How to Ride the Buyer Wave and Maximise Your Home’s Value
Let’s get straight to the point — our job is to help you maximise your home’s value. Today, we’re diving into the one thing that can make or break your sale, regardless of how beautiful or well-maintained your home is: pricing.
You’ve likely done everything right so far:
- You bought smart
- You’ve looked after the property, maybe even upgraded it
- You’ve done all the ground work to help your listing shine
And now, you’re thinking of selling.
Wait! Before you go any further, you need to understand one last critical element: how pricing really works.
Market Value vs Asking Price vs Selling Price
These are not interchangeable terms. Yet most sellers — and many agents — treat them like they are. Here’s the distinction:
- Market Value is what a well-informed buyer would reasonably pay today.
- Asking Price is what you list the property for.
- Selling Price is what you end up with.
Your marketing strategy should connect the asking price to the market value in a way that attracts the right buyers and converts that interest into offers. That’s where most sales are won — or lost.
🌊 The Buyer Wave: Why Timing and Price Are Everything
Once your property is listed — typically on Rightmove, Zoopla or OnTheMarket — you get an initial 2-week surge of attention. This is your buyer wave.
Your goal? Ride it. Stay on it from:
Listing → Viewings → Offers → Exchange → Completion
Do this right, and you’ll glide to shore like a pro — Patrick Swayze style.
Miss the wave, and you’ll be left paddling… with fewer, less motivated buyers.
From left to right on the graph:
[LEFT] This is where the market is at its most active — when pricing just slightly above market value might work because buyer demand is high. But it’s a gamble: the danger is that price and buyer expectations never meet. A smarter strategy? Price at market value and create competition to drive stronger offers.
[CENTRE] Miss that initial wave, and you’ll be left paddling — working harder for interest that may only return once your price drops below market value. The buyers who show up at this stage tend to be more hesitant, less committed, and more price-sensitive.
[RIGHT] Welcome to submarine territory. This is where listings sink into the depths — sellers who’ve reduced their asking price multiple times, hoping something bites. Agents often suggest another reduction. Eventually, one might work… but at what cost?
If you find yourself drifting toward the middle or right of this curve — it’s rarely your fault. Don’t worry: there is a way back. Give us a call, and we’d be happy to talk through a strategy that can help you regain control and move forward at a fair selling price.
Remember: You’re in a Race for Attention
Other properties will be launching at the same time. Buyers are comparing listings, scrolling fast, and forming instant opinions.
Right now, asking prices remain high — but buyers are more selective. You’re not just selling a home. You’re competing for clicks, viewings, and trust.
⚠️ Avoid These Costly Mistakes
1. Overpricing
This is the #1 reason properties don’t sell.
Many agents still use the old trick of quoting an inflated price to win your instruction — and we’re all flattered by a big number. But without evidence, that price is just a fantasy.
In a recent Wokingham appraisal, I reviewed multiple listings. The ones that reduced their price multiple times? Still unsold, sitting on the market for months. The ones that priced right from the start? Under offer within weeks.
Why price reductions hurt:
- You’ve already missed the wave of interest.
- You now need to drop below your ideal asking price to regain attention.
- Lower offers. Lower-quality buyers. Higher risk of fall-throughs.
In fact, 1 in 3 sales in the UK still falls through.
And ask yourself — if you were the buyer, would you be drawn to a listing that’s had 3 price drops and 5 months on the market?
2. “Testing the Market”
Although dipping your toe in the water might be refreshing, it isn’t as harmless as it sounds.
Testing usually means undercooked pricing, lazy marketing, and low effort — which turns buyers off from day one.
Worse still, if you pull your property from the market, you’ll have to wait 14 weeks to relist on Rightmove and have it appear “new”.
3. Choosing an Agent Based on Familiarity, Not Strategy
The most common justification I hear:
“They’re everywhere” or “They know the area.”
But here’s the truth: buyers don’t care who your agent is. They care about:
- Price
- Photos
- Floorplans
- Videos
- Chains
Choose your agent based on strategy, data, and delivery — not brand recognition.
What Does Success Look Like
Let’s look at a real case I mentioned earlier. For a recent market appraisal in Wokingham (RG40), we prepared this local market analysis — and the data speaks for itself:
Out of 9 comparable properties:
- ✅ 2 sold
- 🔁 5 went through at least one price reduction
- ❌ 3 were withdrawn from the market
What do the sold properties have in common?
They spent less time on the market and had no price reductions — because they were priced correctly from day one.
Let me say that again:
The properties that sold were priced right from the start. No reductions. No delays. Just clean, effective marketing and realistic pricing.
You’ll also notice I’ve included an assessment of each listing’s overall health. Unsurprisingly, the healthiest listing was one of the two that sold.
There is a high chance that for 2 of the properties that were withdrawn, the sellers might have lost their faith and motivation… they might even had cancelled their moving plans overall. The third one withdrawn after 20 days could have been a seller ‘testing the market’.
The Bottom Line: Launch with Intention or Don’t Launch at All
Pricing your home is not about optimism — it’s about strategy.
The best-performing sellers hit the market with intent, backed by evidence, and supported by an agent who knows how to make that first wave count.
If you’re preparing to sell — or if you’re already on the market and struggling — feel free to reach out. We are happy to give you a fresh perspective, grounded in data and designed for results that will get you moved.
📧 contact@lsproperties.uk
☎️ 0118 324 80 34