Selling This Winter

Ready to spend winter in a new home, or are you letting go of one of your investments? Either way, you need to prepare your home, expectations and start actioning a few things on your to-do list. Read on for our key tips on selling this winter.

Styling Your Home As A Winter Warmer

One thing that you want to ensure this winter when preparing to sell is that your home feels warm and inviting for prospective buyers when they visit for an inspection. Yes, this is important all year round, but during winter we have less warm light to work with and many more gloomy days that will shroud your home in a cold ambience. This is particularly true for apartments that don’t receive much natural light. Using colour, lighting and ‘wintery’ materials such as wool will all work to make your home feel warmer. Engaging with a property stylist will really help you in this area. Professional stylists have access to a wide range of furnishings and accessories that work to make your home feel more inviting, and most importantly, enticing.

What To Expect During Open Homes

Fewer people will brave the cold weather to attend open homes in Winter, however, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing as they are likely serious about their property hunt more motivated to buy. There will most likely be less stock available to inspect, so people will spend more time wandering around your home and hopefully, imagining themselves living there. A key tip is to try and schedule your open homes for when your home makes the most of natural light, for example, this might be mid-afternoon when the sunshine through your home best. Lastly, if it is forecast to rain that day consider leaving a welcome mat or towel at the entrance so people can dry their shoes before they inspect your home.

Auction Time

If you have decided to sell your property at auction, the season doesn’t typically have a large impact, if a buyer is highly interested then they will be an active bidder. Before you head into the auction, have an honest conversation with your real estate agent about price. Your expectations need to be realistic (they should be set as such from the very start of the selling process) which will help you come to a reserve price that will be reasonable for you and the market you are selling in. The reserve price should also be informed based on the feedback you have received from open homes. On the day, your property officially goes on the market when the reserve price has been met. If your property gets passed in there is no need to stress, you can negotiate with the highest bidder or schedule another auction. You may even find that you are able to get a price you are looking for outside of an auction environment, the key here is having a smart and experienced real estate team on your side.