In today’s market, selling a home is fairly easy, but that’s usually not the case when it comes to selling land. If you want to sell your land, you’ll quickly discover that the market is different, buyers are different, and different marketing tactics are called for. Owing to these differences and others most sellers are much better off working with an experienced agent rather than trying an FSBO deal. So let’s see why you should work with an agent to sell your land in Kauai.
Different Market and Buyer Mindsets
Everyone needs a place to live and sleep at night, but not everyone needs a piece of vacant land. So if you want to sell your land, you need to realize that “[t]he land market is simply less active than the housing market because there are fewer potential buyers looking to purchase land in its raw form. In other words, less demand. As a result, a piece of vacant land will generally take longer to sell than a home.”
Further, land buyers have a different mindset than home buyers. “Homebuyers and land buyers look to purchase properties with completely different objectives in mind. The goal of a homebuyer is to find a place to live and usually where a relatively low amount of work is needed to live there (a move-in ready house). In many cases, they’re willing to sacrifice personal customization for time and convenience.”
Land buyers, on the other hand, are typically looking for something different snd usually plan to do some work on the land to customize it for their specific needs and purposes. “An individual, for example, maybe looking for residential property to build on or land to use for recreation. Developers are looking for the right location and land type to make money off the land. It could be the land would be best used for farming or ranching so you’re buying could be an individual or a group.”
Your Kauai agent will know exactly how to operate within this market and how to market to these buyers. To discover more, just call 808-634-4518.
A Lot of Time and Effort Involved
The time and effort needed to sell your land in Kauai are significant. So you need to ask yourself whether you actually have that time and availability. Are you, for example, able to leave work to show your land to potential buyers? Are you willing to interrupt your evenings and weekends to talk to buyers?
Selling properties is your agent’s full-time job. She will have the time and availability, as well as the energy, to take care of all the tasks involved. For a small commission, you get the full-time services and full attention of a real estate professional.
Vetting Buyers
Also, not all prospective buyers are serious buyers. Some are mere tire kickers, and you don’t want to waste your valuable time on them. One of the big benefits of working with an agent to sell your land in Kauai is that your agent can vet buyers for you.
“[Agents] are trained to ask qualifying questions to determine the seriousness, qualification, and motivation of a prospect . . . [They] are also trained to ask closing questions about how long buyers have been looking, whether they’ve seen any other that would work for their needs if they are paying cash or have been prequalified . . . They can move a qualified and motivated person to the point of purchase. FSBO sellers lack this training and skill set.”
Large Networks
Another benefit of working with an agent to sell your land is that agents have many contacts and a large professional network. You can, of course, list your land on all the major listing sites, but that may not be enough to result in a sale.
An agent will “have a large personal or professional network [and] relationships with clients, other agents, or a real estate agent to bring the largest pool of potential buyers to your [land]. A smaller pool of potential buyers means less demand for your property, which can translate into waiting longer to sell . . . and possibly not getting as much money . . . A good real estate agent should have a Rolodex of names and contact information, so they can quickly spread the word about the property they just listed.”
Negotiating a Better Deal
And then there’s the negotiations aspect. If you want to get the best deal and best price possible when you sell your land, you’ll need an experienced negotiator.
“Even if you have sales experience, you don’t have specialized experience negotiating a [land] sale. But your agent does and so is “more likely to succeed in the negotiation . . . An experienced selling agent may have negotiated hundreds of [sales].”
In addition, “[s]ellers who go solo also typically aren’t familiar with local customs or market conditions. Agents know the pulse of the market and what’s driving demand, which gives them an advantage by knowing what terms are worth negotiating for and which are worth letting the other party win.”
Get the Benefits of Working With an Agent to Sell Your Land
Selling land is very different and often more difficult than selling a home. It typically requires the expertise and knowledge of an experienced local agent. If you want a leg up in selling your land consider working with one of our experienced agents. When you’re ready to sell your land in Kauai, don’t hesitate to contact us today at 808-634-4518.