The current housing downturn might see many sellers struggle to secure deals at reasonable price expectations, but there are some ways that can sweeten the deal and provide extra value to listings.
Home AU Real Estate agent Sheree Hay said despite the not-so-bright outlook for the property market due to the rising rates and increasing cost of living, sellers must employ strategies to ensure that they can strike a deal without having to sacrifice much of their price expectations.
“I am still selling properties for good prices however we are having to work harder to get the right buyers to the table and we are encouraging sellers to look at ways in which they can add value to the deal to optimise the sale price and speed up the sale process,” she said.
For Ms Hay, providing extra value is crucial in the current market conditions where properties are staying in the market for longer.
“Vendors are not necessarily having to drop their prices but I am encouraging them to look at ways they can sweeten the deal to make the sale more attractive for the buyer,” she said.
Ms Hay shared five tips on how sellers can improve their listings and ensure a sales deal without having to lower price expectations:
1. Offer property images
Ms Hay said it is crucial for sellers to prioritise how the property is portrayed especially with online listings.
“Listing a property for sale is about having the right imagery to promote and market the property to potential buyers — the better the imagery, the more views, clicks and people viewing the property on open day,” she said.
Ms Hay said providing copies of the photos used to list the property can help investors market the property to potential tenants.
“A lot of people purchase properties for investment purposes — why not include the property imagery for the buyer so they can use it to rent out the property,” she said.
“This way they can get renters in the door faster for the best price and they don’t have to outlay money on photography to do this. This is an upfront saving for them.”
2. Leave outdoor furniture and pots
Sellers can leave some of the items they have on the backyard to the new owners.
“Why not offer to include certain pieces of furniture, pots, or a BBQ so the new owner can use them. This is a nice way of including something for free that you don’t really need,” Ms Hay said.
3. Give immediate access
For many buyers, having early access to the property would provide them an opportunity to change whatever they want or have it rented out straight away.
Ms Hay said offering to give the new owner immediate access can help them get a tradie in to measure up for quotes for any potential changes they would like to the property.
“I often meet tradies and carpet and curtain businesses at properties before they have settled so the new owners can get blinds and carpets ordered and underway. This saves the buyer time and helps them to get a tenant in the door faster.”
4. Include work benches and equipment
Another way to sweeten the deal is to include some of the things in the garage like work benches, tool storage and cupboards and other types of equipment.
It will not only help the new owners of the property, but it will also take away the effort of disposing of things that the sellers do not really need or do not want to bring with them as they move.
5. Add existing appliances and household items
Typically, appliances such as fridges and washing machines are already built in or are perfectly sized to suit the areas of the home.
“If these items add value and would be difficult to replace because of their size, dimensions, or style, why not offer to include them in the sale? These types of offerings can mean the difference between buyers settling for your property due to convenience and ease or buying something else,” Ms Hay said.
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Photo by 89Stocker on Canva.
