HONESTY KILLS DEATH HOUSE SALE
HONESTY KILLS DEATH HOUSE SALE
How low will it go before it sells?
Back in September last year, LJ Hooker at North Ryde had no trouble selling a home that had been the scene of a gruesome triple murder. Their selling technique was simple - say nothing.
When a family of devout Buddhists bought the home for $800,000 and later discovered that it was the infamous "death house", they were told by the agent that they should have asked.
Yes, of course, doesn't every buyer ask about recent murders at each home they inspect?
Fortunately, the Department of Fair Trading did not agree with the selling strategy and imposed a fine of $20,000 on the agent.
Following widespread publicity of the case, the LJ Hooker network kindly agreed to refund the $80,000 deposit paid by the buyers.
The home was again offered for sale, only this time another ingredient was added to the selling strategy - honesty.
The following statement now appears on all marketing material: "Notice to Buyers: This property is being sold under instructions from the Trustee of the Estate of the Late Teddy and Mary Gonzales. Mr and Mrs Gonzales together with their daughter were murdered in the house on 10/7/01."
Now, remember, last September, when the murders were not disclosed to buyers, the home sold for $800,000.
But, once the murders became known, the home was passed in at auction in March for $715,000. It was then offered for sale for $850,000 with a spokesperson for the agent saying it should sell within two weeks. Go figure.
Well, at the end of May, the home remains unsold.
Yesterday it was announced that the price had been reduced by $80,000 - from $850,000 to $770,000. This, of course, is the asking price which often has little to do with the value.
The value of a property is the amount a willing and fully informed (what a great expression) buyer is prepared to pay.
For the death house, the highest price a willing buyer has been prepared to pay has been $715,000.
Yep, as most agents know, honesty can be a real sales killer.
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This news article was written by Neil Jenman, Author & Consumer advocate.
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Articles
INSTANT REACTIONTo put a property on the market takes effort. There is the effort in selecting the agent and marketing
strategy, the effort to prepare and present the property and then the effort to keep the presentation A1 throughout the campaign.
CONDITIONINGThe tricks used to drive your price down.
THE TWO RESERVE PRICESAt an auction, the property cannot be sold until the bidding reaches the sellers reserve price. Many sellers that sign up for an auction are comforted by the fact that the reserve price will protect them against underselling.
