When you’re selling a home, an off-market sale can seem like the best option. However, in the current Brisbane climate, you could risk significantly underselling your home.
It’s no secret that the Brisbane Property Market is currently picking up some much-anticipated traction, with no signs of slowing down. In fact, certain parts of the market are reporting the highest level of activity they’ve had in years. Greater economic certainty, low-interest rates, hundreds of billions of dollars of stimulus, and rising consumer confidence are the main drivers of this, producing an incredibly active market in the latter part of the year in what is being dubbed our post-COVID market or rebound.
Within the Place group, we are seeing incredible success with Auctions, with consistent clearance rates of 80% or higher. On top of that, in these running sectors of the market, properties are getting snapped up incredibly quickly by buyers who are ready to go, highlighting that we are not winding down for Christmas. Let’s face it, we would hardly expect to see the same patterns we have seen in previous years, all things considered.
So, what does all this mean if you’re considering selling?
To put it simply, it means that it’s a better time than ever to put your home on the market and get it seen – we’re expiring some of the most favourable conditions we’ve seen in the last decade. At the crux of this is supply and demand.
Buyer demand is surging due to the current conditions, with large numbers of new buyers entering the market every week. It’s climates like the one we are experiencing right now, where, in my opinion, sellers should avoid dealing with one buyer off-market.
Why? Increased buyer demand, generates competition which will more often than not extract a better result, being a higher sale price. In this running market, sellers need to consider the opportunity cost of accepting an off-market offer without gauging further interest or competition. Though it might seem quick and easy, you could miss the opportunity to expose your home to a pool of buyers who if presented the opportunity, could aggressively compete.
Essentially, taking the first off-market offer in the current Brisbane climate might leave money on the table for a seller. Conditions like this don’t come around often, so it’s important that we, as Agents working for a seller, work to get the best possible outcome. Don’t get me wrong, there are times where the market is slower and prices are stable, and a single-buyer sale will achieve a fair price that truly reflects the market.
Keeping in mind, when I refer to off-market, I explicitly refer to a deal done when only one buyer is shown through the property. In the current climate, a single buyer sale favours a buyer, because they have a fear of competition and know they will have to pay more if put into a combative situation. An initial 10-14 day off-market period where numerous buyers are taken through the property can start to generate competition and may get an outstanding result and if not, moving through to advertising will widen the market.
We’re seeing Auctions with an average of 5 registered bidders, Top Offer and Tender Campaigns Closing with multiple offers on the table because people have more reason than ever to move and conditions are making it easier than normal. These sectors that are running, are really running.
With the borders now open to New South Wales and Victoria, we can only expect these new buyers to flood the market which will consequently put even more pressure on local buyers. These interstate buyers are also used to paying more for properties, so the price increases we are seeing here, will not be a deterrent. Add in the fact that there is no international travel and, we can only expect this year to end strong and continue into early 2021.
If you’re considering selling, or an agent trying to get potential sellers over the line, the message is clear; there is no better time than now to list your home and take advantage of the remarkably strong Brisbane property market.
This article was originally published on The Real Estate Conversation.
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