Property sitting on the market? Experts reveal top tips to unlocking property sales
Many homeowners understand the frustration of properties sitting on the market for extended periods of time with no sale on the horizon. Leading estate agency group, Beresfords, has released advice to help sellers take control of their sales journey.
With the average time from initial marketing through to a successfully agreed offer now standing at 72 days, it’s more important than ever to obtain an accurate valuation and have a clear pricing and marketing strategy to attract proceedable buyers from day one.
This, coupled with the average time to completion in the UK taking up to 5 months, putting the whole process from first listing your property to market through to successfully moving in excess of 7 months, is why it’s understandable the whole process can lead to frustration.
Recent research by Rightmove has revealed that 32% of homes are eventually reduced in pricing due to initial ‘over-optimistic’ pricing.
To combat this, the Essex-based independent property group is advising homeowners on steps they can take to secure a sale quickly:
1. Launching the property to the market at the correct price is imperative. Reputable estate agents would be able to provide you with comparable evidence of other properties that have sold in the area in recent months and what contributing factors they had to achieving that price, allowing a value to be attributed to your home. It’s also key to note that anybody can put a high price on a property and upload it to the portals, but that is not the aim for sellers. It’s important to ensure that you are working with an agent that is realistic on price with a proven track record of selling similar properties in your local area
2. If you’re experiencing a lack of progress in your house move, this can often be because properties have been priced incorrectly at the start. Whilst it may feel like a difficult decision, the only overriding factor that can make a difference in achieving an offer will be adjusting the price. Whilst the portals will advertise properties in price bands, the first step will be to ensure that you are now being advertised and exposed to a new pool of buyers.
3. Whilst adjusting the price into a new marketing band can expose your property to a new pool of buyers, it’s also worth noting that small and multiple reductions as a strategy will do more harm than good. This can almost end up being a ‘death by a thousand cuts’ situation. On average at the moment, we are seeing any properties that are overpriced having to go through a reduction of at least 5% and in a lot of cases, where sellers have acted accordingly and with intent, it generates significant interest where offers have then come in at slightly above the reduction.
4. As a seller, if you wish to try and achieve a certain price point as it’s what you may need in order to move, then this is where the correct marketing strategy with a successful local estate agent will be vital -with clear metrics agreed, such as number of viewings within a certain timeframe, taking notes of the feedback from those viewings, and not discounting any initial offers that may come in. With those things in mind, if you are not achieving any interest close to the higher price at which you want to market your property within the first two weeks, then it’s at this point the reduction has to be made, as the longer the property sits on the market incorrectly priced, the more damage is done – whereby buyers will overlook the property in favour of others within the area. This adds an element of perception, where buyers can start to think there is something wrong with the property as its sitting on the market and not selling, which can be avoided with either the correct initial pricing, or the necessary reduction very early on within the marketing cycle.
Mark Lawrinson MNAEA MARLA, Operations Director, Residential Sales at Beresfords, said:
“Homeowners frequently come to us for a second opinion having struggled to sell elsewhere, feeling disheartened that their sale hasn’t moved as quickly as they hoped. The advice we always give our clients is that it’s wise to think of pricing as a marketing strategy, not just a valuation. Positioning a house price strategically within the right threshold can make all the difference when it comes to securing a smoother, faster sale.”
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