What is the appropriate stance on using listings when sales data are limited?

• A. Listings can replace sales as if they were actual market transactions.
• B. Listings should never be used.
• C. Listings can supplement but not replace sales data.
• D. Listings must be the primary data source.

Answer: (C)

When sales data are limited, use listings as a supplemental signal rather than as a substitute for actual transactions. Listings show what sellers are asking and can hint at market direction and typical price ranges, but they don’t prove what buyers actually paid and can be influenced by marketing tactics, time on market, or price changes. So they’re helpful for context and for triangulating value, but you should give more weight to closed, arm’s-length sales when forming the estimate. Relying on listings as the primary or sole basis can lead to mispricing, since listing prices aren’t final sale prices and may not reflect true market value.