Your Property Has Been on the Market for a Month – What Now?
Your property has been on the market for a month. You've had some interest, perhaps a few viewings, but no offer. Should you reduce the price? Not necessarily.
A month on the market is a useful point to stop, look at the information you've gathered and work out what is actually happening. Automatically reducing the asking price because you haven't sold yet can sometimes solve the wrong problem.
Before changing the price, there are a few things worth looking at.
How many people are looking at your property?
Start with the basics: how many people have actually viewed the listing online? If your property is getting plenty of views on Rightmove and Zoopla, your marketing is attracting attention. If online interest is low, the problem could be the price, the photographs, the presentation, the description or simply how your property compares with the alternatives available. Online views don't guarantee a sale, but they can tell you whether buyers are noticing your property in the first place.
Are people making enquiries?
The next step is looking at enquiries. If lots of people are asking questions or requesting further information but very few are arranging a viewing, there may be something stopping them from taking the next step. That could be price, but it could also be something specific about the property — the layout, garden, parking, lease, location or another factor that becomes apparent from the details. If enquiries are low despite good online exposure, it's worth looking at how your property compares with similar homes currently available.
How many viewings have you had?
Viewings are probably the most useful piece of information you've collected after a month. If you've had plenty of viewings but no offers, that tells you something very different from having very few viewings. Lots of viewings with no offers can suggest that buyers like the property but aren't convinced it represents good enough value. This is where feedback becomes particularly important. Very few viewings could indicate that buyers aren't being attracted to the property in the first place, which may point towards the asking price or marketing. There isn't one magic number of viewings that means a property is priced correctly. It depends on the type of property and the local market. What matters is the pattern.
What are buyers actually saying?
This is where honest feedback from viewings becomes important. One buyer saying the kitchen isn't to their taste doesn't necessarily mean anything. But if several unrelated buyers say the same thing, it is worth listening to. Perhaps buyers consistently think the property needs too much work for the asking price. Maybe they feel a particular room is smaller than expected. Or perhaps several people are comparing it with another property nearby that offers more for the same money. Good feedback isn't always easy to hear, but it gives you information you didn't have when you first put the property on the market.
What has happened to the competition?
The market doesn't stand still while your property is being advertised. During your first month, new properties may have come onto the market. Other sellers may have reduced their prices. Some competing properties may have sold or gone under offer. This is why looking at the market today is more useful than simply looking at what similar properties were advertised for when you first listed.
Ask yourself:
- Are there now better-value properties available?
- Have any similar properties reduced their asking prices?
- Has anything sold that gives you a useful comparison?
- Is your property still standing out against the competition?
- Has a new property come onto the market that buyers are choosing instead?
Your property isn't being judged in isolation. Buyers are comparing it with everything else they can buy for their budget.
Don't confuse asking prices with sold prices
One of the easiest mistakes sellers can make is comparing their property with another home that is listed for more money. An asking price is what someone hopes to achieve. A sold price tells you what a buyer has actually agreed to pay. There can be a significant difference between the two. That's why your estate agent should be able to explain not just what similar properties are being marketed for, but what comparable homes have actually sold for and how long they took to sell.
So, should you reduce the price?
Sometimes the answer will be yes. If the property has had good exposure, plenty of enquiries and viewings, but buyers consistently feel it is too expensive compared with the alternatives, a price adjustment may be the sensible next step. But a reduction shouldn't simply be a reaction to the calendar. If you've had very little marketing exposure, poor-quality photographs, limited feedback or a significant change in the competing properties, those issues should be considered first. Reducing the price without understanding why the property hasn't sold can mean simply putting a lower price on the same problem.
The one-month review
After around four weeks, we think it is worth having a proper conversation with your agent. Not just "Shall we reduce the price?", but:
What have we learnt?
Look at the online views, enquiries, viewings, feedback and competing properties together. That gives you a much clearer picture of how buyers are responding. Sometimes the answer will be that the price needs to change. Sometimes it will be that the marketing needs improving. And sometimes the property simply needs more time. The important thing is that any change you make should be based on evidence rather than frustration.
The first month on the market isn't just about trying to sell your home. It's also about learning how the market sees it.
Use that information properly and you have a much better chance of deciding what to do next — whether that's changing the price, improving the marketing or simply staying the course. This could also work well as a Mortlock & Joyce “seller advice” series, with the next article being something like “How Do You Know If Your Asking Price Is Too High?” so the blogs link naturally into each other.
If you are on market and just want some advice on marketing or whether it is the right time to reduce. Get in touch below:
