We are seeing all the signs that the market is changing. As a result, buyers who wait to make offers because they think they have time on their side, like they did when the market was slower, are ultimately missing out on the property they love.

The past three properties we have sold have illustrated this point, so we thought we would share those three scenarios to ensure you don’t make the same mistakes.

Scenario 1
This property had been on the market for many months last year but failed to sell. A family had inspected it several times over a number of weeks. They talked about making an offer but were taking their time.

Finally they called Agent #1 and said they would like to put in an offer. In the meantime,

Agent #2 took a Buyer to view the property.

Agent #2 was aware there was an offer coming in, so they prompted their Buyer not to delay if they liked the property. As a result, their Buyer made an offer then and there.

Both offers were presented to the Seller and, in the end, the second buyer was successful in buying the property, as his offer was higher.

If the first Buyer had submitted their offer sooner, without competition, it probably would have been accepted.

Scenario 2
This property had been on the market for a few months but hadn’t sold yet. A family (Buyer #1) had inspected the property several times over a number of weeks, talked about making an offer but wanted to consider their options and look around some more.

In the meantime, a couple (Buyer #2) inspected the property twice and made an offer immediately following the Home Open. They realised there was strong interest from Buyer #1, so they offered full price. The Seller accepted their offer.

Buyer #1 missed out and is still searching for a property.

Scenario 3
This property had been on the market for a few months but hadn’t sold yet. A family had been considering it for a few weeks. Finally they made an offer and the Seller made a counter offer of $5,000 higher.

The Buyers didn’t respond for a couple of days.

In the meantime, another couple (Buyer #2) made an offer higher than the first offer.

Buyer #1 was given the opportunity to increase their offer, which they did, meeting the Seller’s original counter offer.

Had they just accepted the counter offer when the Seller made it, they would have been the successful Buyers. However the Seller knew there was an opportunity to get more from Buyer #2. As a result, the Seller accepted the second offer and Buyer #1 (the family) missed out.

The key lesson in all this is: if you think the market isn’t moving and you wait and wait to see if the price comes down on a property before you make an offer, you could miss out altogether!

SNOOZE, YOU LOSE!