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 to High:
No doubt about it, the most common reason for a home not selling is that the
asking price has been set to high. The reasons for setting your price to
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 to 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 to 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 to 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 price.
2. The Condition of Your Home:
There is a lot of competition out there to sell homes, not only with
other FSBOs but also the homes that REALTORS® have
on the market. Most REALTORS® are going to show Clients homes listed with other
REALTORS® first because:
Ease of obtaining information from computer and setting up showing:
They know what they are going to get paid and don't have to negotiate it with a Seller:
The fact is your home has to also compete against the shiny 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 Buyer's position. Most Buyers doesn't want to have to do anything except move in. Your best "bang for the buck" in improving the condition of your home are paint and flooring. Make sure that all of the paint is in good condition, both inside and out. Repainting generally doesn't cost to much, and will usually make the biggest impact on Buyers. Make sure all flooring looks good too. If you can't afford to replace the carpet at least get it cleaned by a professional.
3. Location, Location,
Location:
It's the oldest cliche' in the world, but its 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 an less desirable location, a good real estate agent may
help minimize some of the impact by suggesting improvements to the house.
But the only way 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 house in a better location.
4. The Market is Slow:
You'll hear it described as a slow market, or a Buyer's Market, or maybe
a cold market. But it all means the same thing. That home sales in
the local area, or market, are slow. That there are to many homes for sale
and not enough active Buyers. There are several things you can do to
combat a slow market. Of course the most effective strategy is to sell at
a lower price, but to us this is the last resort. 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 wait it out. But that is not
always an option for many Sellers.
5. 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 of the 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 "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.
