The house you’ve listed for sale is getting visits from potential buyers, but it is not selling. When your home has been on the market for more than a month, it might be time to make some changes.
These days, buyers are very savvy – they do a lot of market research. Over 30 days on the market, typically buyers ask, ‘What’s wrong with it?’ Overstaying on the market is generally viewed as a negative signal, as buyers will speculate on what flaws made the property hard to sell to previous buyers. When your home sits on the market for weeks or months without a buyer, it’s likely costing you money.
Ultimately, the longer a listing sits on the market, the more likely the sale price can fall below the listing price. The probability of your home selling for a lower price will increase every day it doesn’t sell.
When it comes to reasons a home isn’t selling, If it’s not the condition, it’s always price, and in fact, it’s almost always pricing. Pricing a house too high is a common mistake. Nearly 50% of real estate agents find it challenging to convince homeowners not to overprice their homes.
Pricing a home for sale is tricky. There are a lot of ways to slice the data to determine your home’s fair market value. And while data, usually from sales of comparable homes in the area, is important, a top agent’s experience can be invaluable when building a pricing strategy.
Consider consulting a real estate agent if you have priced the home yourself. You should be able to tell at once whether your asking price is too ambitious when you work with a top agent.
Attend open houses and show homes and listen to what people are saying. Check out local listings too. Your home could be overpriced compared to comparable properties in your area.
Time for a price drop, and while it’s no fun to realize your home isn’t worth what you thought it was, you’re not alone. What price drop should you make? A significant price reduction will get the job done rather than a thousand-dollar drop every week.
However, not everyone is subject to the 30-day rule. Properties with certain characteristics may be more difficult to sell. In either case, your property is unique or relatively easy to sell. Properties with unusual features like very large homes, high-end houses, or houses in unusual areas can take a little longer to match with buyers.
Patience is the key. Your home is likely to take a little longer to sell if it’s unusual. In addition, make sure your marketing and advertising strategies target the right buyer. Present the home’s notable features in the most positive light, and make your listing stand out from the rest.
A seller may need to list an unusual home elsewhere besides the usual online real estate websites. Make sure to use any particular websites, mailing lists, local apps, or even print publications that could reach specific potential buyers. Take a moment to consider what you liked about your home when you bought it – there’s surely someone else who feels the same way. What if you were motivated by a lower-than-average-price when you purchased an unusual house? There is a solution.
Staged homes get more attention than unstaged ones, even though the buyer isn’t shopping for furniture. Staged homes tend to sell for more money and sell faster than homes without it. Staged homes are believed to sell for at least 1%-5% more than those unstaged, and 83% of top agents agree staging accelerates the sale process. You should let the buyer envision their future life there as much as possible. Home staging that isn’t done well can make your home seem cluttered, dark, small and strange to buyers.
Potential buyers have a hard time visualizing the potential of vacant homes, while homes cluttered with too much of the current owners’ stuff seem cramped and overwhelming. If your staging is incorrect, you won’t be able to show off your home’s strengths or, worse, and you’ll highlight the flaws you are hoping for buyers to overlook.
Fix anything broken, paint the room, clean the yard, and declutter ruthlessly. If you’re interested in showing your home at its best, you should hire a professional stager. Almost all top agents have someone they trust as a resource. Take advantage of that. Small upgrades often pay off huge dividends.
As it relates to the outside of your home, curb appeal refers to the first impressions a buyer gets as they drive up to your house. People will stay away from a rundown facade or an unkempt yard. As someone approaches your door, you don’t want them to think the home is a “fixer-upper.” Seventy-five percent of top real estate agents say that landscaping increases the value of a home by between 1% and 10%. Agents agree that improving curb appeal is one of the most important things you can do to make your home more marketable.
Improve your landscaping, make your grass a vibrant green, and fix any obvious problems with your front entrance. What about painting your door a cute colour? It could help you sell your house.
Since 44% of buyers start their search online before seeing anything else, if your listing photos don’t showcase your house well, nobody will come to see it.
It doesn’t matter how well-lit your iPhone photos are anymore. Professional listing photos have ranked as the most valuable online feature for selling your home.
Have your listing photos re-done by a professional. Usually, your agent will arrange for this at the outset, and it is one of the things you will be charged for.
At a showing, your agent should ask, “What’s wrong with this house?”
“What would you want to change, to buy this home?” You know something is wrong when you hear the same answer from different people.
Identifying an issue allows you to mitigate it. Add lighting, declutter, or clean your windows if multiple people tell you your house is too dark. It is not always possible to change everything. What if your location is on a busy street or the neighbourhood isn’t as picturesque as buyers imagined? “Remember, the price fixes everything.”
A top-notch agent would have been able to prevent almost everything on this list. Taking care of marketing and responding to feedback from showings are all tasks your realtor should perform for you.
Select an agent who is knowledgeable about the area or type of home you’re attempting to sell. When the right adjustments are made to your home’s listing, staging, or condition, it will sell.
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