You are probably familiar with this: you list this great property, only to have it sit on the market for a few months with little interest. This can be really frustrating for your clients.
As their agent, it may not be your fault that the listing is stale, but the responsibility of trying to get it moved is still yours.
If your listing has been sitting on the market for a while with no offers, it’s time to take a step back and figure out why it isn’t moving, and what you can do to fix the situation.
Evaluate the List Price
The list price of a home is one of the most important factors. If a home has been on the market for a while, especially in a hot market, the list price is definitely something that you need to take a second look at. The home may not be moving because the price is too high.
Re-evaluate the comparables that you used to determine a list price, and look to see if there are any new recently sold homes that you can look at, as well.
If you are dealing with unreasonable sellers that are insistent that their home is worth more than you think it will sell for, you may need to compile a few examples to show them what comparable homes are selling for in their neighborhood, to show them why their home hasn’t gotten any offers.
Update the Listing with New Photos
If there hasn’t been a lot of showings, it’s possible that you need to invest in better photos of the property. In this digital age, almost all buyers are looking at homes online before they ever even get into their agent’s car. It’s critical that your listing looks its best.
If possible, hire a professional real estate photographer, especially if the home is in a higher price range. It can be an added expense, but if it helps the home sell, it’s definitely worth the investment. If you’re doing the photographs yourself, make sure that the space is well-lit, and opening the blinds and letting in natural light will do wonders.
If the problem isn’t the photos themselves, but more so a cluttered home, talk to your clients about the possibility of moving some items to a storage unit until the home sells. Whether the home is occupied or vacant, staging may also be a valuable option to help the home seem more inviting to buyers.
Making Repairs
Sometimes a home may not drum up a lot of interest because of maintenance. It’s possible that the home may have defects that are a turn off to buyers. This will be especially apparent if the home has gone under contract and the buyers backed out because of an inspection report.
It might be a good idea to have a talk with your clients about whether or not they are able to make any repairs to the home. They may not be financially able or willing, but if they are, this could help the home become more attractive to buyers. A lot of times, buyers are looking for a move-in ready home where they aren’t going to have to put in a lot of time and more money to get it where they want it.
Some buyers are ready and willing to purchase a home that is in need of repair, but they’re going to expect to snag the home at a discount to make up for all the extra work that they’re going to have to do. If your sellers are unable to do the repairs, you may have to discuss dropping the list price to accommodate.
