If your home has been sitting on listings pages for over a week, it is time to reevaluate your selling strategies.
In this guide, we list 6 things you can do to fix any missteps in your preselling preparations and get your home sale back on track.
- Review if your asking price is reasonable and market-based
One of the most common mistakes home sellers make is to let their emotions rule in assigning a list price. The memories they’ve made and hard work they’ve put on the home give them an unrealistic view of how much the property is worth.
If you’ve made the same mistake, then it’s probably time to reevaluate your pricing. Your listing price should be guided by market trends and conditions, and should be arrived at from an objective point of view.
Learn about trends on Atlanta home values and do a comparative market analysis with the help of your Realtor. Look into recent sale prices of similar homes in your neighborhood. Compare your property with these homes and adjust your asking price up or down, depending on how your property stacks up.
You may also examine currently listed homes that have been on the market for a long time, as well as expired or pulled listings. Get insights about what caused these listings to fail and improve your marketing strategies to avoid the same outcome.
If you own prime property, consider lowering the price to attract multiple offers and encourage a bidding war. Discuss your options with your Realtor and learn about the pros and cons of each one before making a decision.
- Spruce up your curb appeal
First impression is very important in selling a home. It can make a buyer want to see more of your property or leave without even setting foot inside.
Create a great first impression by improving your curb appeal. Inspect your roof, exterior walls, windows, doors, and door frames, and make sure they look immaculate and in top condition. If repairs or improvements are needed, work on them before showing your home.
Repaint or stain tired-looking exterior walls, update your gutters or fix broken parts, and replace worn or missing roof shingles. Consider changing or repainting your entry door into something eye catching.
Check out your yard and ensure it looks lush and neat. Trim your lawn and unruly hedges or shrubs, and cut off tree branches that are hanging too close to your home. Liven up your landscaping. A few things you can do are to plant or add potted flowering plants, install simple stonescapes, and spruce up your flower beds.
- Hire professional cleaners
Take a good hard look at your home and assess if it’s clean enough to the fresh eyes of buyers. If you did DIY cleaning, perhaps it wasn’t as thorough as it should have been.
Consider hiring professional cleaners. They have the tools and solutions that take deep cleaning further, such as steam cleaners, surface cleaning solutions, and others. Getting professionals to do the job is also more convenient and less time- and energy-consuming for you.
- Depersonalize all living spaces
Even if you do a deep clean, the house may still be too cluttered with your personal items and décor. In selling a home, you have to make it easy for buyers to visualize themselves living in it and customizing it to their taste. Your personal belongings can get in the way of this.
Depersonalize living areas by removing photos of yourself and your family, as well as any memorabilia or quirky collections. It’s best to go minimalist. Clear out any distractions or obstacles that may obscure room layouts. Don’t make the mistake of leaving a room too bare or empty, however. This makes the room appear smaller, and makes it harder for buyers to imagine how to bring it to life.
Consider putting away your personal belongings in storage, easily ready for moving day.
- Get repairs done
Is everything in your house in good — if not perfect — working condition? Maybe buyers are finding leaky faucets, faulty switches, flickering light bulbs, or creaky door hinges during home showings. Make sure everything gets the attention that it needs. When there are too many of these “tiny problems”, it can give the impression that the house has not been well maintained.
- Invest in professional staging and photography
More than 90% of home buyers today start their search on the internet so it’s crucial to make your property stand out on this platform. Maximize the reach of the internet and social media with high-quality photos and videos.
It starts with home staging. Hire a home stager who can highlight the best parts of your home and downplay any other problem areas. Then have photos and videos taken by experienced professionals. These experts know how to present your home in its best light and make it appealing to a wide range of buyers.
If you want to sell your house fast in Atlanta’s dynamic real estate market, work with me, Natalie Gregory. My experience and expertise are your ticket to a smooth and streamlined home sale. Call me today at 404.550.5113 or email your inquiries to Natalie(dotted)Gregory(at)Compass(dotted)com for more information.