Off-market properties: How to preview, inspect and make an offer before other buyers

When buying a home, sometimes it pays to be ahead of the game. 

Desirable properties usually see a huge amount of interest the moment the listing is live, and strong competition at auction can push prices beyond most buyers’ budgets. 

But in some cases, a home can be available for sale before it’s even advertised.

Active buyers who are alerted to properties that aren’t yet on the market have the opportunity to move before anyone else, gaining a competitive edge.

What is an off-market property?

A property that’s available for sale but not yet advertised to a wide audience is considered “off-market”, and these homes tend to fall into one of two categories.

If an owner prefers a quick and quiet sale, the agent might not advertise the property at all, and will instead try to find a buyer from within their database or professional network. 

“There’s a certain percentage of the population that doesn’t want their house exposed,” said Fletchers Blackburn director and auctioneer Ben Williams.

This might be the case for separating couples, deceased estates, extremely wealthy individuals or simply those who value privacy. These properties are usually sold quietly without ever being advertised.

On the other hand, some properties are made available for sale for a brief period before the home is publicly advertised. These are sometimes referred to as “pre-market” opportunities. 

When a vendor decides to sell, there is often a two to four-week window between the day they enlist an agent to sell the property and the day the listing goes live. 

“There’s always a lag between signing an agreement and when it goes on the market,” said Buxton Hampton East director and auctioneer Noel Susay.

This is when the property is being prepared for sale, with home staging, professional photography and the production of floor plans and advertising materials taking place.

During this period, some buyers from within the agent’s database might be notified that the property can be viewed ahead of it being publicly advertised to a wide audience.

Buyers can then arrange a time to inspect the property with the agent privately, avoiding the crowds of a typical Saturday open-home inspection.

“If the vendors are ready to show people through before it’s ready to be advertised, it can’t hurt,” said Stone McMahons Point principal Aaron Bongiorno. “Sometimes it can lead to a sale prior to going on the market.”

Advantages of getting ahead

Being alerted to matching properties that aren’t yet on the wider market can give buyers the opportunity to get ahead of the competition. 

These opportunities may appeal to fatigued buyers who are tired of the auction process. “Quite often they’ve missed out on other properties,” Bongiorno said.

Previewing a property enables active buyers to move quickly by inspecting the home and making an offer before others even know the place is available for sale. “Buyers feel like they’re not going to have to compete with other bidders at auction,” Williams said.

Even if the owner does proceed to the open market, buyers who saw the home first are in an advantageous position, with more time to make a decision.

Buyers who want to make an offer ahead of anyone else need finance pre-approval and a deposit ready, as well as a keen understanding of local property values. “There’s a lot to be said for comparable sales in the area,” Bongiorno said. 

How to find off-market properties

In the past, buyers had to hunt for off-market properties by contacting all the local agents in the area, explaining their search criteria and budget, and waiting for individual agents to tell them about suitable properties. Some buyers intent on securing an off-market property spend thousands of dollars on the services of a buyer’s agent to do the legwork for them.

Now, Domain members can easily register their search criteria and automatically receive alerts about matching properties as soon as the homes are available for sale, but well before the home is publicly advertised anywhere.

Buyers can be alerted about homes that match their criteria within hours of the vendor signing the paperwork with their agent, and potentially weeks ahead of the rest of the market. They can then inspect the home, make an offer, and buy the property before others even know it’s for sale.

Interested in off-market properties? Become a Domain member to get access to off-market properties that match your search before they’re even listed.