For Nashville Home Sellers
Why You're Not Getting Showing Feedback
The real estate industry has quietly changed. Here's what sellers need to know.
You listed your home. Showings happened. You're waiting to hear what buyers thought — and mostly getting silence.
It's frustrating. It feels like basic courtesy. And it used to be more common. But the industry has changed, and there are real reasons agents are more guarded about feedback now. None of them are personal to you or your home.
The Real Reason: It's Not Their Job
Here's the part most agents won't say out loud: a buyer's agent has a fiduciary duty to their buyer — not to you, not to your agent, not to the transaction. Their legal obligation is to protect their client's interests.
When a buyer's agent gives detailed feedback after a showing, they're essentially handing the seller a roadmap of what their buyer thinks, what bothered them, what they liked, what price might bring them back. That information only benefits you. It can actually work against their own client.
There are active lawsuits right now where buyers are suing their own agents for giving up too much information during the showing process — without the buyer's knowledge or consent. That's not hypothetical risk anymore. Agents and their brokerages are paying attention.
The Litigation Climate Made It Worse
The 2024 NAR commission settlement put agents on notice that their words — in emails, texts, feedback forms — can become evidence. Brokerages responded by tightening up what agents are allowed to put in writing.
Feedback forms feel low-stakes. They're not. An offhand comment about a neighborhood, a lifestyle observation about the floor plan, even a price opinion — any of it can be scrutinized later. Many agents now default to silence rather than risk it.
What We Can Actually Learn
Here's what we tell our sellers: the most reliable feedback is behavior, not words.
- Repeat showings → genuine interest
- One showing, no contact → likely not a fit, for reasons they won't share
- No showings after 2–3 weeks → pricing or condition need attention
If a home isn't attracting offers, the market is giving you feedback — loudly — even if no one writes it in a form. That's when we have a direct conversation with you about what's happening and what your options are.
Our promise to you: We follow up with showing agents. Every time. We send two emails and a text to the showing agent. Whether they respond is out of our hands.
Common Questions From Sellers
Can't you just call the agent and ask?
Do you answer calls from unrecognized numbers? Neither do most agents. You'd be amazed at the volume of spam and marketing calls agents receive. After all, most have had their cell number plastered on the internet for years.
Does no feedback mean something is wrong with my home?
Not necessarily. It often just means the buyer moved on quickly or their agent is being cautious about what they put in writing. It's data, but it's not a verdict. We look at the full showing pattern before drawing any conclusions.
Is this a new problem?
It's gotten noticeably worse over the past few years. The fiduciary duty argument has always existed — but agents are only now being held to it in court. Combined with the broader litigation environment post-NAR settlement, many brokerages have quietly told their agents to stop filling out feedback forms altogether.
So feedback is just gone forever?
Not entirely — but the industry is shifting toward reading market signals instead of relying on agent opinions. Showing volume, offer activity, and days on market tell a clearer story than a checkbox form ever did. We'll always translate that data for you in plain terms.
Thinking About Listing in Nashville?
We've sold 500+ Nashville homes over 20+ years. You'll always deal directly with James and Stephanie — no assistants, no hand-offs, no silence after showings.
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About the Authors
James & Stephanie Crawford are Nashville natives and licensed REALTORS® with 22+ years and 500+ transactions across Davidson, Williamson, Wilson, Rutherford, Sumner, Cheatham, and Robertson counties. They operate as a direct husband-and-wife team — no assistants, no referrals out. Stephanie manages strategy and contracts; James handles showings and the field work. Reach them at NestingInNashville.com.
