Reasons why homes don’t
sell
If you have had your home on the market for several months and
haven’t seen much activity or any offers, chances are that one or more of the
reasons below are to blame.
1.
Your
price is too high
No doubt about it, the most common reason for a home not selling
is that the asking price has been set too high. The reasons for setting
your price too high to begin with are many. Ranging from over enthusiastic
listing agents to unrealistic seller expectations. Regardless of the reason
though, if you’ve priced your home too high, you’ve set yourself up for a
number of obstacles to selling your home. Even if you do get an offer for the
overly high asking price, the deal may fall apart before closing because the
buyer may have problems financing at too high a price. Look at other homes for
sale, ones as similar and as close to yours as possible. If they are going for
less than you are asking, you may be priced too high. The fact is, your home is
competing against those other homes, and what buyers are willing to pay is what
will determine final sales prices.
2.
The
condition of your home
There is a lot of competition out there to sell homes. Your home
has to compete against other similar homes for sale, as well as competing
against shiny brand new homes. The more you can do to make your home look
appealing to a buyer, the better your chances for a quick sale. Look at your
home with a critical eye – put yourself in the buyers’ position. A buyer
doesn’t want to have to do anything except move in. Your best “bang for the
buck” in improving the condition of your home is paint and flooring. Make sure
that all of the paint is in great condition, both inside and out. Repainting
doesn’t cost too much, and will usually make the biggest impact on buyers. Make
sure all of the flooring looks good too. You may want to consider putting in
new carpet. Again, it’s not that expensive but it sure does make an impact on
buyers coming to look at your home.
3.
Location, location,
location
It’s the oldest cliché in the world, but it’s true. When it comes
to real estate, it’s all about location! When it comes to homes, things like
how good the schools are, crime rates, visual appeal of the neighborhood and
noise or the smell of pollution can all effect how desirable the location is.
If you’re in a bad location, a good real estate agent may help to minimize some
of the impact by suggesting improvements to the house. But the only really
reliable way to overcome a bad location is with a lower price. Simply put, an
identical home in a bad location won’t sell for as much as the same home in a
better location.
4.
Your
marketing campaign is out of steam
The best listing agents all use an aggressive marketing plan to
market their listings. If your listing agent isn’t making sure your home can be
found easily on the internet, isn’t actively touting his or her listings to
other agents in the area, isn’t running ads in the local newspapers and real
estate publications, then it might be time to change agents. The best
agents might even run radio or television ads for their listings.
If all your agent has done is put a sign in your front yard and add your home
to the local MLS, then that agent isn’t coming close to doing all that can be
done to effectively market your home.
5.
The
market is slow
You’ll hear it described as a slow market, or a buyers’ market, or
maybe a cold market. But it all means the same thing; home sales in the local area
or market, are slow. That there are too many homes for sale and not enough
active buyers. There are several things you can do to combat a slow market. The
most effective strategy is to sell at a lower price. Buyers are expecting to
find bargains during a slow market. You can also help yourself by offering to
pay some concessions to help a buyer that might not have a lot of cash. The
ultimate way to beat a slow market is to simply wait it out. But that’s not
always an option for many sellers.
6.
Your home
isn’t easily accessible
To get your home sold quickly, it’s important that other agents in
the area show it to as many potential buyers as possible. When a busy agent is
compiling a list of homes to show a buyer, the agent will naturally tend to
show those houses that are easiest to gain access to first. Many homes on the
market have “lock boxes” on them. The lock box is a device which holds a key to
the home, that only qualified local agents can access. Homes that are listed as
being “lock box, no appointment needed” will get shown more often than homes
listed as “agent has key, call for appointment”. If at all possible, you should
let your agent put a lock box on your home for easier showing. If not, you
should do anything else you can to make it as convenient as possible for agents
to show your home.
To avoid getting caught up in any of the reasons above, while still
receiving the best customer care, contact me! You can do it, when you have a
great agent on your side!
www.GeniyaK.com
