Buffalo Home Hits the Market for $1 To Let Buyers Decide the ‘True Value’

In Buffalo, NY, one home has hit the market with a price tag that’s less than what you would pay for your morning coffee: $1.

The three-bedroom, one-bathroom home at 141 Diane Drive, in the suburb of Cheektowaga, isn’t a fixer-upper in need of a rescue. It’s a fully renovated, 1,140-square-foot property with a sleek new look inside and out.

In fact, very little needs to be done to it. According to the listing, “You may just need the change in your couch! This all-brick beauty has been so redone even the original bricks are wondering who they are anymore.”

The $1 home marketing tactic has been catching on with some real estate agents who believe that setting a shockingly low asking price will spark a bidding war, create buzz, and draw in more potential homebuyers who have been left waiting on the sidelines due to high mortgage rates.

While no one expects the home to actually sell for a buck, the tactic works. The goal is to cut through the noise, draw attention in a competitive market, and let buyers decide the true value.

“The market itself will shake out, and the house is going to sell for what it’s going to sell for, regardless of what it’s listed for,” the listing agent, John Spaschak, tells Realtor.com®. Spaschak also co-owns the home with a business partner.

Although the home has been on the market only a little over a week, Spaschak adds that he’s fielded many offers.

“I can’t even count the number of offers right now. I don’t know what it is, and we’re not really going to look at everything until Monday, but my phone hasn’t stopped,” says Spaschak. “It’s crazy. I have at least 800 online leads. And I stopped counting.”

He says the top five homes located in the same area and school district, in similar condition, and completely updated and move-in ready have sold for between $270,00 and $331,000.

Spaschak says he expects this Buffalo home to sell within that range, or even higher.

The agent, who describes the house as “ready to give new life to you!!! All for less than a tank of gas,” will accept offers until noon EST on Aug. 18, 2025.

This quirky pricing strategy comes as the U.S. housing market tilts further in favor of buyers.

The inventory of homes for sale rose 24.8% year over year in July 2025, marking the 21st consecutive month of inventory growth and the third consecutive month with more than 1 million active listings, according to the Realtor.com July Housing Market Trends Report.

While inventory is still 13.4% below pre-pandemic levels, more choice in the market often means sellers have to work harder to stand out.

And the $1 listing tactic isn’t unique to Buffalo. Agents in New Jersey and the greater New York metro area have been using it with notable success.

“I always find myself arguing with sellers over what is the correct price to list at—usually the seller’s fear of underlisting it,” says Brendan Da Silva, a New Jersey–based real estate agent. “This proves that’s not possible.”

Da Silva says that when he lists Newark properties for $1, he receives hundreds of calls within days. Buyers get one week to submit their best offer.

“I knew it would trigger insanity,” he says. “The buyers have been split between confused, $1 bids, and a lot of serious attention. Managing was nearly impossible; we began reviewing comps over the phone with buyers.”

In one case, Da Silva listed a three-bedroom, 1.5-bathroom home for $1 and accepted an offer around $550,000—well under the metro’s median list price of $786,500 but aligned with neighborhood comps.

Fellow New Jersey agent Linda Thell says she’s trying the same strategy with a five-bedroom, two-bath property at 86 E Camplain Road in Manville.

“I like to provide clients with unique opportunities, sometimes going against the stream, finding good tweaks that can end up in great results for my clients,” Thell says. “A list price is to be seen as a suggested price. However, in the end, the market will always decide.”

With more homes on the market and buyers having the upper hand, expect to see more agents trying unconventional approaches to get their listings noticed—even if that means starting at a single dollar.