I must admit I didn’t ever think I’d find a way to reference Madonna in a real estate blog, but these are unique times so bear with me here. Back in the nineties when Madonna was belting out ‘Justify my love’ on the radio I remember spending my days selling residential property thinking the words should be ‘justify my price’. That same song line is on high rotation in my head again now.
In 1990 when ‘Justify My Love’ was released the property market in Australia was going through quite a significant correction. Values declined around 7% over the year.
In 2022 we’re seeing evidence of a similar turnaround in Sydney now. The latest CoreLogic numbers do show growth in values across Sydney is down 7.5% from its highest point so it will come as no surprise that is impacting the strategy of potential buyers in the market.
Over the last month or two, our team of sales agents have spoken about the trend that buyers are increasingly upfront in professing their view that the price expectations of our listed properties are too high. Every property inspection ends with a statement that the property is too expensive, or ‘not worth the price’.
Potential buyers are automatically assuming a listed property must be, can be and should be, discounted before they can justify making an offer.
But it is important for me to tell you that’s not necessarily the case. Our team can justify the price expectations they list for a property.
It’s our job to evaluate market value based on the property itself and factoring that most elusive, but crucial, element that drives the property market – sentiment. We present that individual analysis to each vendor and work through the facts, so every Morton vendor understands how and why that price range has been identified.
Our aim is to be factual and realistic in identifying a price we believe can be secured given current market conditions. We can and must justify our recommended price position.
Of course, it is ultimately up to each vendor to agree or set their own value expectations, but in most cases the relationship between vendor and agent fostered through informed, open communication does mean clients trust the recommendation of their Morton agent.
So, when a potential buyer inspects a Morton listing our team is very happy and very well prepared to justify the price expectation. That’s what we do, and we do it with confidence. To quote Madonna again, we don’t have to ‘hope or pray’ to justify the price.
We get it done.