HOW TO ACHIEVE A QUICK SALE
Selling for more in less time
When selling a property, most people have two conflicting emotions. They desire a quick sale, but if that is achieved, they fear that the property may have been undersold. Given that you will only sell your property once, it is imperative to get the highest possible price in the market. Is time on market the key to getting the highest possible sale price though?
The answer somewhat lies in the market conditions at the time you are selling. Time is unemotional and inflexible. In a rising market, time is your friend. Time will help carry the price toward your price goal. In a falling market, time is your enemy. Time will erode your price. In a falling market, the longer you leave your property on the market unsold, the more time you give it to drop in value.
Even in a rising market, a property that sits on the market not selling can become a lemon in the eyes of the buyers. In such instances, it takes a massive reduction in price to stimulate buyer activity.
Time and Price
Many industry experts claim the key to achieving a successful sale lies in getting the three essential components of your campaign correct. Those components being: 1) Presentation 2) Marketing and 3) Price. Getting your price strategy correct will do more to achieve a quick sale than marketing and presentation in today's market.
When it comes time to sell, most people have three agents provide opinions on the possible selling price of the property. The seller will also have an expectation of the price. What can get overlooked during the process of pricing, is what the buyers think the property is worth? At the end of the day, the buyers will only pay what they can afford and what they feel a property is worth. To sell a property quickly, the seller's expectation of price needs to overlap with at least one buyer's expectation of price. If there is a gap on price, the seller needs to adjust their price expectations or find a new buyer.
The maximum interest in a property will usually come in the first 21 days of marketing. The property is fresh to the market and grabs the attention of all potential buyers in the marketplace. The activity level on the home is unlikely to be higher than in the first 21 days of marketing. If a sale is not achieved in the first 21 to 28 days, the seller will have to consider re-pricing or waiting for new buyers to enter the market. Waiting for new buyers to enter the market can really blow your time on market out. For the success of the sale, in the first 21 days, the agent and property seller must establish what the buyers are prepared to pay for the property.
Attracting Multiple Buyers
Most sellers desire the situation where multiple buyers all bid strongly forcing the price up. Charles Milburn of Harris Partners recently sold a townhouse in Glebe over the asking price. According to Charles, "the owner was keen to establish the correct market price and sell. In keeping the focus on what price would attract a buyer, we actually attracted 24 inspections and 3 offers in 26 days of marketing. In instances like this, there is a power shift. The focus becomes what a buyer is prepared to pay up to, rather than what price the seller will drop too. By quoting an attractive price, the seller attracted multiple buyers."
The highest possible price is assured if you have multiple buyers trying to buy your property.
Bargain Hunters
It is okay if bargain hunters don't like your price. It is not good if the fair minded buyers in the marketplace reject your property on price though. One of the worst ways in marketing a property is intentionally loading the asking price with intent of coming down in price over time. The best buyers will reject the home based on the initial high price and are unlikely to return later when the price has been reduced.
At the completion of marketing your property, if you are unhappy about the price buyers are prepared to offer for your property, just do what many sellers are doing at present, don't sell.
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