Selling Property Wimbledon by Heather Hilder on July 22, 2020 “Game, Set & Match” Selling Property & Wimbledon The thwack of tennis balls, the clink of a cup of tea and the slurp of a sucked strawberry are sounds that are synonymous with the perfect English summer. Weather permitting of course, selling property and Wimbledon are firmly on an estate agent’s calendar. But this year, 2020, lock-down put paid to ‘whites’, Robinson’s Lemon Barley, and hours locked in front of the TV watching our tennis favourites ‘LIVE’. Everyone in my household loves the Wimbledon season as a sporting event, as much as a lifestyle aspiration. I thwacked many balls myself on the tennis wall at Varndean Grammar. Of course, now it’s Varndean College. But I spend many happy hours on the tennis courts, before and after school, and during lunch! From a young age, I ‘seriously’ enjoyed the exploits on court of John McEnroe, the grace of Chrissie Evert, and the ice-cold slaughter of Bjorn Borg’s competition. I do admit to a teenage crush on Bjorn, Pete (Sampras) and Mark (Cox)! In normal times, as estate agents, we often accompany buyers around a property when the big tennis slams are on. The seller normally offers to switch the TV off during the viewing, but we say “no – please leave it on.” Wimbledon Magic On many occasions tennis fascinates the buyer, seller and estate agent during a viewing. While it might appear that this could be a distraction to the serious business of selling a property, the opposite can actually be true. After all, a house is only a home when moments are shared. Also it’s a place where excitements and disappointments are experienced together. Sport is a great way of bringing strangers together, so what better way to introduce a buyer to a property? So often there is an awkward silence between buyer and seller – or worse – the seller tries too hard to promote their property and the buyer responds by telling the seller what they want to hear. But break the ice with a bit of light tennis and friendships, and possibly a sale, can be made. In most cases the demographic make-up of a buyer will reflect that of the seller when they themselves bought the property. There is therefore likely to be a natural synergy between the two. So why not encourage buyer and seller to meet in this way. The skilled estate agent steers the conversation in the right direction of course, avoiding DOUBLE FAULTS! Thinking of selling? The ball’s in your court! Call our sales umpire on 01273 735237 or email teamsales@callaways.co.uk for game, set, and MATCH!
