Why Homes Don't Sell

Many sellers found themselves in a precarius position last year as they were unable to sell their homes as inventory levels increased and home sales continued to decline. As market behavior changed, sellers began to acquiese to necessary price decreases, but often not before weeks turned to months and market prices declined further. There’s something about a market decline–everybody is affected. Real estate agents spend thousands of dollars on marketing and advertising and often lost their listings to other agents, home inspectors, insurance companies, title companies, and still others faced declining transaction volumes. What a mess! While the mortgage industry began to see an increase in refinance transactions, the companies faced an increasing number of consumers defaulting on their mortgage notes resulting in foreclosures. There is an increasing number of REO (bank-owned) property on the market.
Here are several reasons why homes don’t sell…

•The house is overpriced. Buyers ultimately determine the market value of a home. Overpricing is the primary reasons that homes don’t sell. When the price is too high, buyers and their agents will put the house on the backburner especially if the price appears to be unreasonable. The evidence of this will be be few or no showings. The result–weeks maybe months on the market with no offers.

•Poor showing condition. The next most common reason why a house may not move is when it doesn’t show well. Quick tips: Eliminate or reduce clutter, clean everything and everywhere including floors and carpes—demonstrate pride of ownership, paint (professional vs amateur finishes), and make sure that everything is in working order. Your real estate agent or for more challenging jobs, a professional stager, can give you the best tips for preparing your home to show well.

•Curb appeal. If the house looks ugly on the outside, they’re going to keep going! Keep the grass cut and the hedges trimmed. Power wash the front stoop and the house if needed. Paint the trim work and repair any dry rot repairs. If it looks good outside, they’ll definitely come inside!
Location. The price of the house may need to be adjusted up or down based on whether its location is desirable–a cul-de-sac is more desirable than a main street. A house that backs to trees is more desirable than one that backs to another house. What are the options in that community?

•Market conditions. In a hot market with low inventory, everything will say. Buyers will make it work–they’ll clean it, they’ll repair it, they’ll make it work. In a “cold” or buyer’s market, everyone is offering incentives to entice buyers and builders may be “giving” away fully loaded spec homes to get their unit sold. Sellers are competing against new construction, vacant homes, and other homes on the market.

What now?
The good news is that sales activity is picking up as prices stabilize and sellers start to make some changes. The buyers are out there but they have been very skeptical about buying now vs waiting until the market “bottoms out.”
Utilize the support of a good Realtor to get your home seen and sold. Real estate professionals know how best to operate in different market conditions. We also maintain an extensive network to other real estate agents and can market and communicate with them directly to get our properties in front of their buyers. We will show you how to best position your home for the best price and fastest sale despite the market conditions.

Author: Lorrie Hunter
Source: Realtor.com