[Selling Overseas] How to structure an attractive deal and get your overseas property sold

OK, so you’ve priced the property right, written a killer listing, listed with the main real estate agencies and are promoting online.  Time to sit back and relax?  Actually no – you need to stay engaged.

If you have not received any offers for a period of time, you may need to take action.  There’s always the option of lowering the price.  But before you do that consider ways of structuring the deal so that it’s more attractive to buyers. Lets start with incentives – they’re a great way of ‘lowering your price without actually lowering your price’.

Think hard about what real estate buyers researching overseas property are really looking for?  They’re not buying a concrete structure, a roof, or some walls; they’re buying a lifestyle.   So are there any lifestyle amenities that you can package with the house?  If you’re selling, say, Nicaragua real estate located near a surf break, then throw in a surfboard? Even your car?  Help your buyer pick up where you left off.  The mindset here is not just about selling a structure but about selling the lifestyle that goes along with it.

Are you in a position to offer financing?  In many overseas country it can be hard to find local banks that offer competitive financing products for foreigners.  So if you can finance a portion of the deal yourself, your property will stand out from the crowd.  On the flip-side, you could offer discounts for cash buyers.

If you really want to cast the net wide, consider offering buyers a lease with the option to buy.  This gives your buyer more time to collect together the funds they need for an outright purchase and in the meantime they can rent your home.  This arrangement may suit the growing demographic of ‘retiree buyers’ interested in moving abroad.  Their retirement next egg may have withered in the recent economic storm and they’re interested in moving abroad to a country with a lower cost of living.  A lease-purchase option may be just the thing to help them make the move.

Extras and special offers don’t always have to be aimed at the buyer.  Sellers in Belize, for example, have found that offering incentives to the local real estate community (or to the developer if you are selling within a development) can get results.  A ‘bonus’ or a particularly generous commission might be just the thing to get your property at the forefront of a vendor’s mind and on the regular list of properties shown on their property tours and advertised to their database.

What about you?  Have you had any experience selling overseas property?  Are there any incentives that have worked for you?  Sound of in the comments.