CJI Town Hall: Selling in a seller’s market

If it feels like people are throwing money at you, it’s probably too good to be true. Sellers have been motivated by easy money in past business cycles, and there’s a real danger of that happening again now. Jay Mesinger, CEO and President of Mesinger Jet Sales, says this goes all the way back to the days when aircraft sales were conducted via fax machine. The machine would ring and unsolicited offers would come streaming in. The same thing happened again with email after the COVID lockdowns ended. High demand and low supply are both good news and bad news. The shift in market balance causes prices to firm up (and sometimes increase), but it can also lead sellers to believe the entire process can be compressed. That forces everyone to work transactions in a much more difficult environment. Pre-buys get denied. Closings get rushed without proper due diligence — the kind that’s critical for such a significant long-term purchase. Suddenly, the value of professional representation starts to look less important. It sounds great if you’re a seller. But sellers can easily get caught up in the euphoria. Why pay for representation when buyers are lining up with offers? But wait — is this too good to be true? You bet it can be. Speakers include: Jay Mesinger, CEO, Mesinger Jet Sales Mary Comazzi, Partner with Barnes & Thornburg David Norton, Partner, Shackelford, McKinley & Norton Joanne Barbera, Partner, Barbera & Watkins, LLC