Homeowners can cut up to two months off the average time it takes to sell a property by getting the asking price right from the start.
Everitt says what was really revealing, though, was that homes which were more than 10% overpriced to start with took anything up to 180 days to sell - and then generally only sold when the initial asking price was reduced by around 20%.
So says Berry Everitt, MD of the Chas Everitt International property group, who points out that sellers who do this stand to save a substantial amount in holding costs, as well as sparing themselves a lot of anxiety and stress.
According to a recent FNB survey, he says the current average time for a home to be on the market before it is sold was 106 days.
“But a recent analysis of our sales in various areas around the country revealed that homeowners who make use of our Market Value Report to determine the correct asking price at the start of the marketing process are achieving a sale in an average of 44 days,” says Everitt.
He says the savings they achieve through this two-month reduction in selling time can be considerable. “On a home bonded for R850 000, for example, the monthly repayment will be about R7 700 at the moment, while the costs of municipal rates and services, insurance, maintenance and security will add up to around R4000 at least.”
So for every month that the homeowner can cut the listing time of his property, says Everitt, he will be saving around R12 000, “which he could perhaps use to pay a bigger deposit so as to reduce the monthly bond repayments on a new home.”
The potential to reduce selling times by pricing correctly is also especially relevant at the moment, Everitt says, because of the very long transfer registration times being experienced due to Deeds Office delays.
“The average period between sale and registration is now around 114 days, or almost four months, and home sellers cannot access the proceeds of their sale until registration is complete, so it is important to get the process started as soon as possible by selling quickly.”
Further analysis of recent sales figures, he says, revealed just how big an effect the wrong initial asking price can have on achieving that objective. “Homes that were between 5% and 8% overpriced to start with took 77 days to sell, while those that were 8% to 10% overpriced took 117 days to sell, on average.
He says what was really revealing, though, was that homes which were more than 10% overpriced to start with took anything up to 180 days to sell - and then generally only sold when the initial asking price was reduced by around 20%. “Meanwhile, the sellers also lost out on at least four months worth of holding costs.”
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