Tips for choosing the right asking price for your property in Chatham from your local estate agent.

How to value your Chatham property.

The true value of your property in Chatham is really dependent on what a buyer is prepared to pay. An experienced local Chatham estate agent with expertise and knowledge in Chatham will be able to give you a market appraisal and an estimate value of your home. Just because you bought your property for £300,000 5 years ago and have spent £25,000 on refurbishment and upgrades does not necessarily mean it is now worth £325,000.

How does a Chatham Estate Agent value my property?

What comparable property sales have happened in Chatham recently?

There should be several factors an estate agent takes into consideration when deciding on it’s value. Similar comparable properties that have sold locally to you in Chatham is the first place I start. These are of course time sensitive as the property market in Chatham could have changed from 3 months ago when that property was sold. A good Chatham Estate Agent will know all about the property market trends so will be best placed to advise. The comparable properties should be chosen by the distance from your property, how many bedrooms, the overall condition and the size measured by square feet or metres.

What properties are currently for sale and available to view in Chatham?

Property prices in Chatham just like anywhere in Medway are driven by supply and demand. Therefore if there are several properties available for sale in your street that are similar to yours then buyers have choice therefore the prices will be effected negatively. On the flip side, if you will be the only 3 bedroom property for sale in Chatham when you go on the market then this will drive your price up due to the lack of supply in the area. Furthermore, if you have a 3 bedroom property and for just £10,000 more a buyer can go and buy a very similar 4 bedroom property a few roads down then it is advisable to increase your price gap to entice viewers away from that property and into yours.

How many valuations from Estate Agents should I get on my Chatham property?

My advice would be to select 3 Chatham estate agents with a good track record and local knowledge. This way you can make an informed decision about who you feel most comfortable working with and trusting them with the sale of your biggest tax free asset. Also, getting 3 valuations will help you feel more comfortable and give you piece of mind about the price to launch to the market at. To get a free no obligation valuation from me click here.

What to do if you’ve had 3 valuations and 1 estate agent has said a much higher price than the other 2?

t’s only natural for a seller to be attracted towards employing the estate agent that has given the highest value. This can often happen when an estate agent is inexperienced in the Chatham area so is not an expert on prices or they are desperate for business so they think by over valuing your property will guarantee them the business. Ask them how they have arrived at that price and what evidence can they show to back it up. If they are confident ask them to work on a 2 week trial basis initially for them to prove their ability to you. The sole job of your marketing price is to attract viewers to your door, this has no relevance to it’s value. For further insights on how to select the right estate agent to sell your Chatham home click here.

Is the marketing price of my Chatham home the final fixed price that I will get?

A good Chatham estate agent will present you with marketing strategies on how to achieve the best possible price in the time scales that suit your needs. Depending on other similar properties available in Chatham and the market conditions at the time, you may be advised to market your Chatham property for ‘Offers Over’ or ‘Offers In Excess Of’ in order to appeal to a wider buyer pool to get more viewings. Often sellers walk away with more than the marketing price in this instance than if they had marketed at a higher price because the volume of viewers created competition. The price you achieve will also depend on your estate agents negotiation ability and strategies with a buyer. This can be the difference in thousands of pounds in your pocket.

Why it’s important not to overvalue your Chatham property.

When buying a property in Chatham buyers make decisions based on 4 things they see instantly. The address of where the property is, what it looks like in the photos, how many bedrooms it has and what it’s up for sale for. The only thing you can control here is the marketing price. Make sure to get it right from day one.

What do I do if my Chatham property isn’t selling?

Your Chatham estate agent should be providing you with a marketing update once a week at least. As the expert, they should be advising you on what’s working well and if there’s anything you should change. You should be monitoring the changes in the Chatham property market and if there are any new properties available that could be competition to you. It may be necessary to improve your marketing price and make it more attractive to buyers. Understandably, sellers are reluctant to do this, however in some cases a property get’s reduced by £5000 and it sells for £5000 more than it was originally on the market for because of the surge in buyer demand. For more insights into why your Chatham property isn’t selling click here.