We've had another bumper week of sales and abundant buyer enquiry.

Traditionally, the weeks leading up to the end of the financial year tend to quieten down but we’re experiencing a real spurt of activity right now.

There’s also more evidence to suggest that there is a slowing of new listings coming on to the market so if you’ve been contemplating selling your property, I can assure you that despite the colder weather, we’re anticipating a solid stream of buyer activity to continue into July and August.

 

Last week, I shared the first part of my “Top 10 Misconceptions & Myths of Sellers”.

 

Today, here is the second part of my three part series…

 

  1. “Wow – If I’m offered list price on the second day my home is on the market, imagine how much I’ll get offered after it’s been on for three weeks” – It’s an easy temptation to refrain from accepting an offer (even if that offer is to your liking) when a home has only been listed for a very short time. To understand why it is well worth considering, it pays to gain insight into the thought process of a buyer – particularly a buyer who is ready to make a decision. Buyers move through a wave of emotions and after several months of analysing the market (the average right now is 3 months), they arrive at a point where they are tired of researching. Purchasing a home can be an emotionally draining process and buyers do get to a point where they are just ‘over it’. When a buyer has reached this point, they usually know exactly what they are looking for and they will constantly refresh their suburbs of choice on the most popular real estate web sites to see if anything new has been listed. Buyers who may have missed out in a ‘Multiple Offer’ situation can be even more motivated to act quickly. This means when a home that meets their requirements enters the market, they usually act very quickly. This buyer may be prepared to pay the highest amount because (in their eyes), they will seek to eliminate buying competition before it exists…and they may over-estimate how much competition there is on a particular home. Over the past few years, I’ve sold countless numbers of homes for owners that were tempted to dismiss the first offer and “wait and see what happens” only for this initial offer to be the highest by a reasonable margin.

 

  1. “I’d rather not let the neighbours know I’m selling so I’m not interested in a ‘For Sale’ sign” – Given that there have been numerous agents’ cars in the street, they’ve seen you de-cluttering and there are many unfamiliar families entering and exiting your home accompanied by a well-dressed guide with a clipboard in hand that look mysteriously like a real estate agent, there’s a pretty good chance they will realise your home is for sale. Signs are a very inexpensive and lucrative way to attract buyers – even if you live in a quiet cul-de-sac, you’d be surprised at who is driving around your area. Additionally, neighbours can be a great source of referrals to promote your home. The neighbours’ decision for purchasing in the area can be justified if they can convince someone that they know to live in the area as well. You would be surprised at how often people will purchase a neighbour’s home or relative’s home. They may love the street or area, but have house envy – perhaps your house is higher, slightly larger, more modern or has something that they feel their own home is lacking. They may not be looking to purchase and therefore won’t be actively searching online, but this doesn’t mean they wouldn’t consider buying if the right house fell in to their lap (or on their front porch so to speak). A sign at least tells them they have the opportunity.

 

  1. “If I open list my property with many agents, my property will get more exposure” – If we lived in a logical and practical world, this would probably be the case. Unfortunately, such a place does not exist. Having an open listing can reduce motivation on an agent’s behalf. If they work long, hard hours to promote and sell your property but another agent finds the buyer, they receive no reward for their time and effort. Unfortunately this means that none of your agents are doing as much as he/she could to sell your home. On the other hand, an exclusive listing not only generates motivation for the agent, but creates a much more informative and personal relationship between the vendor and agent. They get to know you and what you want to achieve rather than just being an address in a book. An exclusive listing has been proven to achieve a higher sale price than an open listing…in fact, even the ‘Real Estate Institute of Queensland’ now recommends choosing only one agent in order to maximise your final selling price. Remember, one highly motivated agent will always achieve a far greater result than four unmotivated agents. Looking even deeper into open listings, our research tells us that savvy buyers will often contact ALL agents who have the same property listed and will invariably play an agent off against another. They tend to test each agent and judge which agent is more likely to take their low offer and work on reducing the seller’s expectation to have the offer accepted. Therefore, the agent who works hardest for the buyer and that works hardest to have a low offer accepted usually attracts the buyer. Buyers tend to view open listings as a sign of a seller’s desperation and the truth is that they’re usually right.

 

  1. “I’ll list with the agent who can get me the highest price” – I understand the temptation a “high appraisal” can provoke, but don’t be fooled – this is often a tactic to win the listing. It’s important to list with an agent who is a strong negotiator, creative marketer and someone you feel comfortable with. At the end of the day, having an agent who knows the market, is honest and who will work their hardest for you, is what’s going to get you the best result. As I’ve said before, it’s imperative for a seller to receive a comprehensive report based upon the agent’s research and their logic in estimating the current market value of the property. Each report that we provide takes around 3-4 hours to prepare. Listing the property at the right price when it hits the market is crucial – an ill-informed mistake of pricing it too high or too low can cost you tens of thousands of dollars so you need to get it as close as possible to being correct from day one. If an agent gives you a figure from the top of their head after they’ve had a quick look around, be very wary.

 

Next week, we’ll close out this three part series detailing the “Top 10 Seller Myths”.

 

Finally, good luck to the Socceroos in their next World Cup match against Denmark – you deserve a win after being robbed of at least one point against France (and I do say this with one-eye green and gold). Also, good luck to the mighty Maroons this Sunday (it still seems very strange to say ‘Good Luck this Sunday’ but let’s hope we can bring a decider home to the Cauldron.

 

Until next week, Happy Listing & Happy Selling.

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We've had another bumper week of sales and abundant buyer enquiry.