Selling strategy for your home: Determine the price based on market logic (Part 1)
Many people wonder why their house has been on the market for months, even years, but still hasn’t sold.
Although the location is good, the building is still in reasonable condition, and the price has reportedly been reduced, the problem often lies not with the house itself, but with the way it is promoted. The housing market is not an emotional market, but a logical one.
Buyers are much more critical these days. They compare the price per square meter, accessibility, distance to public amenities, and even potential future price increases.
If your house falls short in terms of numbers and story, buyers will move on to the next property without guilt.
Imagine you are a buyer. You are browsing through houses on the marketplace in the evening, and there are dozens of houses in similar price ranges. Which one do you click on first?
Usually, it is the home with good photos, clear information, and that looks immediately habitable. Not the ones with a caption like “House for sale fast, money needed.”
We won’t be discussing magic tricks or grand sales promises here. We will discuss sensible, data-based, and realistic strategies for those of you who really want to sell your house, and who don’t just want to attract a lot of interest but realize few transactions.
These five strategies are often used by real estate investors with a high turnover rate of their assets. This is not because their houses are luxury, but because they understand how buyers think and how to communicate with the market.
You can use these same strategies even for your first home, which can be emotionally charged. If you need liquidity, want to sell assets, or want to prevent a vacant house from becoming a financial burden, read on.
Strategy 1: Pricing
The first strategy that often complicates the sale of a house is pricing. Many homeowners determine the price based on feeling, not on data.
The purchase price, renovation costs, plus the expected profit. All of this is added together without taking current market conditions into account.
The problem is that the market doesn’t care whether you need money quickly or if the house is full of memories. It only matters: is the price of this house fair compared to other houses in the same neighborhood?
As soon as your price deviates too far from the estimate, your house is immediately removed from the buyer’s shortlist.
The safest way to determine a price is by comparing prices per square meter. For example, houses in this neighborhood sell for an average of 6 million rupiah per square meter. However, you are asking 7.5 million rupiah for your house, without significant discounts.
In the eyes of buyers, the difference is not a small amount, but a warning signal. Many people say: “Set a high price first and negotiate later.” While that is correct in theory, it is dangerous in practice.
Prices that are too high often attract few buyers, few people come to view the property, and the house is eventually considered problematic because it has been on the market for too long. Real estate investors often set prices slightly below market value. The goal is not to lose money, but to create competition.
When there is more than one interested party, your negotiating position improves and transactions can proceed faster without major discounts. A practical step: open an online real estate marketplace today and search for at least five comparable houses within a radius of 1 kilometer.
Note the price, the land area, and the built area, and then calculate the price per square meter. This way, you get a realistic figure, not an illusion. ***tok
