How long will it take to sell a property? Part 1

When you put a property up for sale, you have to accept that the transaction will not be completed overnight. You should prepare for a long-term process, which can take from a few months to a year, depending on the type of property. Can you make a property sell faster? What does it depend on? You will find the answers to these and other questions in today's article.

How quickly a property sells depends to a large extent on its type. A flat is the easiest and quickest to sell. On average this takes between 3 and 6 months. We will wait a little longer if we want to sell a house; then we have to prepare for a period of 6 to 9 months. According to statistics, a plot of land is the hardest to sell. Here we need to arm ourselves with patience for up to about a year.

What makes a property take longer to sell?

It is also worth noting that no two properties are alike. Some flats or houses will be in great demand among potential buyers, while others will not even attract people willing to view them. Why does this happen? To a large extent it is influenced by how attractive the listing is and how well it is presented online. The listing description and well-chosen photos alone can greatly affect the level of interest in a property. But that is not all. In more practical terms, there is less interest in flats on a high floor in a block of flats without a lift, flats on the outskirts of the city or on an estate with poor transport links, flats with high running costs and flats next to a noisy street. If, on the other hand, we want to sell a building plot, we must take into account that it will be harder if it is difficult to obtain a building permit for the land, if its shape is irregular and if it needs levelling. Power lines running across the plot will be an additional drawback that makes it harder to sell.

When selling a house, the process will take longer if the building needs a thorough renovation and also has noticeable construction defects. The layout of the rooms will also affect how quickly a buyer is found. The harder the space is to arrange, the more difficult it will be to find someone interested in buying.

The price of a property and how quickly it sells

How quickly a property sells also depends to a large extent on its price. Naturally, the cheaper the flat, house or plot, the more people are interested. But the relationship is not quite that simple. It is also important that the price is appropriate for the property on offer, which means it cannot be too high but, paradoxically, it should not be too low either. In the latter case, suspicion may arise that something is wrong with the property if it is being sold at such a low price.

To set the most appropriate price for our property, it is best to enlist the help of an estate agent who, knowing the current market situation, will set the most reasonable amount.

These are not the only factors affecting how quickly a property sells. You can read about the others in the next article.