In a tightening market, buyers want value. In this blog, we discuss how best to improve and emphasise your property’s value when taking it to market.
As well as presentation, critical to informing how you present your property value is to decide on your target market. So what types of attributes do the different buyer groups find valuable? Read on for a few suggestions.
Key considerations when looking at value
To paraphrase a famous ad, ‘Buyers ain’t buyers’ and what is valuable to one buyer might prove to be an annoyance for another. So what types of attributes do buyers find valuable?
– Proximity to schools, recreational facilities
Young families in Western Sydney seek top-quality education for their children and green space, while younger professional couples or singles welcome recreational facilities. Older buyers often seek properties close to a golf club, a community centre with exercise classes, or a bowls club.
Young families need access to a shopping centre and medical facilities.
Older buyers also appreciate access to health care.
– Local employment opportunities
Young professionals welcome the opportunity of high-quality work close to home. Buyers and tenants will overlook minor inconveniences if they can reduce their commute to and from work.
– Proximity to restaurants and entertainment
Young professionals, older buyers and young couples without children are attracted to a vibrant café culture and cultural activities. Older buyers welcome cultural attractions nearby.
– Top-of-the-range appliances
Young busy professionals will appreciate top-quality appliances like dishwasher, washer/dryer and cooker. This group knows their brands so if you want to attract them as buyers or tenants, don’t skimp on the quality.
– Hardwood floors
Young professionals and young families are generally attracted by wooden flooring. Older buyers and renters typically prefer carpet.
– Outdoor entertaining area
A perfectly paved and beautifully maintained outdoor space is the equivalent of an extra room, especially if it’s partly under cover. This space gives buyers or tenants more equivalent square metres of living space so it is a valuable addition to your home.
– Separate laundry
Young families and older couples prefer separate laundry. Busy young professionals are satisfied with a laundry cupboard.
– Energy-efficient and/or smart home
Older buyers or tenants on fixed incomes will appreciate a property that uses mostly passive heating and cooling. Younger professionals and young families are not only budget-conscious but also climate change conscious and are prepared to pay a premium for a home that uses less energy or uses renewable energy.
Perceived value: what is it and how can you use it in your home?
Perceived value is what the product (in our case, property) is worth to the buyer or renter. This perceived value might not have much relationship to the actual market value; it’s all about what the buyer believes is valuable to him or her.
In property terms, we find that a number of things can add to perceived value: decluttering to maximise floor space, polishing wooden furniture with beeswax (it smells more expensive and luxurious), a well-dressed main entry, marble or granite bathroom tiles (a little goes a long way towards perceived luxury) a frameless shower screen.
A master bedroom with an en suite bathroom boosts perceived value, as does a separate powder room.
At the other end of the scale, we know that the less work the buyer believes they need to do when they move in, the more the perceived value. So freshly painted walls and new floor coverings, while not expensive, can add enormously to the perceived value. A tidy front and back yard, no obvious maintenance and clean exterior paintwork all increase the perceived value of your property.
Communicating your property’s value
Once you’ve identified your ideal buyer or tenant, it’s time to market your property, highlighting the features you know will appeal. If some features of your property are part of the property, you might need to do some work to bring that area or areas up to standard. For example, if your outdoor entertaining area is looking a bit sad, hire a pressure washer to wash down paving and any outdoor furniture you’re supplying, clean the barbecue if it’s part of your property, and tidy the backyard (mow the lawn, trim shrubs and pot plants, etc.)
Remember, you can always change your marketing plan.
If your marketing campaign isn’t generating interest, it might be time to rethink your target market.
Get the marketing basics right
Buyers and renters alike expect to find good-quality photos of the property along with a comprehensive description. They look for information about the neighbourhood, transport links nearby, and school catchment areas.
What buyers and renters want isn’t always what they fall in love with
Remember perceived value. Your potential buyer or tenant might have set out on their property journey with fixed ideas about the number of bedrooms they need, the price they want to pay or they start off looking for certain features. If you’ve presented your property well, highlighted its particular advantages, and boosted the perceived value, you can entice buyers or renters into believing that your property is their ideal property ‒ although it might not be what they thought they wanted.
A buyer or tenant who looks for an energy-efficient home is often seduced by air conditioning, particularly just after Christmas. Someone who’s specified that they want a large backyard can be persuaded to accept a smaller yard if they have a good entertainment area.
In short, your beautifully presented home can appeal to the emotions and override logic.
If you’d like help with identifying your home’s best features and ideal target market, please give any one of our team a call. We’re always happy to help.
