Pricing

In the Byron Bay area, principal at Byron Bay First National Real Estate, Chris Hanley, says that homes in the area take much longer to sell than in the city. Sixty to ninety days is the city average, but in our area it can be between 6 months and upwards, depending on the price.

In our local market, price is the determining factor in the time it takes to sell a property. In many parts of Australia the vendors have over the last few years realised that if they want to move they have to place a realistic price on their property and it will be sold.

Vendors in this region are still in a transition phase and some are listening to the agents and choosing realistic listing prices whilst others falsely believe the market is still at peak 2003-2004 prices.

Mr Hanley says that buyers today are so well researched and informed through the internet that they know prices of property and comparative value from their study of the market.

Also with pricing, it is vital to get it right from the first day on the market. Why? Because the first 3-4 weeks of a home hitting the market is the prime selling time. There are educated but unsatisfied buyers waiting in the wings for new listings but if your price is wrong they look and leave and do not even make an offer because they realise that the new listing will probably want to wait before they adjust their price to the market.

At Byron Bay First National we believe the key to pricing is information. We provide our clients with objective independent information regarding all the sales in the area and we help them place their property in the right price range in our market place.

It doesn't matter about the location of a property – if it is too expensive it will generally not sell and will sit for long periods unsold in our market.

If you want to be kept informed of the values in your local area, contact Byron Bay First National Real Estate for their unique pictorial market report, information that is available free every quarter.