After several years of rapid sales and bidding wars, the Jersey Shore real estate market is settling into a new rhythm defined by caution, strategy, and a more analytical approach from both ...
Rob Marucci: The Bidding War Tactic Making a Comeback in Connecticut Real Estate
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Date:
09 Mar 2026
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Better Living Realty broker reports escalation clauses returning as just three affordable homes sit on market in the entire Middlebury.
Connecticut buyers are pulling a strategic weapon from the pandemic-era playbook: escalation clauses that automatically outbid competitors without overpaying.
Rob Marucci, broker-owner of Better Living Realty LLC serving Waterbury and Middlebury, says the aggressive tactic disappeared during 2023-2024 when markets normalized. Now it’s back.
“My agents are calling me, and we’re trying to get creative on how to make our offer stronger again, because we are getting outbid,” says Marucci. “We’re using escalation clauses on any property that has multiple offers now.”
The return signals genuine scarcity. In Middlebury, just 12 single-family homes are listed, and only three priced under $500,000, the range where most buyers can afford mortgages at current rates.
How It Works
Here’s the strategy: A buyer willing to pay $340,000 maximum offers full asking price of $320,000, plus an escalation clause increasing their bid in $2,000 increments to beat any competing offer.
If another buyer offers $325,000, the clause automatically bumps the first buyer to $327,000, winning without jumping to their $340,000 ceiling.
“You don’t have your buyers overpaying,” Marucci explains. “If you just do highest and best, they would have gone $340,000. Now you might get it for $327,000. It protects your buyers and gives them the opportunity to get a property.”
In Marucci’s first decade in Connecticut real estate, he never saw an escalation clause. COVID changed that. After a brief disappearance, they’re standard practice again.
The Math Behind the Scarcity
The inventory crisis is stark. Only three homes under $500,000 in an entire town means automatic competition among first-time buyers, move-up buyers stretching budgets, and investors, all chasing the same properties.
Connecticut’s brutal winter made it worse. Record snowfall of 18 to 20 inches in one storm froze pre-spring listing activity as sellers delayed plans.
“Everything is kind of put on pause,” Marucci notes. “Anybody that was gonna list is on pause.”
Across Connecticut, inventory sits at about two months of supply. Six months is considered healthy.
Beyond Price
Escalation clauses aren’t the only competitive edge. Marucci emphasizes full mortgage approval versus standard pre-approval letters.
Lenders now offer complete underwriting pending only appraisal, essentially guaranteeing financing. When sellers compare identical offers, the fully-approved buyer wins every time.
“If your offer is the same as another offer and the other offer is FHA mortgage, we’re going to take the offer that’s fully approved,” Marucci says.
Speed matters too. Buyers must view properties same-day and submit offers immediately.
“I’ve even done offers where we’re at the house. Let’s drop an offer right now,” he adds.
For sellers, Marucci’s advice defies conventional wisdom: don’t wait for spring.
“That could actually hurt your value, because there’s going to be a lot more inventory,” he warns. “If you’re ready to sell, let’s put it on the market now. The buyers are still out there. Inventory is super low.”
In markets where three homes represent the entire affordable inventory, getting creative isn’t optional. It’s the only way to compete.
About Better Living Realty LLC
Better Living Realty is a Connecticut-based real estate brokerage founded in 2010, serving Waterbury, Middlebury, New Haven County, and Litchfield County with 30 agents.
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