The 'Coming Soon' Pre-Market Campaign: How to Build Buyer Anticipation Without Breaching Underquoting Laws

Every agent wants the database buzzing before a property hits the portals — more buyer registrations, more opens booked in the first 48 hours, a bidding atmosphere before auction day even starts. 💖 The trap is that "Coming Soon" posts get written in a hurry, often by whoever's free, and a price range slips in because it feels helpful to buyers. That single number — even a soft one, even "offers from" — can be exactly what underquoting regulators look at first, because it was published before the formal price guide process it's meant to follow.

What most agencies get wrong

• Publishing a price indication before the guide is finalised. A number in a teaser is still a number, even dressed up as a "ballpark."
• Using comparative language that implies a figure. "Priced to sell" or naming a comparable sale price can anchor expectations without a dollar sign.
• Running the teaser off an unsigned agency agreement. You're marketing a property you don't yet have authority to market.
• Treating the buyer list as disposable. Registrations with no real follow-up plan waste the point of the campaign.
• Letting "Coming Soon" run for weeks with no listing behind it. A teaser that never becomes real erodes trust in the next one.

The compliant pre-market campaign checklist

How the timing actually works

The sequence that keeps this compliant: signed agreement → internal CMA and price guide drafted → teaser referencing timing only → price guide finalised → listing goes live with the guide attached → registered buyers contacted first, in order. The moment price enters the conversation, in a DM, a call or the copy, it needs to match whatever guide is about to be published. Agents who "figure out the number later" end up with a mismatch between what buyers were told informally and what the compliant guide says.

Mistakes to avoid

• Don't let social media captions say something the listing copy wouldn't — captions get screenshotted and used as evidence just as easily as a listing.
• Don't run a teaser for a property that doesn't have a signed agency agreement, however confident you are it's coming.
• Don't reuse "Coming Soon" as a permanent status for a listing that's quietly been on the market for months — that's a different problem with a different fix.
• Don't let individual agents freelance their own price hints in comments or DMs outside the agreed campaign messaging.
• Don't skip documenting your pre-market process — if underquoting compliance is ever questioned, a documented, consistent process is your best evidence of good faith.

Frequently asked questions

Can I show photos of the property during the "Coming Soon" phase?

Generally yes — just make sure the agency agreement is signed first and the imagery doesn't include anything, like a styled price sign, that implies pricing.

How long should a pre-market campaign run?

There's a real trade-off: longer builds a bigger list but increases the risk of outrunning your price guide readiness. One to three weeks is realistic for most residential campaigns — long enough to build a list, short enough that "coming soon" doesn't quietly become "always coming."

Is it underquoting if I never publish a number at all?

Underquoting rules generally concern the gap between what's represented and the eventual sale price — so the safest campaign represents nothing about price until the compliant guide exists. Check your state's specific guidance, since what counts as a "representation" varies.

What if a buyer asks me directly what the place might go for?

Treat it the same as the written campaign — redirect to "the guide isn't finalised yet" rather than an off-the-cuff estimate, because a verbal number carries the same risk, just one that's harder to prove later.

Keep reading 🤍

• The 'Coming Soon' Listing Campaign: Building Buyer Interest Before It Hits the Market
• The Vendor Price Conversation: Underquoting Risk and Unrealistic Expectations
• How to Word a Price Guide Update Without Looking Like the First Number Was Wrong