One of the worst times anyone can list their property for sale is in a “cold market.”
The cold market, in real estate, is defined as a period whereby there are more homes available for sale than buyers to purchase them.
Guess that takes you back to high school economics knowledge, right? Yes, the cold market is just another example of the demand-and-supply principle.
But if it is as bad as we’ve said it is for sellers, does that mean one cannot sell their property during this period at all? Well, Far from it!
To a certain extent, the real estate market obeys the demand and supply principle, but with some little tweaking, it can also deviate from the principle.
By now, I’m sure you’re already getting an inkling of the answer to the question posed earlier. Yes, you can sell during the cold market!
In fact, if you play your cards right, you can even find very fast home buyers in a cold market. But, of course, you’ll have to do just that – play your cards right!
In that light, here are some tested-and-trusted tips to guide you through the process.
Improve your curb appeal
Selling a property isn’t always about the pricing. With the right appeal, a property can sell itself to a target buyer even though its price overrides that of its closest competition.
In a situation like a cold market, where supply outstrips demand, it’s more important for you to improve your home’s curb appeal than to drop its list price. The reason is that while pricing will, no doubt, draw the few available buyers to your property, it is the property’s curb appeal that will set it apart from the competition. So, even in a market like the cold market, improving your home’s curb appeal before you list it for sale is a very crucial part of the process.
And a perfect way to go about this is by sprucing the place up – investing in remodeling, repainting, landscaping, and adding some modern state-of-the-art features to the house.
Sell through a reputable platform
Take it or leave it, the fact that you suddenly wish to sell your property doesn’t automatically make you a realtor, meaning that you might not be able to convince a buyer to make a purchase, especially in a cold market. If you’re looking to sell your property fast and for an excellent price too in a cold market, you should look to sell through a reputable platform. The cold market doesn’t present too many buyers, which means that attempting to sell by yourself or via a random realtor might not yield the kind of result you desire.
For instance, if you have a property for sale in-and-around regions such as Detroit you might want to use platforms like the 810 Home Buyers to find a great local home buying company. Platforms like these are highly reputable, with the perfect networks in their regions. So, if you work with them for the sale of your property, you can rest assured that your house is as good as sold.
Get rid of the clutter
One of the biggest reasons why it is so difficult to sell a property during the cold market is not only because there are too few buyers, but also because there are so many properties of similar quality and condition. So, when any of the limited buyers approach a property or just look it up, they know already whether or not they’d be interested. And one very good way to compel their interest is to declutter the property. As much as possible, you need to make the property appear clean and uncluttered. Listing your property as neatly used will go a long way in convincing the few buyers that are there in a cold market.
Offer perks
Let’s face it; many homebuyers know when the market is cold, neutral, or hot. As a result, they ride their luck and push sellers to the limit, knowing that if a certain seller refuses to accept their mediocre offer, they will jump to the next house.
But a very good way to convince this kind of buyer to buy from you is to offer something to wow them. For starters, you can offer some perks like offering to help them pay the closing costs or offering them a small allowance to help aid any improvement they wish to do on the property. Just think of something that you feel would wow you if you were in their shoes.
This kind of generosity can help in attracting and convincing them to buy from you.
Make it move-in ready
It is well established that when people buy homes, they still need to add some few touches to make the home perfect for their use. Now, what if you can make your own property move-in ready? In a cold market, you can entice buyers with the promise of a home that’s ready for them to move in. Even if the house isn’t move-in ready as at listing, you can promise to fix all that is there to be fixed and even fix them per the buyer’s taste without requesting a dime from them.
Price flexibility
Now, back to the knowledge of demand and supply. Whenever supply outweighs demand, the principle suggests that price drops, right? Well, to beat your competitions and also compel buyers into making their purchase from you, you might need to be more flexible with your price.
Even though you may have no idea what their budgets are, you can list your property with the caption “highly negotiable – open to listening to your offers.” Not only will this attract potential buyers to your property, but it will also give them a favorable ground to begin negotiations.
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