Selling your property? Five things that can happen if you wait to long for the right offer

Accepting an offer to purchase can be stressful especially when the offered price is not quite on par with what you were hoping for. Or you might get an offer close to your asking price and now you start thinking that you could get more for your property. Doubt can creep in and either delay your acceptance or cause you to decline the offer.

Seeff's agents, however, warns that waiting too long for the right offer can cost a seller in the end. Predicting the market is clouded with statistics, trends and emotions, which may result in the best offer being missed, even if it is the first.

Research has shown that the first serious offer is often the best offer and should never be ignored. Sellers should rely on their agent to identify a serious buyer.

So, where does this leave sellers? Seeff's agents offer insight into what can happen if you wait too long for the right offer.

1. There's no guarantee that you will get your price. There is no guarantee that by delaying the decision to accept an offer, you will eventually get your price. It is advisable to have a price band that you will accept and then consider all offers that fall within this price range. Do not ignore good offers in the hope of getting a better one.

2. There will be fewer interested buyers. Buyers take note of houses on the market for extended periods and tend to assume that these may not be attractive for buyers. At this point, buyers may well look to take advantage by submitting low offers.

3. You may have to lower your price. A consequence of waiting too long for the right offer may be that you have to reduce your price. By this time your property has probably been on the market for a while and serious buyers would have seen it. Chances are that they will now want to take further advantage and offer even less for your property.

4. Your next property could cost you more. Delaying a sale in the hope of getting a better price could mean that you may need to pay more for your next property. Or, if you have your eye on another property, waiting too long will probably result in you losing the opportunity on that new home.

5. You may end up having to withdraw your house from the market. Waiting too long for the right price and ignoring offers over an extended period could result in you having to withdraw your property from the market and relisting it later. This could be detrimental to your plans.

Seeff advises that you start out your selling process by choosing an agent who will give you the right advice in terms of a realistic price in the prevailing market. Be sure to also agree on a minimum price that you can accept. Any offer between these two prices should be considered, even going slightly lower in extreme circumstances, depending on the market conditions and your personal financial position.

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