Some real estate agents will tell you it’s all the same when you’re selling a home. You make it look nice, set the right price, advertise it to the public, and let the public do the rest.
But there’s a difference between someone buying a $30 necklace and a $4,000 necklace. And you definitely wouldn’t sell the latter out of a kiosk in a shopping centre.
Buying behaviour changes massively as the price and value goes up. Buyers have different needs, different expectations, and different decisions to make when buying a luxury home.
So if you’re looking to put a better-than-average house on the market, you’re going to need a different strategy. And to help get it started, here are our 5 best tips to selling a luxury home.
Make it Look Beyond its Best
Dressing a home isn’t uncommon in the world of real estate. But if you’re competing with other elite homes on the market, you’re going to need to do everything perfectly.
If you’re new to staging a home, there are some basic principles you can fall back on:
- Clutter cleverly – Clutter is never going to sell you a home. But strategic decor will. As a general rule, the bigger the room is, the less stuff should be in there. If you have a study big enough for one person, add some decorations. If it’s a large entertaining area, keep it open and inviting.
- Clean everything – Luxury properties can have their entire perception altered if the pathways are dirty, or the windows aren’t crystal-clear. Clean everything, and have the house looking brand new.
- Allow people to flow – Sometimes you’ll be touring 1-2 people around the house, and sometimes it will be their entire family. Make sure no couches or cabinets are intruding on their likely walking spaces,
- Build a brand – There’s no use in having a Hamptons facade if each wall features a new and bubbly ‘60s colour. Your home should have a continual theme, which ties in with the rooms available and the expected buyer.
If staging homes isn’t really your thing (or you’re too flat out to find the time), we can help! Upstate offers a free concierge service to not only stage your home, but have it in its best condition to sell. Find out how our Concierge Service boosted a home’s value by $100k!
Light Right
We’ve all heard that no one likes a dark home, and naturally, the cure to darkness is light. But if you go and pop 6 lights in a room that’s already well lit naturally, you’re only doing yourself harm.
It’s important to understand why someone would want to use each room, and offer the mood they’d appreciate.
For example, a kitchen and living room need plenty of light – no one likes struggling to see as they cook. Even a study could use a fair amount of natural light, as those that work from home will need a bright and vibrant office to use.
But a theatre room or bedroom is a different story. A theatre needs to be cosy, and let someone immerse themselves in whatever they’re watching. Similarly for a bedroom, it needs the potential of being well lit when morning comes, but as someone is packing up for the night, a dim, cosy atmosphere is far more welcoming.
Set the Scene with the Senses
There’s an old saying that “baking bread will help you sell your home”. And there’s some truth to that – sight alone isn’t what pushes buyers over the line. It’s generally a combination of all 5 senses.
Everything about lighting and staging is to appeal to the sense of sight. But for sound, you might choose to have soft music playing through the property. And for smell, choosing a food product or scented candle that matches the brand of your house is pivotal.
For example, a French-themed home could easily be improved with the scent of freshly baked croissants or pastries. A classic Queenslander might be better suited to tea and scones.
It’s worth taking the time to work out what experiences and strategies you can develop to attack all 5 senses of each prospective buyer.
Price (and Market) Appropriately
Even if your home is as inviting as it possibly could be, a buyer’s perception might already be too far gone if the property is priced or marketed incorrectly.
Some sellers have their eyes on the prize, and are happy to price their property down in the hope of shifting it faster. But that’s not what the buyers of luxury properties are looking for. To them, price equals quality, and a cheap home must be cheap for a reason.
Call on an Agent with Experience
Don’t risk your agent doing everything by the basic book. If you’re planning on selling a luxury home, you need someone that not only understands luxury homes, but luxury home buyers.
For a friendly chat with specialists in selling a luxury home, contact the Upstate team today.
