1.Price on evidence, not on hope
The most expensive month of a campaign is the first one spent overpriced. Ask your agent for comparable sales — actual settled prices for similar properties in your suburb — and for the asking prices of what you are competing against right now. If the evidence is thin, which happens in smaller Fiji markets, a registered valuation is worth the fee. Buyers see every listing in your price band; the market judges you against them on day one.
2.Get the paperwork ready before you list
Deals slow down at the paperwork stage far more often than at the negotiation stage. Locate the title or lease, confirm whether a consent to transfer is required, find approvals for any extension or structure that was added, and clear outstanding rates or ground rent. If something was built without approval, say so early and take advice — surfacing it during a due-diligence period is the version that costs you the buyer.
- Title or lease document and the current lease term
- Council or authority approvals for extensions and outbuildings
- Rates and ground rent statements, clear of arrears
- Body corporate or estate levy statements, where they apply
- Any consent required for the tenure, and who lodges it
3.Presentation that actually moves the needle
Spend on the things a buyer reads as risk. Fix leaks, clear gutters, treat rust, cut back growth against the house, and repaint what looks tired rather than what looks dated. Declutter until rooms read as larger than they are, and get the garden and driveway sharp — kerb appeal does more per dollar here than a kitchen upgrade. Then insist on professional photography taken in good light; most buyers decide whether to inspect from a phone screen.
4.Choose the method that suits the property
Private treaty with an asking price suits properties with clear comparables and a broad buyer pool. Auction suits scarce or hard-to-price property — beachfront, a landmark commercial holding, an estate sale — where competition sets a price no valuation would have named, and it gives you an unconditional result on the day. Tender suits properties where terms matter as much as price. There is no universally right answer, only the right fit for what you own and how quickly you need to be out.
5.Market where Fiji buyers actually look
That means the property portals and our own website, the buyer database an agency has already built, social channels, and a signboard, which still works in Fiji. It also means the diaspora: a meaningful share of buyers for Suva and western property are Fijians overseas, so listings need enough photography, floor plan and video that someone can commit from Sydney, Auckland or Los Angeles before flying in.
6.Negotiating, and then getting to settlement
Judge an offer on more than the number: the size of the deposit, whether finance is approved or merely applied for, the conditions attached, and the settlement date. A slightly lower unconditional offer often beats a higher one hanging on three conditions. Once you are under contract, stay responsive — the fastest way to lose a sale is a fortnight of silence while a condition runs down.