You might think you did all the right things before you put your property on the market. Yet it’s still unsold after many weeks or months. Why? What could you have done differently?

Through 2021 and early 2022, we saw a ‘race to regional’. We couldn’t sell properties fast enough, at extraordinary prices. However, now the regional property market is rationalising, you need to do more to keep your property at the top of buyers’ wish lists. In this article, I give you tips for selling your property quickly.

What is key for a faster property sale?

Three main factors influence property sales. And these factors hold true whether properties are selling like hot cakes or the market is flat and buyers are more cautious.

These are price, presentation and promotion.

I’m going to talk about each of these separately; together, done right, they make a compelling property offering in any market.

Setting your property price

Setting the right price for the current market (whether in a boom or correcting part of the cycle) is vital. And that’s where we come in. As responsible real estate agents, we appraise your property to set a price in relation to current conditions. We know what buyers are willing to pay for a property and we set the price accordingly. We give you a 10% range of our estimated selling price and we work hard to achieve the top of the price range.

When you achieve a higher price after your property has been on the market for a while, it will generally be because the market has moved upwards anyway. That’s fine if you have time to wait. If you’re ready to move on to a new property or a new region, and you want a quick sale, the price has to be what buyers are willing to pay today. I learned from John McGrath of McGrath Real Estate that when a property fails to sell within a reasonable time, price is the issue. And I had to heed that advice in selling my own property in Sydney.

Presenting your property in its best light

I watch some of the British home shows and I’m still a bit shocked at how poorly the properties are presented. In Australia, we’re all watching shows like ‘The Block’ or ‘House Rules’ or any of the many renovation and makeover-style shows. We have certain expectations. If your home isn’t showing well in marketing photography, the home won’t allow potential buyers to make an emotional connection and imagine themselves living the lifestyle your home affords them. Remember that most buyers will search online first before they narrow their wish list to a few properties. You have around three seconds to impress them.

Promotion (marketing) to reach more potential home buyers

Don’t think you can save money by skimping on your marketing. When we market your home, we use professional photographers, sometimes even a videographer. We write compelling words to describe your home and give buyers plenty of information so they’ll shortlist your property. With online listings, social media, emails, newsletters and newspaper advertisements, we ensure your property is seen by the widest range of potential buyers.

When a buyer shows interest, we respond quickly and start building a trusting relationship with them to understand what their needs are so that we can talk about all the best features of your home that match their needs. We answer questions and prefer to take people through by private inspection; depending upon the property, we may hold special ‘invitation only’ open homes. We’re selling a dream, so we need to make buyers feel special. Once a buyer makes an offer, we negotiate with you and the buyer to ensure everyone is satisfied and feels they achieved a fair deal. We know from experience that buyers are devastated by an outright rejection of their offer so even if the offer isn’t what you expected, we work with you and the buyer to come to an agreement you’re both happy with.

With the right agent by your side, you can feel confident that they won’t undersell your home. Remember, we do this for a living, we know the market and we can read buyers’ intentions. When a buyer is serious about purchasing, they will often be willing to offer a slightly higher price to secure their dream home.

Need advice on selling your Barrington Hinterland property?

As a proud local, I’m here to guide you through the process of selling your home. I specialise in lifestyle, rural and residential properties. I’ve done it myself and helped many families over my career. So give me a call; I’m here to help.