This post is the 2nd in my summer long series (I know, it’s not summer yet, close enough) about why your house isn’t selling. And it won’t be the typical “you should mow your lawn, please” advice because you can get that anywhere on the Internet, or from any real estate professional. I’m going to give you what you won’t get anywhere else; the hard truth. So welcome to “Why your house isn’t selling: The Ugly Truth.” Once a week, throughout the summer, every Tuesday, I’m going to tell you why your house isn’t selling and it won’t be pretty. You may think I’m crabby and sometimes I am; you may think I’m mean but this series isn’t about being nice, it’s about telling you in a straightforward way why your house isn’t selling. Consider that a lot of folks will tell you what you want to hear – I’m going to tell you the truth even if it’s ugly.
I have come across lots, and lots, and lots of sellers who are all completely convinced that somehow, someway, their house is THE exception to all rules of selling ever invented. I can assure you; it is not. I can assure you of this without having even seen your house. I know that it’s your home and you love it. You have many memories there and you don’t mind all the quirky nuances; perhaps you even bought the house because of the quirky nuances. What you, the seller, need to keep in mind however is that the buyers don’t have ANY memories about your house – after all, it is just a house to them at this point not a home. Also, the buyers may see the quirky nuances of your house as something that is broken.
So why do I write all this? Because as I mentioned before I have come across way too many sellers who think that somehow their home alone can defy all laws of the free market and that they can set the price too high because it will sell anyway; or that they don’t have to fix anything, repaint anything, or get new carpeting because their home is just that special; or that the fact their home sits next to railroad tracks and a highway really shouldn’t be a problem because after all, it’s never bothered them.
In this market there are any number of houses to choose from, so if you persist in your belief that your home holds the exception to everything known to mankind, potential buyers will persist in buying the house down the street or in another neighborhood: the house that is priced at market value, the house with new carpeting, new paint and with all repairs completed. There are no exceptions. You can bank on it.
photo credit: Beverly & Pack
