Selling your home in a buyer's market

Are you looking to sell your home in 2019? Don’t be scared off by the news — even though clearance rates are a little low right now, you can still successfully sell your home. Here’s how...

Get the right experts on your side

Not confident about the market? Hire a professional real estate agent who can help you with listing your property and screening enquiries. Better yet, find someone who was working as an agent a decade ago. This was when the property market experienced its last slow-down, and an agent who worked during this time will have extra insider tips on how to navigate a tougher selling climate.

Staging your home

A ‘buyer’s market’ means there’s plenty of property available at a low price, so buyers aren’t competing against each other and inflating prices at auction. Rather, vendors are competing against each other to attract buyers and having to lower their asking price. So, creating a brilliant first impression is more important than ever.

You don’t have to go all out, either. Emphasise strengths and draw attention away from any potential weaknesses. Do you have an impressive living room and kitchen? Then stage those rooms first. Declutter, clean and repair — repaint the walls if you need to. Alternately, you can fork out the extra cash to get a professional in. Either way, staging your home will make all the difference.

Extend your marketing

Traditionally, sellers advertise their home for about four weeks, but if you allow yourself more time (say 6-8 weeks) then you’ll have a higher chance of selling your home for the right price. The longer you advertise, the more exposure your home gets. More exposure means a larger pool of buyers, which in turn increases the likelihood of multiple offers.

Make sure your agent uses high-quality photos in the marketing material and publishes or posts to the relevant property listing sites. Ensure they incorporate printed material like flyers and pamphlets into the marketing plan so buyers have something tangible to take home.

Opt for a private sale

Currently, people aren’t buying at auction as much as they did a year ago, undoubtedly due to the fact that many are worried about their finances. That, and the potential for property prices to drop even further.

Listing your home for private sale is another option. It means you’ll have to determine a set asking price, and you won’t have the benefit of people bidding against each other, potentially increasing that price. But there are plenty of other benefits.

It gives people the chance to negotiate around their finances, and feel more confident in a private meeting than in a loud crowd. Private sales are also less costly and, usually, attract genuine buyers instead of people who just want to see what the excitement is about. If you are confident with your valuation and don’t want to risk spending money on a sale campaign, only for the property to be passed in at auction, a private sale is a good choice.

Extras

Complete all maintenance on your home before listing it on the market to reduce the risks of potential buyers turning away. If you can, get a depreciation schedule – useful if a buyer intends this as an investment purchase – and have an independent property report done so you can show people the facts and figures.