Seller sweeteners used to lure hesitant homebuyers

Sydney’s property market downturn is prompting sellers to increasingly turn to creative incentives to help sweeten the deal for hesitant buyers, opting to offer free luxury cars, electric vehicles to fully-furnished homes. While falling property prices have shifted the harbour city into a “buyer’s market”, properties are also piling up and taking longer to sell with buyers holding out for bigger discounts. New figures from SQM Research show total residential listings in Sydney climbed 6.6 per cent in July to 39,400 properties, up from 30,776 listings at the same time last year, representing an annual increase of 28 per cent. The market cooldown has seen an uptick in sellers thinking outside the box to secure a sale. A Merrylands home at 19 Brian Street was recently sold with a free Alfa Romeo 4C included in its listing, while another home in Quakers Hill was previously marketed with a free MG4 EV Urban Essence 54 in the buyer’s colour of choice. 19 Brian Street, Merrylands was listed with a free Alfa Romeo 4C in its purchase In the Blue Mountains, vendor Grant Whyte is including his Mercedes CLA200 Limited Edition in the sale of his home at 116 Craigend Street, Leura. “It’s basical...