Summary
When interviewing agents to sell your home, it can be tempting to choose the person who gives you the highest appraisal.
After all, if one agent believes your property is worth $3 million and another suggests $2.7 million, why wouldn’t you choose the first?
The problem is that an appraisal isn’t an offer.
A good sales strategy starts with understanding what buyers are likely to pay, then choosing the agent and campaign most capable of creating competition around the property.
An Appraisal Should Be Supported by Evidence
We regularly interview multiple agents when acting for our Vendor Advisory clients, and the difference between appraisals can be significant.
Rather than focusing on the headline number, we want to understand how the agent arrived at it.
Which recent sales are genuinely comparable? What are buyers currently paying? How deep is the likely buyer pool? What feedback is the agent receiving from similar campaigns?
An ambitious number without evidence isn’t necessarily confidence. Sometimes it’s simply an attempt to win the listing.
We Look Beyond the Sales Pitch
Choosing an agent involves much more than comparing appraisals and commission rates.
We look closely at how each agent intends to sell the property. That includes their recent results, local buyer relationships, proposed marketing, communication style and negotiation ability.
We also want to know who will actually manage the campaign. The person delivering the listing presentation should remain closely involved once the agreement is signed.
The best agent for one property may not be the best agent for another.
Price Expectations Can Shape the Entire Campaign
Starting with unrealistic expectations can create problems quickly.
If buyers see a disconnect between the property’s asking price and comparable sales, they may simply move on. A campaign can lose momentum, days on market increase and the eventual result may suffer.
That doesn’t mean vendors should price conservatively.
It means the strategy needs to encourage genuine competition while still protecting the seller’s position.
Knowing When to Accept and When to Keep Going
One of the most important decisions during a campaign is knowing whether an offer represents a strong result or whether there is more value in continuing.
We recently acted for a charity selling a property in Redfern. An off-market offer provided an opportunity to sell before auction, but we believed exposing the property to broader competition could produce a stronger outcome.
The property went to auction with nine active bidders and ultimately sold for $75,000 more than the earlier offer.
The opposite can also be true. Sometimes the best offer arrives before auction. Good advice means assessing the circumstances rather than following the same formula for every property.
Our Perspective
The agent who promises the highest price at the kitchen table isn’t necessarily the person who will achieve it.
When we act for vendors, our role is independent of the selling agent. We interview agents, compare proposals, advise on preparation and marketing, assess buyer feedback and help our clients make decisions throughout the campaign.
The objective isn’t to choose the agent who tells the vendor what they want to hear.
It’s to appoint the team and create the strategy most likely to deliver the best result.
By Dan Grantham
