Sometimes the Right Buyer Just Takes Time
Scott St. Land Officially Under Contract
606 & 610 S. Scott St. Spokane, WA
South Hill Land
Zoning: RMF Land Size: 0.37 AC | 2 Parcels
Commercial real estate success doesn’t always happen quickly. Sometimes, despite an active marketing strategy, multiple adjustments, and continued effort, the most important ingredient in a transaction is simply time. Recently, Daines Capital Commercial Real Estate represented the seller of a residential/commercial-zoned piece of land that had been on the market for approximately a year. Throughout the listing period, our team continually evaluated how the property was being positioned and looked for new ways to generate interest.
We made changes to our marketing, launched targeted campaigns to prospective buyers, adjusted the pricing, and continued promoting the opportunity to our network. Despite those efforts, the property wasn’t generating the activity we wanted to see. As the seasons began to change, we made the decision with our seller to temporarily take the property off the market, with the intention of reassessing and potentially relisting it in the future.
Then, less than a week after the property came off the market, something changed. The right buyer came along.
An interested party approached us about the land, and conversations progressed quickly. We were able to work with the buyer and our seller to negotiate an agreeable Purchase and Sale Agreement, and after nearly a year of waiting, the property was officially under contract. This transaction was also an important reminder that not every property sits on the market because the marketing isn’t working.
Land can require a particularly long sales cycle. Unlike an existing building that may appeal to a broader pool of owner-users or investors, land buyers are often searching for something very specific. They may need the right zoning, location, parcel size, development potential, access, utilities, or combination of characteristics before a property makes sense for their plans.
You can change the marketing. You can adjust the price. You can reach new audiences. But you can’t always create a buyer who simply isn’t in the market yet. For this property, we spent approximately a year searching for that buyer. When they finally appeared, they knew what they were looking for—and our seller’s property happened to fit.
Of course, getting a property under contract is only one step in the transaction, and there is still work to be done before closing. But after a lengthy marketing period, we’re excited to finally be able to deliver some good news to our seller and move forward with a qualified, interested buyer. It’s also a good lesson for other landowners considering selling in the current market: a longer time on market doesn’t necessarily mean your property won’t sell.
Strategic marketing, proper positioning, and pricing all matter, but sometimes the market simply needs time to produce the right buyer. The key is continuing to evaluate the strategy, staying realistic about current conditions, and being prepared to act when that buyer finally arrives.
At Daines Capital Commercial Real Estate, we remain committed to our clients throughout that entire process—whether a property sells in a matter of weeks or requires patience and persistence over many months.
For this seller, the wait may finally be paying off, and we’re excited to see this property move on to its next chapter.