Understanding Homeowners’ Pricing Decisions: An Investigation of the Roles of Ownership Duration and Financial and Emotional Reference Points

In this research, we examined the interactive effects of duration of ownership with both financial (change relative to purchase price) and emotional (accumulation of positive vs. negative memories) reference points on home sellers’ initial asking prices and the stickiness of those prices. We found convergent results in a field study of house listings in four US markets (Phoenix, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and Wilmington) and a laboratory...