Lower asking prices are attracting higher offers! This is the property advice that people seem to be struggling to understand… Last week was another busy week of valuing properties for people in Harringay, Hornsey, Wood Green and South Tottenham (areas of North London to anyone reading this from afar). 
I have noticed a distinct drop in the number of people actually putting their property on the market with my company immediately and a very sharp rise in people coming back, asking us to market their home after 8-12 weeks of marketing with another agent.
There is a very good reason for this… My advice relates to the ‘current market’ and is perhaps a little too accurate, which is not what everyone wants to hear! I spend a great deal of time explaining things and always point out that our job is not just to get their property on the market, it is to help them to move, and in the best financial way possible.
After 17 years of giving local folks sound property advice and steering clients through two recessions now, I am fascinated by the current housing market… it’s unpredictable and it’s changeable, there are some positive aspects to it, alongside many negative ones. I see great opportunities for people to trade up to bigger properties. Smart vendors realise that they may lose a little on their flat, but then gain more on the house they are buying. For us, it’s all about making their move fit with their individual circumstances.
There seem to be two types of vendors out there at present:
- Those who appear to be more ‘clued up’ - appreciating that it is a ‘buyers market’ (for a number of reasons) and are setting their asking prices to stand out and attract.
- Those who are not so in tune with the current market – They may realise it’s a buyers market, but they think that building a ‘negotiation cushion’ into the asking price will help them as they are expecting low offers! This in fact reduces their chances of getting the ‘fewer buyers’ through the door and potentially helps many other ‘competing properties’ to stand out.
Rightmove statistics show that buyers interest falls away drastically after the first week of a property being advertised! So my advice is… Get the price right from the start, not several weeks later!
Accurate Advice is key
I take great pride in giving people accurate advice and not just telling them what they want to hear! Yes I lose certain instructions, but am I losing sales? I don’t believe so… in fact we are gaining property instructions as people are returning after having found out the hard way. I think people are slowly realising that ‘experience and realism’ play a very big part in actually being able to move in a difficult market.
Lose the cushion!
It is not unusual for a high percentage of buyers to register for property alerts on websites such as Rightmove, Zoopla, FindaProperty, PrimeLocation, Globrix (and many others) and only contact the agent once they see a property that catches their eye. So… the worst thing a vendor can do in this market (in my opinion) is build in a big cushion to allow for negotiating.
Don’t ignore the Stats!
Rightmove statistics show that buyers interest falls away drastically after the first week of a property being advertised! So my advice is… Get the price right from the start, not several weeks later!
Offers
The reality is that YES, people will make offers, but at least they would have viewed the property in the first place if the asking price is correctly positioned! The task of any reputable and experienced Estate Agent is to negotiate any offer upwards on behalf of their client.
