Buyers are seeing large numbers of properties that go on to sell above the asking price. Some agents now advise buyers to factor in as much as a further €30,000-€50,000 to the price listed on a property portal.
Will Moore of Sherry FitzGerald says an agent’s valuation and pricing strategy is regulated under the national Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA) guidelines. The price range employed by a PSRA licensee dictates that the difference between the upper and lower limit of a valuation should be capped at a maximum of 10 pc.
“If a property has an advised minimum value (AMV) range of €500,000-€550,000, we’re supposed to quote an asking price within that range; neither below nor above that,” says Moore.
Yet the lower pricing strategy is seen in examples across the capital. Michael Kelly of Vincent Finnegan says a key factor is that, “Buyers are quite aware that the asking is a guide price, that it is not necessarily what it will sell for.”
After two years of ever-increasing demands from vendors, buyers have become more circumspect in what they will even entertain viewing, so as to minimise disappointment and being priced out.
Michael O’Neill, sales manager at SherryFitzGerald’s comments that, “Asking prices can be very different to prices achieved. The asking price is also affected by whether the vendor has time on their side to sell and wait to achieve the asking – if they’re in more of a hurry then we’ll go with a more competitive asking price.”
LSL News.