know,” Ross recommends researching the city’s top players. “Find the broker who lives in the area in which you are interested,” she said, “or the one who is predominant in that area. “The latter can take a bit of inquiry,” she cautioned, “but in the long run will really pay off.”