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Gold Coast Real Estate with Michael Conrick

Your guide to buying and selling real estate on the Gold Coast, QLD

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Tips for Sellers

A few tips for a quick sale…

In most cases, once the decision has been made by a home owner that they want to sell, they usually want the sale completed quickly and with a minimum of fuss and bother. After all, keeping your home clean and tidy at all times and then having strangers traipse through at any time of the day or night can get a little tiring. So what can sellers do at their end to make the sale process happen quickly?

Research the marketplace
The first step is to educate yourself by researching the market and, more importantly, your competition. Attend open homes to check out other properties for sale in your local area in the same price bracket. What makes them appea lin g and what turns you off? Listen to comments from other people at the inspection. Don’t just rely on the asking price though. It is paramount you research recent sales too. Sold prices are a true indication of realistic property values.

Pre-sale preparation
Having your home presented well is one of the main things any home owner can do to ensure their property sells quickly and for a good price. Depending on the budget, there are a range of things that can be done to spruce up a property and make it more appealing to buyers. With enough hands and the right advice you may even have the place sale-worthy in one weekend.
If your budget is limited then cleaning and de-cluttering are the first steps – all you need are some cleaning products, a little elbow grease and a ruthless eye. Where necessary, wash down walls and cei lin gs. If carpets are very dirty consider hiring a steam cleaning kit or employ a professional if the budget allows. Use floor rugs to hide bad stains. The next step is to de-clutter. The goal is to make rooms look bigger by removing unnecessary furniture and knick knacks that make a room feel overdone and messy. For inspiration check out furniture catalogues and design magazines. Consider adding inexpensive design accessories such as scatter cushions, lamps, picture frames and fresh flowers.

With any house sale it is paramount the kitchen and bathroom look clean, fresh and neat. Remove excess clutter from benchtops. Don’t overlook inside the cupboards though. Any interested buyer will want to check cupboard space so it’s no good having a clean exterior if inside your cupboards is dirty and messy.

If your budget stretches a little further then you might consider minor improvements that can be done quickly by a home handyperson. A fresh coat of paint can make the world of difference to tired walls and cei lin gs and will get rid of any lin gering smells. Updating old and damaged b lin ds and light fittings will instantly lift a room that is looking a little dated.

A complete bathroom or kitchen renovation is not only costly but takes time. Sometimes replacing one or two items such as tapware, bathroom vanity or shower screen, along with a fresh coat of paint, can instantly freshen these rooms.
Don’t overlook or neglect your outdoor areas. Hit your local nursery and stock up on pot plants – you can always take these with you when you move. Use flowering annuals to add splashes of colour and indoor plants to add life to dark shady areas of your garden. Your entry should invite buyers to inspect further so don’t overlook your front door and entry hall.
If you have a larger budget but are short on time, employ the professionals. A pre-sale stylist can cast a professional eye over your home and provide impartial advice. They can assist with furniture hire and storage if some of your belongings need to be removed temporarily.

Your first open home
Once you have completed your pre-sale makeover and employed a real estate agent to take care of the sale, the next step is to prepare for the open homes. If you are sel lin g in winter get rid of these stale, musty winter smells by opening doors and windows early in the morning. Once the home smells fresh, close them up and turn on heaters so the home is warm and inviting for visitors. Use fresh flowers to add colour and sweet, natural smells.
You should not be present during inspections (unless the agent expressly asks you to). It can put buyers off making them feel like they are imposing. If you have a dog, take them with you. Where possible, leave parking spaces free around the property for buyers. You are spending a lot of money on advertising and it’s a shame if people are turned away because they can’t find a park.

Finally, your goal is to ensure that your property presents at its best and is price comparable to others for sale. The rest is up to your real estate agent who, through a well devised marketing campaign, will attract buyers to inspect and work hard to negotiate a quick sale. Good luck and should you be considering selling please contact our office for obligation free advice and guidance

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One last set of great signboards

28A & 28B Somerset Ave, Clearview, marketed by Bruse Real Estate. Sign features a catchy corportae colour scheme, with a large floorplan of the proposed property (which is now completed), and a few bullet points to describe the home. Not sure about the picture of the plant, but it does add some eye catching colour!
9/55 Grasswren Way, Mawson Lakes, marketed by Realize Properties. This sign does a good job of showing off the features of the complex with a large shot of the pool as well as the gym, although a wider angle shot of the kitchen would be nice. The floorplan is a great addition too.
Mawson Lakes home, marketed by Frank Franze at RE/MAX. The photo of the lovely outdoor entertaining area really catches your attention when passing the board and the smaller pictures draw you in for a closer look. Maybe a bit much text for my liking, but it seems to work. Interestingly, this is one of the few signs I've seen that doesn't have the address of the property written on it.
This sign in Mawson Lakes from Woolmore Walsh looks pretty classy, and features two nice interior shots. Maybe a bit much space wasted by the company branding that could be used for bigger photos, but I think it still does the job well.
28 Grasswren Way, Mawson Lakes, marketed by Michael Fenn at LJ Hooker. This sign uses the available space very well to show three great shots on the interior and entertaining area. It's a shame that the home isn't furnished though, otherwise it's a winner. Also has a website address including a code to get directly to the property details.
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More examples of great signboards

Here’s a few more great signs that I’ve spotted in my travels. All feature a captivating photo to draw in the buyers.

5/5-7 Cleve St, Norwood, marketed by Sandy Mount at Harris Real Estate. Another great example of using colour to capture the attention of anyone passing by. Harris Real Estate's bright pink corporate colour stands out miles away. The sign features a great interior shot, a very brief description, and the agent's website.
Another great sign from Toop, which shows off the tennis court out the back, and again features the property's individual website address.
24B Eighth Ave, St Peters, marketed by Soffey Kari at Ray White. A great example of what to do when marketing a vacant block. Normally, it wouldn
62B Robert Ave, Clearview, marketed by Brock Harcourts. As this home is situated behind a high fence, a photo really is necessary to capture a buyers attention. This photo highlights the space of the living area, although I probably would have chosen a different angle to show off more of the kitchen. This sign features a QR Code which can be photographed with a smart phone to immediately see the internet listing
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Open home tip: make it sparkle!

Modern kitchen
Image via Wikipedia

It goes without saying that your home should be sparkly clean when selling, but it’s amazing how many homes are poorly presented on open day. A clean house is a well cared for house. If a buyer sees that you don’t take pride in the appearance of the home, they’re likely to wonder if you care about the maintenance of the home and will seek out faults.

Here’s a few quick points that should be attended to before every open inspection:

  • Make sure the front garden is neat and presentable with freshly mowed lawns. First impressions count and it’s amazing how many people stop at an open and then drive off without coming in because the frontage isn’t appealing.
  • Carpets, rugs and lounges should be cleaned before going on the market and regularly vacuumed.
  • Hard floors should be swept and mopped.
  • Odurs should be eliminated. Nothing turns off buyers quicker than smells like stale cigarette smoke, dirty kitty litter, inside dogs and blocked drains.
  • Thoroughly clean your kitchen and bathroom. Tiles and mirrors should shine, and grout should be free of mould. Hang up some nice quality towels that compliment the colour scheme.
  • Dust the furniture and window sills, and remove any pesky cobwebs. Also give the skirting boards a wipe.
  • Declutter! Things you live with everyday might go unnoticed to you, but will be quickly noticed by potential buyers. Put away knick knacks and throw out old newspapers.
  • Make sure there are no dirty dishes in the sink, clear off the kitchen benches to highlight space, and remove magnets from the refrigerator.
  • Ensure there is nothing left hanging on the clothes line.
  • If you’re time poor, consider getting a professional cleaner in every few weeks. It will be a great investment.

And make sure to keep the presentation standard up for the duration of the marketing. Most people get enthusiastic about presentation for the first few weeks, but if the home hasn’t sold quickly, the presentation standard soon starts to slip. Week by week, it gets harder to motivate yourself to spend a Saturday morning cleaning up, but hang in there as it will all be worth it when the perfect buyer is found.

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What does ‘discounting’ really mean?

The term ‘discounting’ is being thrown around quite a bit in the media lately. With the overall market being pretty soft and gently sliding downwards, there are plenty of news stories about vendors having to ‘discount’ their homes to get a sale.

If you jump onto Domain.com.au, and click the ‘Reports’ menu item, you can view a list of statistics for any suburb in Australia. For example, Hope Island properties on the northern end of the Gold Coast:

Hope Island Statistics from domain.com.au - 30/10/2011

This shows an average current discounting level of 15.9% compared to 10.9% for the Gold Coast Council area.

The ‘Discounting’ figure is based on the difference between the advertised price when a property is first listed for sale compared to what it actually sells for.

The basic interpretation of this figure which commonly crops up in the media is that if vendors have to discount their home by 15.9%, then that must mean that the average value of a property in the area has dropped by 15.9%. This, of course, is complete rubbish.

Consider this analogy: if a car yard has a Commodore on the lot with a Redbook value of $10,000 and they set the price at $12,000, then proceed to advertise it in the paper as the special of the week for $10,000, are you really getting a $2,000 discount if you buy it for $10,000?

Most vendors want more than their property is worth, this is just human nature. And likewise, buyers want to pay less than a property is worth. Whilst real estate has no ‘recommended retail price’, it is relatively easy to determine what is ‘good value’ for a property based on recent sales of similar local properties. Whether or not a vendor chooses to advertise their property at a good value price, or choose a higher price to test the market and leave some room to negotiate is up to them.

In the case of Hope Island real estate shown above, where the average time on market is 267 day, chances are that some of the discounting is due to a fall in the market in that 9 month period, but most of that will be due to vendors overpricing their property in the early stage of the marketing campaign.

And when your home has been on the market that long, all you are going to attract is bargain hunters, so it will probably be necessary to accept a price less than market value in order to move on.

It is also interesting to note that there is generally a direct relationship between the ‘Days on market’ and the ‘Discounting’ number. Suburbs with a shorter average sale time will have less discounting. This can pretty much be attributed to more sellers pricing their property realistically from day one to get a good price in a short time, rather than being stuck on the market going stale.

So don’t let discounting figures scare you. Just make sure that you’re not a statistic by pricing your property well, marketing it well, and engaging the services of a great agent that will work their butt off for you, so that your time on market and discounting figure is way below average, and your sale price is above average.

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What makes a good signboard?

As a followup to my recent post about the necessity of a signboard when selling your home, I thought I’d take a quick drive around and get some snaps of some boards that I think capture the essence of a great marketing tool. Luckily for Adelaide home sellers, the quality of marketing services available to real estate businesses is outstanding and most agents take full advantage of them. Here’s a few samples of signs that have caught my eye…

North Terrace, Adelaide, marketed by Oren Klemich at Klemich Real Estate. Not a great photo on my part, snapped quickly while stopped at the traffic lights. This sign for a city property marketed by Klemich is simple and to the point. One large photo highlighting the grand entrance, contact details for the agent and a website. Simple but catching.
31 Sydenham Rd, Norwood, marketed by Sally Turner at Toop&Toop. I love the Toop signs, clean and simple. A vibrant colour section at the top to catch your attention, a large interior shot, agent contact number, and an individual property web address with a picture of an iPhone next to it. No descriptive text to clutter up the sign.
34 Chappel St, Norwood, marketed by Anne & Simon Tait at GaryJSmith Real Estate. This sign caught my eye from a fair way down the street. GaryJSmith use a vibrant blue as their corporate colour which really stands out. A great shot highlighting the courtyard is the main feature of the sign with a few brief bullet points and the company website with a web ID.
30/62 William St, Norwood, marketed by Matt Smith at Klemich. What do you do when a property doesn't have a hero shot? Use a big picture showing the benefits of the area. This sign is for a small unit in Norwood which is a short walk from the cafe strip, so a lifestyle shot was a great idea. Clean, uncluttered sign, no descriptive text, just the contact details and the agent website.

I’ve got pictures of quite a few more from other businesses, but I’ll save them for a future post. I’ll be keeping an eye out for some signboards that I think are pretty poor and put together a post with my thoughts. Stay tuned!

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Do I really need a sign board in front of my house?

green for sale sign
Image by Diana Parkhouse via Flickr

I’m often questioned about the necessity of a signboard when I’m discussing a marketing plan with a new client. A common concern is that people don’t want their neighbours to know that their home is coming on the market, and they don’t think that a sign will generate any interest when most buyers look for their new home on the internet.

My thoughts are that, even in the internet age, a good signboard is still an important part of your marketing plan. Now when I say good, I don’t mean a cheap and nasty corflute board cable tied to a wooden stake. These things are next to useless. The sign needs to be a top quality item that captures the attention of people passing through the neighbourhood.

For a sign to be worthwhile, it must have:

  • An attention grabbing photo of the most important aspect of the home, such as a swimming pool, entertaining area, games room with pool table, chef’s kitchen, etc.
  • A very brief but captivating description in a typeface that is readable by someone sitting in their car
  • A website address or a QR Code that will go straight to the online details of the property so that a potential buyer can view more pictures or watch a video tour immediately on their iPhone
  • And of course, the agent’s personal contact details so they can call to book a viewing.

The idea of all of this is to capture the interest of someone who may not have seen the property on the internet. It may be someone who isn’t actively searching for a new home but is captivated by the photo. It may be someone who is searching, but hasn’t searched for properties in your suburb, spotted the sign while visiting one of your neighbours, and again was captivated by the photo. It may be someone who is attending the open home of another property up the road who may not have considered your home, but was captivated by the photo. Spot the recurring theme?

A good signboard should be a tool to drive more buyers to the internet advertising, and incase you didn’t pick it up, a great quality photo of the most important feature of your home really is cruical to make it an effective tool in your marketing campaign.

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