Best starting strategy on price to market apartment

Hi

I'm selling my apartment

An estate agent said that its worth between €315,000 – €340,000 , which is probably true, because an identical apartment sold last July for €330,000

Mine is slightly better than the one which sold for 330,000 last summer, because mine has an allocated parking space, which cost £12,000 in 2001, (in old money before Euro).

The estate agent proposes to market it for €295,000 " in order to generate maximum interest".

Is this a good strategy ?

My thinking was to market it for the minimum price I would sell for, which is probably, based on the evidence i have, €340,000.

What's the best strategy ?
I'm naive about selling property, its the first time.

I'm skeptical that the estate agents main motivation might be to price it low, sell it quick, get the commission, and move on.

thanks
Seneca

The estate agent can't sell your apartment unless you agree to the price being offered

There is a trade off between the price you want and how long it will take to sell - higher price, longer time to sell (if sold at all), lower price, quicker sale

How quickly do you need to sell?

jpd said:

How quickly do you need to sell?

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My question too.

If I was in a hurry I'd embrace the EA's strategy. If no hurry I'd start somewhere in the valuation range as you can always reduce the price if there is little interest.

Given the auctioneers estimate of value/ €295k appears too low.. I don't agree with listing for a price that is significantly lower than estimated value to stimulate interest and also hold the view it's misleading potential buyers.

Have you only got one auctioneer to value it?

I agree with @Luternau.

I would be inclined to go with the advised minimum value of €315k as the guide price.

Bear in mind that agents are incentivised to get a sale - any sale - with the minimum number of viewings. An extra few grand on the sales price isn’t really going to move the dial on their commission.

Best of luck!

A few factors:

1) apartments are more like a commodity so prices less likely to depend on it catching someone’s fancy
2) it’s a seller’s market ATM
3) pricing under €300k will get you into more daft and my home alerts
4) lazy estate agents like to price low, generate a bidding war, and make it look like you’ve done brilliantly

Dr Strangelove said:

lazy estate agents like to price low, generate a bidding war, and make it look like you’ve done brilliantly

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Surely the word 'lazy' could be subsituted with the word 'smart'? A bidding war drives the price up. Its not a case of anyone making you look like you did well. Youve either done well or you havent.

Id follow the EAs recommended strategy, they know best. Theyre starting prices isnt unreasonable, it will generate interest and given the price range mentioned, the market will probably see that too and youll land near it.

I agree with the EA....price to entice.

I understand lower pricing to attract bidder. However last time I used an EA, the lower pricing was in the region of 15 to 20k

There is no right price - there is only the price that the willing buyer and seller agree

No two properties are the same, no matter how similar they appear. It's not like buying or selling a TV or a car.

Until you go to market, you only have the EA's experience to guide you - he or she could be wrong by a little or a lot

Did you get valuations from one or several EA?
For me getting a couple of valuations would be the first steps.

Be wary of pricing too high and having to later reduce it. That can be a flag that a previous bidder has uncovered a problem and will make some people wary, and you don't want prospective buyers with a negative mindset before they even view it.