The Listing Price Is Only the Beginning: How Jack Cutrone Looks at the Deal Behind the House
The Long Island real estate market has a way of making people focus on one number: the price.
What is the house listed for?
What should we offer?
How much can I get for my home?
Those numbers matter. But they rarely tell the entire story.
I’m Jack Cutrone with Patriot Real Properties, and one of the biggest things I’ve learned working with buyers, sellers, investors and veterans is that real estate problems usually aren’t solved by looking at one number. You have to understand the deal surrounding that number.
Long Island Isn’t One Real Estate Market
A buyer looking in western Nassau County may be facing a completely different situation than someone searching farther east in Suffolk. Property type matters. Condition matters. Taxes matter. Inventory matters. So does what is happening on that particular block.
The latest available July 2026 data illustrates the point.
For single-family houses, Nassau County’s July median was approximately $880,000, while Suffolk’s was approximately $750,000. Suffolk houses were selling at approximately 102.6% of asking price, and Nassau houses at approximately 101%. Available single-family inventory was also lower than it had been a year earlier in both counties.
But here’s where people can get themselves into trouble: countywide statistics don’t buy the house.
The individual property does.
A house with deferred maintenance is different from a turnkey property. A house sitting for 60 days presents a different conversation than one listed yesterday. A property with an unusual layout, complicated financing, an estate situation or significant repairs needs a different strategy.
That’s why I don’t believe the job is simply to find a house and write an offer.
The job is to understand what you’re walking into.
Before the Offer, Find the Problem
When I’m looking at a property with a client, I want to know more than the asking price.
Why is the seller moving?
How long has the property actually been exposed to the market?
Has the price changed?
What have comparable properties really sold for?
What could affect financing?
What work may have to be done?
What does the buyer need to preserve financially after closing?
And most importantly: where is there room to make this deal work?
Sometimes the answer is price.
Sometimes it isn’t.
It may be timing, terms, repairs, credits, financing, occupancy or simply figuring out what is preventing two sides from getting to yes.
That’s the part of real estate I enjoy.
Veteran Buyers Deserve More Than “Do You Have a Preapproval?”
Working with veterans has reinforced this for me.
A veteran buyer may have financing opportunities and considerations that shouldn’t be treated as an inconvenience or an afterthought. The agent needs to understand the transaction, communicate with the other professionals involved and advocate for the buyer without making assumptions about what will or won’t work.
The objective isn’t to force a buyer into a property.
It’s to build the strongest realistic path toward ownership.
Sellers Need the Same Kind of Thinking
The same philosophy applies when I list a home.
A seller doesn’t need somebody to tell them the highest number they want to hear.
They need someone willing to look at the competition, recent sales, buyer behavior, property condition and the realities of the neighborhood…and then build a strategy around all of it.
With inventory still constrained in much of Long Island, sellers have leverage. But limited inventory doesn’t mean every house should be priced aggressively or that every property will sell itself. Recent market data continues to show meaningful differences by property type and geography.
Preparation still matters.
Pricing still matters.
Presentation still matters.
Negotiation absolutely matters.
That’s Also Why I Chose Patriot
One of the things I value about Patriot Real Properties is that we’re building a brokerage around more than transactions.
We talk about business.
We study markets.
We train.
We discuss investing.
We bring attorneys, lenders, title professionals, business owners and other specialists into the conversation.
We challenge our agents to understand why something is happening rather than simply reposting another market statistic.
Because clients don’t need another person with access to listings.
They need someone who can help them understand what those listings mean.
That’s the kind of agent I intend to be.
When there’s a straightforward transaction, we’ll get it done.
When there’s a problem, that’s when the work really starts.
Jack Cutrone
Licensed Real Estate Agent
Patriot Real Properties
Equal Housing Opportunity. Fair Housing laws apply to all real estate services. Market statistics are informational and do not guarantee future market conditions.
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