Depending on your knowledge of the property market, you may or may not be familiar with the concept of off-market properties for sale.
Off-market properties are properties that are not advertised to the general public. While rare, they are often considered property gold and are still obtainable in the hot South East Queensland property market.
The most important factor in securing off-market properties is to understand the opportunity, its true value and its pitfalls prior to any negotiations with the owner. It’s easy to be lured by an off-market property’s exclusivity and ability to secure quickly and as a result, many fail to identify the red flags.
So, why are there off-market properties?
Choosing between listing a property publicly or creating an off-market listing can be difficult as there are pros and cons on either side. When choosing off-market listings, people may choose to sell their property off-market for a few reasons.
Keeping the sale private
Some people may seek to keep the sale private from those around them. There could be personal reasons, such as financial issues, family problems or illness that they may want to keep quiet from others.
They may also choose to keep the property off-market so that the surrounding community or neighbourhood is kept unaware of the sale. Some private sellers may also just want privacy and so they will choose an off-market sale.
Avoiding real estate agents, marketing costs and open-for-inspections
Selling a property off-market can allow people to avoid the lengthy process of sales campaigns, or the sometimes invasive open homes.
The marketing and advertising costs involved with selling a property can also be significantly reduced with off-market property sales as they are not advertised as widely or extensively.
They have not considered selling
Some sellers may choose an off-market sale as they simply may not have considered their property as an asset. Occasionally, they may be sitting on an investment opportunity and be completely unaware.
Flexibility
Property listings on the open market do not allow for the same flexibility as off-market listings. Off-market property sales allow the seller to deal with parties that possess a genuine interest in the property, maintain direct communication with the buyer and negotiate on their terms. This could include option agreements, extended times to relocate and the benefit from a value uplift.
How can you find off-market opportunities?
Getting access to quality off-market property opportunities can be difficult and time consuming and you may still find that there is still some level of competition.
Off-market websites
In this day and age, you can get email alerts from websites such as Property Whispers and Listing Loop. There are also other sites that will help you find off-market properties such as Domain or Realestate.com.au, where you can search previous on market listings matching your preferences.
Depending on your acquisition criteria, free time and skill level, you may have the ability to directly approach landowners yourself.
Real estate agents may also choose to share off-market listings in a range of ways, including contacting people through their buyer database, listing the property in a newsletter, creating and sharing social media posts or putting a private listing up on the real estate agency site.
Enlisting the help of a professional
There are also a range of professionals who can assist you in identifying, negotiating, and conducting the appropriate due diligence before securing a property. These include buyer’s agents, development managers, town planners and engineers.
Buyers agents
Buyers Agents will help you look for the right off-market property if you don’t have the time to complete a thorough property search. They will have a network of sales agents that they can get in touch with regarding your property search.
Buyers Agents will be continuously communicating with sales agents throughout Brisbane or the area you’re looking to buy in and will be adept at providing a detailed list of what you’re looking for in a property to a sales agent.
Development Managers
For larger scale or more complex developments, Development Managers who provide site acquisition services can work with you to understand your needs and use an array of site identification methods to find and secure quality development sites on your behalf.
This includes detailed mapping services (council zoning, overlays etc), searching recent DA approved sites and working with their network of landowers, developers, investors and real estate agents to find you quality listings.
Furthermore, they also have the skills to provide the appropriate due diligence and can negotiate on your behalf.
How can I get further help?
At Atrio we are full-service property development experts, we live and breathe property. Each day we work with developers, investors and landowners locally, and across Australia to successfully acquire, negotiate and deliver exceptional projects.
If you’re looking for off market development sites for sale, check out our list of properties in the link below.
