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Until just a few short months ago, selling your house was a simple task. It was a robust buyers’ market with low inventory and high demand, so all you had to do was list your home and then wait for the offers to start rolling in. But the real estate market especialy interest rates changed. Now, home sellers have to be more strategic. And that means targeted marketing for the right audience, which begins with identifying your ideal buyer in San Francisco.
Niche Down
In order to determine your ideal buyer when selling your house in San Francisco, especially in a cooling market you must niche down. You can’t cast a wide net and hope the right buyer shows up for the price you want.
To know how to reach the right buyers, “you first need to know who they are – your ideal buyer. Identifying your ideal buyers early on is the cornerstone of an effective marketing strategy and the key to success. Not everyone in your audience will resonate with your house that is on the market, and that is okay.
You might ask how exactly do I niche down? One way is to look at San Francisco County records and find out who has been buying houses in the area over the past year. This helps because if it is an LLC, it is most likely an investor. If it is 2-3 names on the title it could be a married couple with the help of an parent to buy their first home. There are endless combinations and as you search more you’ll know the buyer profile more.
Do I really need to do all this work? The answer is yes. Wait a second, back in 2021 I heard that a house gets listed and easily 10+ offers would just show up. That was previously true but not in 2023. Another question to ask: Who were behind the offers? Was it mainly investors who low balled or was it homeowners who were willing to pay top dollar? To answer this question, research is needed.
Determine Your Ideal Buyer
Another step toward determining your ideal buyer when selling your house involves imagining that buyer and trying to think the way they do. Try to put yourself in the buyer’s shoes and think about what they would want in a home.
For example, is your home situated on the flat block of Lawton St. in Sunset? In that case, your ideal buyer would likely be a family with children. Families with children often seek out these kinds of homes because they offer safety from through traffic, and so the kids can bicycle and play safely near the house.
An important step is to go on online sites like Redfin and find similar houses that closed in the last 3-6 months to see what similar properties go for. This gives you a idea of what that ideal buyer and at what price a similar house goes for.
Determine Who Your Ideal Buyer Is NOT
You also need to determine who your ideal buyer is not when selling your house. If you can create a negative buyer person, this will allow you to bypass all those buyers you should not target, which will save time and money.
According to marketing pros, “[k]nowing your ideal buyer is important, but it’s just as crucial to understand who you don’t want to work with or who would be a bad fit. Determine the traits of customers you want to exclude, such as those who are just window shopping with no pre-approval letter or people who are just plain hard to work with.”
Once you know who your ideal buyer is not, you’ll be a step closer to determining who your ideal buyer actually is.
Look at What’s Trending
And it’s a good idea to look at what’s trending as a way to identify the ideal buyer. Selling your house and targeting the right audience depends in large part on seeing what buyers want and then presenting it to them. Here’s what industry pros have to say about this . . .
“In this golden age of HGTV, Instagram, and Pinterest, buyers know what’s in style when it comes to interior design. If you can give them that, you’ve got more than a few interested [and targeted] buyers . . . If [you] can get [your] home to look similar to what the current, new trends are, that’s going to be a win-win for the buyer and [you].”
For example, in San Francisco during 2022 there was a trend for navy blue cabinets on the bottom and white cabinets on top. These bold color schemes fetched the highest prices and most likely you would be able to get a return on your remodel. So search listing, blogs, Instagram to find out when would fetch the highest price for your home that is within budget.
Work With an Experienced Agent
Finally, one of the best steps you can take to identify your ideal buyer when selling your house is to work closely with an experienced, local agent.
A good agent will be a savvy Internet marketer, which is paramount today. “Now that the real estate market is so Internet-based, a lot of people feel that they can handle the sale of their home without professional help. Why pay for a service when there are so many free websites at your disposal, right?
While those websites do give you a considerable amount of exposure, hiring a real estate agent will help you to tailor that traffic into mainly interacting with individuals who are ready to buy your home immediately.”
In today’s market, determining your ideal buyer is an important early step for effective and efficient marketing. If selling your house in San Francisco effectively is your goal, contact me today at 415-830-1423.
