What’s Wrong with My House?

The most attractive homes can suffer from an unredeeming feature that makes them hard to sell.

No one thinks there is anything wrong with his or her house. Like an adoring parent believing that their little darling can do no evil, it is easy for the proud owner to ignore some imperfections.

No property is perfect, no matter how sky-high the price. The good news is that these imperfections can be minimized, and in a difficult market it is more important than ever to be prepared to make improvements. Here are the some most-common reasons why homes don’t sell and what you can do about it.

Your home doesn’t “show” well

Your home is competing against shiny new houses in those pristine subdivisions out in the suburbs with their attractive prices, incentives and community amenities.

Face it: Even the best old house needs a little makeover if it hopes to attract a qualified buyer.

The good news is most of the work will be cosmetic and relatively inexpensive: a new coat of paint, a few attractive window boxes, a thorough cleaning of floors and carpets. Voila! The place may look good enough to reconsider.

You’re in a bad location

Nothing has a greater effect on your home’s value than its location. Your humble abode might be worth a king’s ransom were it located in Palm Beach, Aspen or San Francisco. It might even jump thousands in value just two streets over in the next (and far superior) school district. If you’re in one of the higher-ranked schools around there, you’re going to add $50,000 to $100,000 to the price of the same house.

The point is, location rules in real estate.

If your home’s location is less than desirable, your options are somewhat limited. The best way to compensate for a poor location is to reduce your asking price or offer attractive incentives such as seller financing or a lease option with rent credit.

Your home is over priced

Over priced homes are on the market unintentionally to help your competitors or the other houses listed in your neighborhood in a buyer’s market. People think that listing at a higher price may help them in negotiation and get a good sale price. But, in reality, you may even not able to get an offer. Eventually, you have to reduce the price and end up on the market longer time and sell it at much lower price than previously hoped for.

This post was found on FSBO.FizBer.com
Follow the link to get to the orginal message.