Staying ahead of the game is one of the most important strategies for serious buyers in any property climate. But the ability to access properties before they hit the market in our current climate - as Australia experiences the most rapid slowdown in prices in its three major cities since 1989, as it absorbs the impact of recent interest rate rises (which is making some buyers more cautious in terms of spending), and as it considers new incentives offered by certain state governments such as The First Home Buyer Choice scheme in NSW - makes that strategy even more imperative.

You need to be in it to win it, and traditional approaches like networking with agents are time-consuming and are usually more miss than hit.

So how else can you access new properties before they hit the market?

Finding out about pre or off-market properties is another way of locating properties for sale that is starting to supersede traditional methodologies.

Off-market sales are surging in popularity because everyone involved in the sales process benefits from it. Agents like it because it helps them build a relationship with their sellers by saving them money in expensive property advertising fees, and buyers like it because they get VIP access to the newest listings, while avoiding some of the headaches associated with traditional buying methods, like busy open-for-inspections and bidding wars at auctions.

Everyone loves a secret, and these “secret” listings give sellers the opportunity to market their properties directly to genuine, committed buyers, and for buyers it gives them the unique opportunity to access these properties before everyone else.

What is the difference between a pre-market property and an off-market listing?

Specifically, a pre-market property is a property that’s for sale, but only a limited number of people know about it. This is the period from where the property is officially listed to when you start seeing it advertised. This period can sometimes be 7 to 10 days. Think of pre-market as VIP access.

An off-market property is one that’s not advertised via mainstream channels. Instead, the seller chooses to rely on the agent’s networks to get the word out, as well as use Listing Loop!

Unsurprisingly, with the prospect of a recession looming, buyers are looking at alternative approaches to get in first, and sellers are starting to question the cost of expensive, mass-marketing strategies. By listing their properties pre and off-market, property owners are able to test the market and have a better chance of attracting serious, qualified buyers without outlaying upfront property marketing costs.

Think of it as VIP access

With our pre-market listings, we make you the first to know about new properties before they are listed on real estate sites. With our off-market properties, they remain private for the duration of the campaign, except the buyers that are matched to them.

Both of these options ensure our buyers get an exclusive opportunity to appraise these properties first, and the only commitment we ask of them is that they register with us, to help protect the privacy and security of our sellers and so we can match the right properties with the right buyers.

How does Listing Loop find these properties?

There is a multitude of reasons why real estate agents and sellers choose to list with us - cost, privacy and speed, to mention a few - and that means there is no shortage of off-market and pre-market properties for sale. Our portfolio of listings stretches Australia-wide!

How does the process work?

We've listed the first 4 easy steps below:

1. Buyers sign up with us to get free access to off-market and pre-market listings.
2. Our live property matching service kicks in and alerts buyers each time a new suitable property hits the market.
3. Once a buyers finds their perfect property, Listing Loop connects them with the agent handling the sale.
4. The agent organises a private inspection of the property, and if the buyer makes an offer - Et voila, they are more than halfway to owning their new property.

Ready to access a whole new world of properties for sale? Sign up for free to become a Listing Loop member at ListingLoop.com.au or download our app.