If this is the year, after years of riding out a flat property market, you're ready to sell your home, you’re not alone. Properties are flooding onto the market in New Zealand, and getting the best price for yours requires a smart strategy. Property advisor Ed McKnight has tips.
If you’re thinking about selling your property in 2026, brace yourself – it’s still a buyer’s market.
Sure, more homes are selling than during the depths of the downturn in 2023. But there’s also a surge of new listings hitting the market. The number of properties available for sale is currently at a 10-year high.
These are the properties owners would have wanted to sell a few years back, but were holding off until the market improved. Now that the market is more stable, those sellers are stepping forward.
But, even though buyers still have the upper hand, a smart seller can still get a good result if they are prepared and strategic.
1. Spend money to sell your property
Marketing matters more than many people think. You can’t sell a secret. The Big Mac isn’t the best burger in the world. But it is the most famous. And it’s all down to marketing.
The property listings that stand out tend to feature professional photos. They have a video, floor plans and have premium listings on property websites. Ideally, wait for a sunny day to take the photos. Sunshine alone can lift the listing.
A good photographer can cost $300 or more. But, if you want to squeeze every dollar out of the sale, in my experience, it is usually money well spent.
2. Sell an ‘empty’ property
It’s often easier to sell a house that no one is living in – not you, or if you're a landlord, your tenants. That way, the house is always clean. It’s tidy. And the furniture is arranged perfectly, no matter when a would-be buyer wants to view it.
All of those things affect how buyers feel the moment they walk through the door.
Of course, this isn’t always possible because, if it’s your own home, you still need somewhere to live. But, in today's market, buyers can easily compare hundreds of listings. The homes that look fresh, bright, and beautifully presented are the ones that rise to the top.
If it's your home and moving out isn't an option, the least you can do is strip back your possessions – either by getting rid of them for good (most of us could do with a major declutter) or by storing them with a friend or relative. Aim to subtract anything ugly, dated, tatty or overtly personal. One hundred family photos clinging to your fridge door? Pop them in a drawer and polish that fridge door until it gleams. Your deceased great aunt's bulky armchair dominating your small living room? Get it gone.
Also remember that potential buyers will open storage cupboards and wardrobe doors. Make sure you declutter and tidy those spaces and create the impression that your home has storage to spare and is an organised pleasure to live in.
The aim is to present potential buyers with a fresh, homely, somewhat spare canvas onto which they can project the fantasy of their own best life.
3. Hire a professional stager
While properties do well to be empty of people, that doesn’t mean they should be literally empty. Rooms without furniture tend to feel smaller than they really are, and buyers struggle to imagine if they really could fit their queen-sized bed into that bedroom, or if that poky little sunroom would work as an office.
Staging the property with rented furniture allows buyers to see how it could function, and it also creates a modern, aspirational look. Most stagers will opt for light, neutral tones and a mix of natural fibres and textures, presenting your property in its best possible light.
It usually costs a few hundred dollars a week, or about $1500 to $5000 across a five-week listing period, with the cost depending on the stager you choose, the size of your home, and whether you opt for partial staging (a mix of your own furniture and rented pieces) or full.
Make sure you get the staging completed before the photography.
4. Make your home 'move-in ready'
Home buyers hate hassle and risk. Any ‘but what about?’ thoughts can lead them to offer a lower price. They do this to account for any potential work they see looming on the horizon.
So, often it's a good idea to tweak surface things that look shoddy – paint the front door, or replace old carpet – before you go to market.
This doesn’t mean an overhaul to the kitchen or bathroom. But small, strategic improvements can make a surprisingly big difference to the perceived value of your home.
Not every seller bothers, and in a buyer’s market, the homes that feel tidy, well cared for and 'move-in ready' will likely fetch higher prices.
5. Decide on your ‘three prices’ before the offers start rolling in
One of the smartest things you can do as a seller is decide your three numbers before emotion kicks in and you start to feel greedy or discouraged.
The simplest approach is to write down three prices:
1. The price that would make you ecstatic — the “pop the champagne” number.
2. The price you’d be satisfied with — not thrilling, but comfortable.
3. The minimum you’re willing to accept — anything below this, you walk away.
Clarifying these numbers to yourself (and if you have one, with your partner) helps you review offers calmly (and can avoid arguments with your partner about what the pair of you will or won't accept). If an offer reaches your “ecstatic” price, you’ll know not to push so hard that you scare off the buyer.
If you get low-ball offers beneath your minimum number, you know you can confidently kick them to the curb.
6. Be in a position to walk away
It's not uncommon to spend $10,000 or more on a property before it's even listed. That would only just cover a room or two of new carpet, marketing, staging, and the odd fresh coat of paint.
But when offers come in lower than expected, some are tempted to try to get a 'return' on that $10k investment. They become willing to accept a price they normally wouldn’t, because it seems the only available way to justify the outlay.
If your minimum price was $900k and the best offer is $850k, the money you spent preparing the home is irrelevant.
Accepting $50k less just to justify a $10k spend is a losing trade.
This is one reason that, in a buyer’s marker, it’s preferable to sell before you buy – or at least make any offers on a property you’d like to buy conditional. Then, if the offers don’t meet your minimum price, you’re in a position to walk away.
All things considered, selling a home this year won’t be as simple as sticking a 'For Sale' sign on the lawn and waiting for a bidding war.
2026 is still likely to lean in favour of buyers, with plenty of choice and strong competition among sellers. But with the right preparation, you can still come out ahead.
Ed McKnight is an Auckland-based economist and property investment advisor.
*This information is general in nature and should not be taken as personalised financial advice.
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