Houses that won't sell
Houses that won't sell. You know the ones. Those that have been sitting on the market for over 3 months. Why is this and what can be done about it.
I believe that there is one simple reason why a house won't sell.
It's simply overpriced.
There is a market for every house in New Zealand, at the right price. The difficulty is finding out what that price might be.
This is compounded by the fact that we are all greedy by nature. We all want top dollar. And what is top dollar anyway? We have no idea! That's why real estate agents put properties up for tender or auction.
By doing this agents are 'testing the market' to see who is out there and keen to purchase. Once they know that they can work on the buyers to ensure they pay top dollar.
But what if 'top-dollar' never arrives? What happens next.
There comes a time when the property is ultimately priced. Here's where the wheels can fall off big time!
The owner may have in inflated price in their head. This can come about for a number of reasons:
None of the above reason are based on any logic.
The only way of working out what a house is really worth is carry out a property analysis of its strengths and weaknesses, and then compare that, dispassionately, with a good sample of similar homes that have sold recently in the same neighbourhood.
This is the task that a Registered Property Valuer completes when assessing the value of a property.
If you overprice your property it could sit on the market for months and drive you crazy. I urge you to get professional, independent advice prior to selling, and try not to get too greedy!
I believe that there is one simple reason why a house won't sell.
It's simply overpriced.
There is a market for every house in New Zealand, at the right price. The difficulty is finding out what that price might be.
This is compounded by the fact that we are all greedy by nature. We all want top dollar. And what is top dollar anyway? We have no idea! That's why real estate agents put properties up for tender or auction.
By doing this agents are 'testing the market' to see who is out there and keen to purchase. Once they know that they can work on the buyers to ensure they pay top dollar.
But what if 'top-dollar' never arrives? What happens next.
There comes a time when the property is ultimately priced. Here's where the wheels can fall off big time!
The owner may have in inflated price in their head. This can come about for a number of reasons:
- The agent has 'bought' the listing - given the owner an inflated price to get them to sign up based on greed.
- The Rating Valuation is way off the mark and the owner is basing the sale price on this.
- The owner has seen some other house down the street sell for a big price and thinks theirs is just as good, or better.
None of the above reason are based on any logic.
The only way of working out what a house is really worth is carry out a property analysis of its strengths and weaknesses, and then compare that, dispassionately, with a good sample of similar homes that have sold recently in the same neighbourhood.
This is the task that a Registered Property Valuer completes when assessing the value of a property.
If you overprice your property it could sit on the market for months and drive you crazy. I urge you to get professional, independent advice prior to selling, and try not to get too greedy!
Next Article: Buying Property: The 5 Golden Rules