Ninja in A Blazer - 1st September 2024

Welcome to another Ninja in a Blazer, the focus of this update is the potentially changing market and how to capitalize on the current market conditions to get the best outcome if you are thinking of selling.

Having sold property for a very long period of time we have had the opportunity to experience all the different markets and the one thing that is for sure is that as the market changes it is important to strategize and to change marketing strategy to get the best outcome in each different market.

The biggest risk to potential sellers when choosing an agent in the current market when choosing is that if you have chosen an agent that might have sold a lot of homes (since October 2021) the agent might not have the experience to realise that market conditions often change, and a change of strategy is required quickly to continue to gain great prices for any potential sellers. Whilst we’ve still seen some amazing prices, over the past month we have begun to witness the market conditions change. Let me first be clear, we are still sitting at the very peak of the market! We reassure you that the market is not falling so please don’t panic, however, what we have seen is that recent buyers’ activity has slowed down and we are generally receiving fewer offers across all properties (there are still some specific types of homes in certain areas that we are still seeing 20+ offers).  We may be coming to the point where the Fear Of Over Paying starts to overtake the Fear Of Missing Out.

What is the best strategy for the current market? 

Over the past 12 months we have generally been using the same strategy of marketing without a price (be it Auction of Private Treaty), running multiple offer homes usually over the first weekend with a closing date to create urgency and competition between buyers. In the current market we have had to make slight alterations to this strategy to ensure we continue to get great prices. We now advise clients to allow us to reach out pre-market to our extensive buyer agent network (180+ individuals) that work with interstate or time-poor local buyers to see if they are wanting to secure a specific home prior to going on the market. What we have found is that buyer’s agents with serious buyers are more likely to pay a premium and offer potential sellers the best conditions (including rent back) if they are given the opportunity to secure and negotiate prior to going on the market. 

Will this strategy work for all homes? 

The answer is no, as there are specific conditions that generally must be met for buyer’s agents to recommend their clients to purchase this includes ensuring that the home is not on the flood map, not close to or on main road, power lines as well as train station and trainline. If your home tick the right boxes there is a good chance they have a client that might be interested, however we may not recommend this additional strategy every time.

What happens if we do not get any interest? 

As this strategy is in addition to the normal strategy, we recommend our clients do everything as usual to getting the property ready in fact we generally will also suggest our clients to offer their homes to buyers’ agents once it’s presented for showing, pre-sale building and pest done (if this is the plan), any deal breaker issues fixed, and professional photos taken. This ensures that we put your home in the best position to receive the best offer and to showcase your home in the best light but at the same time if we don't get any prior interest we can literally launch to market within minutes and capitalize on the open buyer pool.

This is a general discussion and advice about the current market and strategy, please do not hesitate to reach out to discuss further. PS the off-market strategy works well with any potential sellers that are not 100% sure they’re selling, or only will sell if they get the price they want with little to no upfront cost as well as sellers that are looking for rent back as they have not secure their next home or waiting for their home to be built.