One mistake that property owners often make is not preparing their property for the market properly before they begin selling or leasing it. As an example, most of us, if we were going to be selling our own car to the general public, would have it washed, cleaned, and vacuumed inside, and some of us would even have the car waxed or detailed, too. Because we know that people’s first impression of the vehicle will go a long way towards stimulating their interest in buying it. In addition, we also understand that if people don’t like the overall cleanliness of the car inside and out, that fewer people will become interested in buying it, and those who do become interested are likely to offer us less money for it.
But when it comes to selling or leasing commercial properties, many owners don’t feel the same way. They often don’t want to spend the money to fix up their property cosmetically and have it appear clean both inside and out, and at the same time, they often expect their prospects to envision the condition of the property as it ideally could be…as if this work had already been completed. In addition, unfortunately, sometimes these owners will also expect a price for their property that reflects what the property would sell or lease for in this ideal condition.
We’re all affected by our first impressions of things, and whenever people are buying or leasing commercial real estate, they’re often making one of the most important financial decisions of their lifetime. So their first impression of a property will oftentimes determine whether or not they’ll become interested in looking at the property in even greater detail. With this in mind, and especially whenever you’re in a market when more properties are competing for fewer buyers and lessees when a property looks and shows better than the others, it’s going to get more attention and oftentimes more offers, assuming that it’s reasonably priced.
In addition, when selling a property, you’ll want to make sure that any potential problems that could interfere with the sale are taken care of before you ever put your property on the market. As an example, you’ll want to make sure that any environmental problems are identified and taken care of ahead of time, and that any problems that may exist on the property’s title report are removed and taken care of in advance also. Because if you’re right in the middle of a sale to a buyer and there are environmental problems that still need to be resolved, it will be easy for the buyer to begin thinking that maybe this property really isn’t for them. In addition, if there are old documents that are still recorded against the property or conditions that need to be removed from the title report, your buyer can begin questioning their desire to still buy the property when more time is deemed necessary to try and resolve these problems.
So when you’re about to put your property on the market, make sure that it shows clean both inside and out, and also make sure that any environmental and title problems are both discovered and resolved ahead of time.