How long does it take to sell a house in Italy?
How long does it take to sell a house in Italy? This is a question they often ask me.
It depends on many factors. Let’s make a list of them:
- Price
- Market conditions
- Seasonality
- Location of the property
- Condition of the house
Price
Price is one of the most important factors. As I said on other occasions, don’t do the evaluation yourself! You are too tied to your home, you will not be able to be objective.
I myself, that my job is to evaluate houses, I asked an external evaluation on my house.
It is not a lack of skills, but the awareness that we will only see all the money we have spent to make the house perfect for us and we think it is perfect for everyone, but it is not so.
If I look at my house I think “it has been studied so meticulously that if one were to enter it it would not change a pin!”, But it is not so, it will never be so. I don’t like the house you like. That is, it has value for me, it will have no value for you.
Ask an expert, a real estate agent, an expert in the sector and trust his evaluation. The figure will always seem too low, but it is because you are selling a piece of your life and these things cannot be priced!
Last very important thing: putting a high price “there is always time to go down” is VERY WRONG! All insiders will tell you. Don’t make this mistake because your house could remain on the market for years or even end up unsold!
Market conditions
You cannot decide these yourself. It is the external factors that determine it.
Obviously selling when the prices are higher and frequent trades will be a positive factor.
But the question you need to ask yourself is: why do you sell? Do you do it to buy something else? If this is the reason, be careful, you will sell at good prices, but you will also have to buy at equally high prices.
If the period is not the best, you will have to resign yourself to accepting lower offers, perhaps even below the price that you paid at the time of your purchase.
Seasonality
Each market has its seasonality. In the city people buy in the spring because they want to move in the summer when many are on vacation, the schools are closed and they want to start again after the holidays with a new home!
In touristic towns, such as our Lake Orta, however, peopl buy in the autumn or winter (houses that have been chosen in the summer though!) because they want to start enjoying the new home from next Easter.
So putting up for sale a house in a tourist area in November, maybe you should wait a few months before the first visit.
Location of the property
The position is very important to contrast market conditions. If the position is excellent, even if the market is falling, it will soon be sold.
The buyers are not all the same, but in general, there are some common factors that tend to make a home’s location more or less valuable.
Condition of the house
This last point is very important because, together with the price, you decide it and leverage it in one direction or another.
Take for example an apartment in habitable condition, with a renovation of 30 years ago. It is not new, but it is not to be demolished. You will certainly want to get the right price for a home that can still be used.
If this is your intent, then prove it! Prepare the house so that it is ready for use! Freshly paint the walls, do all the little maintenance you need, refresh it with fabrics and accessories, arrange it to make it more welcoming.
Are you not able to do all this? Call a home stager who will do it for you!
It sounds like a trivial step, but this will have a huge impact on sales times. Perhaps it is the most determining factor!
If you want tailored advice for you and your home, do not hesitate to contact us by writing to info@ortalloggi.com.
Alice – www.ortalloggi.com
