One thing that any homeowner wants to know is what their property is worth, whether it is because they are thinking to sell, refinance or just want to brag about it.
We can all get an idea of what our property is worth by checking out what similar properties are being marketed for nearby and comparing them to what we have. But this tells us what people are asking for, not necessarily what is being paid for them. Most estate agents nowadays can look back through historical sales in specific areas to show the advertised prices of properties that are currently sold subject to contract and even achieved prices of completed sales, giving a clearer picture of what people are prepared to pay for somewhere. This gives agents an idea of top prices in the area, as well as the average prices in the area, but one of the most useful things in this data is how long properties are taking to sell. All of this information comes together when finding the right price for a property, and its owner.
It can be easy to be misled on the value of your property when looking to sell, as some agents will be more interested in winning your instruction than they are in providing accurate and correct advice. The best way to safeguard against this is to ask to see the evidence, any agent should be able to show you the reasoning as to why they think your property is worth what they say it is. As nice as it is to hear someone telling you your home is worth lots of money, or more than you thought it might be, you are statistically more likely to achieve a higher price when selling if the property is priced right the first time around, rather than reducing the price further down the line as this can come across to some buyers as a signal that you are open to a lower offer.
Likewise, if the property is on at the original price for a long time it will end up further down on search results on the marketing portals which can again lead to people thinking that it has been on for a long time as there is something wrong with it. Therefore you are always best to get 3 or more agents round to value so you can spot more easily if one is not in line with the others this may suggest they are trying to tell you what you want to hear, rather than what they actually think.
With anything in this world people want what other people want, so to achieve the best price when selling you need to make your property appeal to the largest number of people and properties that receive offers in the first two weeks of marketing statistically achieve the higher final sale price.
If you've got any questions about this blog, valuing property, or want to know what your property is worth, please feel free to email me at robert@eightfold.agency. Equally, if you think your property has been listed at the wrong price, I'd be more than happy to come and re-appraise it for you.
For an instant idea on your property value, click here.