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When homeowners decide to sell, the first questions are usually:
What is my property worth?
What price should we list it at?
How quickly can we sell?
These are important questions, but there is another one I believe every seller should ask before their property goes onto the market:
Is my property ready to compete for a buyer's attention?
As a Property Practitioner, I regularly see how the condition and presentation of a property influence not only whether buyers want to view it, but also how they perceive its value and ultimately how they negotiate.
A well-presented property sends a very different message to the market from one that looks as though the seller has simply decided to "put it up for sale and see what happens."
Years ago, the first impression of a property was made when the buyer arrived at the front gate.
Today, it usually happens on a phone.
Buyers scroll through property portals and social media comparing one home after another. Your property may only have a few seconds to get their attention.
Before they have spoken to me, driven through your neighborhood or walked through your front door, they have already started making decisions based on the photographs.
Do I like it?
Does it look well maintained?
Is it worth the asking price?
Should I arrange a viewing, or should I keep scrolling?
This is why I don't believe we should simply arrive, take photographs and put a property online.
The preparation needs to happen before the camera comes out.
This is something sellers sometimes underestimate.
Buyers don't only look at the house. They also form an impression of the person selling it.
A spotless, neat and well-maintained property sends a powerful message:
This seller is serious about selling and has prepared the property properly for the market.
It also suggests that the property has been looked after.
That confidence can become extremely valuable when negotiations begin.
On the other hand, if a buyer walks into a property and sees neglected maintenance, clutter, dirty walls, an untidy garden, broken fittings or unfinished jobs, their thinking can change very quickly.
Instead of asking:
"How do I make sure I get this property?"
they may start asking:
"How much can I negotiate off the price?"
That is not the position I want my seller to be in.
Sellers become accustomed to their homes.
That dripping tap has been there for months. The cupboard handle has always been loose. There is a cracked tile behind the door. The wall needs a touch-up. One outside light doesn't work.
To the seller, these can seem like small things.
To a buyer, several small maintenance items can create a much bigger question:
"If this is what I can see, what else hasn't been maintained?"
Suddenly, the buyer is no longer calculating the actual cost of replacing a handle or fixing a tap. They are building a risk factor into their offer.
This is why I would rather identify these issues with my sellers before we start marketing.
It doesn't mean renovating the entire property.
Sometimes a relatively small amount of money, combined with a weekend of cleaning, gardening and basic maintenance, can completely change how a property presents.
One of the least expensive ways to improve a home's presentation is to remove unnecessary clutter.
A buyer needs to see the space.
Too much furniture can make a large room appear small. Crowded kitchen counters can make a good kitchen appear short of workspace. Personal collections, photographs and ornaments can distract attention from the property's actual features.
You don't need to remove everything and turn your home into a showroom.
The objective is simply to make it easier for a prospective buyer to imagine:
"This could be my home."
That emotional connection is important.
Property may be a major financial decision, but people still buy homes with emotion.
Before bringing a property to market, I want it looking its absolute best.
Clean floors, bathrooms, kitchens and windows matter.
So do garages, patios, entertainment areas and outside spaces.
And don't forget the garden and entrance.
The buyer's impression begins when they arrive outside, not when we open the front door.
A cut lawn, neat garden, clean swimming pool, tidy driveway and welcoming entrance immediately tell a buyer that someone cares about this property.
That impression carries through the viewing.
Open the curtains.
Raise the blinds.
Clean the windows.
Replace blown light bulbs.
Where possible, we should photograph and show a property when its natural light is at its best.
A bright home feels welcoming and spacious. Dark rooms can appear smaller than they actually are.
This sounds simple, but when your property is competing online against many others in the same price bracket, these details matter.
This is where presentation becomes particularly important to me as the agent representing the seller.
A buyer who walks into a spotless, beautifully presented and well-maintained property has fewer obvious reasons to negotiate the price down.
If the property is also correctly priced for the market, we have created a much stronger foundation for attracting a good offer — and potentially a full-price offer.
Compare that with a poorly presented property.
It may receive fewer online enquiries.
Fewer enquiries mean fewer viewings.
The viewings we do get may produce negative feedback.
After weeks on the market, buyers start noticing how long the property has been listed.
Then the low offers start arriving.
At that point, we are negotiating from a much weaker position.
Good presentation creates interest. Interest creates viewings. Viewings create opportunities. And multiple interested buyers create competition.
That is where I want my sellers to be.
There is another side to this conversation.
Please don't spend hundreds of thousands of rand renovating your property because you think you need to make it perfect before calling an estate agent.
You may spend money on improvements that buyers don't necessarily value enough to repay you in the selling price.
That is why I would prefer sellers to contact me before undertaking major renovations specifically for a sale.
Let me first walk through the property with you.
We can separate the things that genuinely need attention from the things that don't.
Sometimes painting a few walls, removing excess furniture, repairing minor defects, improving the garden and professionally presenting the property will achieve far more than an expensive renovation.
When a new property comes onto the market, we have an opportunity to create excitement amongst active buyers.
I don't want to waste that opportunity with poor photographs and the idea that:
"We'll fix it later if it doesn't sell."
By then, many active buyers may already have seen and dismissed the listing.
My preference is to launch properly from the beginning:
Prepare the property.
Address the obvious maintenance.
Declutter and clean.
Present the property correctly.
Price it according to the market.
Then market it professionally.
That gives us the strongest possible start.
If you're considering selling your property, you don't have to wait until everything is perfect before contacting me.
In fact, I would prefer to see the property before you start spending money preparing it for sale.
I can walk through the property with you from a buyer's point of view and give you practical advice on what I believe should be addressed, what can stay as it is, how we should present the property and how it could compete against similar properties currently on the market.
There is no benefit in spending R50,000 where R5,000 and the right preparation might achieve what we need.
And even if you're only considering selling and haven't made a final decision yet, you're welcome to speak to me. Understanding your property's likely market position and what would be required to prepare it for sale can help you make that decision.
Perhaps you're not selling, but you know a family member, friend, neighbor or colleague who has mentioned that they may be considering putting their property on the market.
Please put us in touch.
A referral doesn't have to be someone who is ready to sign a mandate tomorrow. I am happy to meet with them, look at the property and help them understand what they should consider before making their decision.
Good property marketing starts long before the first advertisement is published.
It starts with preparation, the right advice and a seller who is serious about achieving the best possible result from the market.
If you're thinking about selling, let's have that conversation before the "For Sale" board goes up.
Pierre Kotze
Property Practitioner
eXp Realty South Africa
Registered with the PPRA