Every seller believes, at least a little, that their home is worth more than the market says it is. Homeowners remember what they paid, what they’ve put into the property over the years, and what a neighbour supposedly sold for at the height of the market two years ago. None of that is quite the same as what a buyer is prepared to pay today.

“Pricing is where buyers decide if they want to view a property or not. This is where a sale can be won or lost,” says Skoko Sebola, Principal at Leapfrog Midrand. “Sellers often set the number based on what they need or hope for, rather than what the market is actually showing, and that’s where properties get stuck.”

Consider this when pricing your home 

Start with the evidence, not the emotion.

A realistic price starts with comparable sales, not comparable feelings. Try to get an idea of what has actually transferred in your suburb, on your street, in a matching size and condition, in the last three to six months. Don’t go by what you see listed or what a neighbour claims they turned down. Go by what has genuinely gone through to registration. This is where a good agent and local expert comes in. They will have an idea of what’s been sold and at what price.

“Buyers today do a lot of homework themselves before they book a viewing,” says Sebola. “If they are seeing that your property is overpriced, or even suspiciously underpriced, they’ll simply move on to the next listing rather than negotiate.”

Understand what an overpriced listing actually costs you

Sellers often treat an inflated asking price as a safe starting point, something to be talked down from later. In practice, the opposite often happens. An overpriced property sits, and a property that sits makes buyers question why, even when there’s nothing wrong with it. Long days on the market start to look like a red flag, and once that perception takes hold, it’s difficult to reverse without a visible price cut, which can further damage confidence.

There is also a compounding financial cost: every extra month on the market is another month of bond repayments, rates, levies, and maintenance, alongside the opportunity cost of capital that could be doing something else.

Get a (real) valuation 

A credible valuation looks at a variety of things, including recent sold prices, current active competition, and your property’s specific features. The end number is then defensible rather than hopeful. It should be able to withstand a buyer’s own research, because that’s exactly what it’s up against.

“We’d rather have an uncomfortable conversation about price upfront than a long, frustrating listing period later,” says Sebola. “A well-priced home in reasonable condition typically finds a buyer quickly and often ends up in a stronger negotiating position than one that’s chasing the market down.”

Factor in presentation and timing, but don’t let them distract from price.

Small, sensible touches, fresh paint, decluttering, good photography, do influence how a property is perceived, and they’re worth doing. But no amount of styling fixes a number that’s fundamentally out of step with the market. Presentation earns a fair price for a well-positioned home, but it rarely rescues a poorly priced one.

The bottom line

Setting the right price is about pricing it to where the market actually is, not where it was eighteen months ago or where you’d like it to be. Sellers who do this are likely to attract more interest, generate competing offers, and ultimately achieve a better outcome than those who start high and negotiate down over months.

“The sellers who do well are the ones willing to trust the experts, like property agents and credible home valuators. They are then able to have those honest conversations early,” says Sebola. “It’s uncomfortable for a moment, but it saves months.”