Who buys a castle, or an old church converted to a house, or a century-old home with architecture unique to its era and region? You may have, but now you’re ready to move on. If you’re selling a one-of-a-kind house, conventional sales techniques won’t do. Instead, you’ll need marketing as unique as the property itself.
A unique home needs a unique agent
You’ll need more than run-of-the-mill marketing to reach the type of buyer who might be interested in your unique home. Certainly, selling any home requires the basics: an MLS listing, a dedicated page on your REALTOR®’s website, and a 3-D video tour and photo montage posted online. But you’ll have to supplement with unconventional, creative marketing to bring in the deal.
For successful marketing of your unique home, look for an experienced and successful REALTOR® who thinks outside the box. This is not the listing for a newbie. Ask for referrals on agents who have a successful track record selling unusual properties. Interview at least three of them, asking each agent how they would market your property differently than a standard home listing. Choose the agent with the best blend of experience, success, pricing insight and clever ideas for marketing.
Setting the right price is crucial when selling a unique house because of the smaller market for such a home. Comparable values are likely available as a guide for farm and ranch properties. However, setting a price for other properties, such as a chapel converted to a home, will be more challenging.
Reach the right buyers
A unique property will attract a niche category of buyers. After all, not every home buyer is looking for a farm. The average home shopper may think your railroad depot turned cozy home is quaint but consider it impractical for her needs. So you and your REALTOR® need to brainstorm ideas as to who might want to buy your home and target those buyers. Remember, they may not live in your community. Use geofenced digital ads or target industries to which the property might be attractive.
For example, maybe you own a house built to look like a medieval castle. Film producers and event planner businesses love picturesque settings. Or suppose you own rural acreage with a century-old rock farmhouse. That may be just the place for wedding professionals to stage dream weddings or for a couple who wants to train horses or run a bed-and-breakfast. With your agent, think of potential alternative uses for the house, then search out buyers in those fields. Network within those industries through targeted digital ads, emails and personal contact through telephone calls. Browse social media sites with keywords for the chosen interests, then contact those people.
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