After months of careful preparation, you’ve finally listed your Marlboro, NJ home. But weeks and months go by with no serious offers. If you don’t know what went wrong, here are common seller pitfalls and how to overcome them.
Your home is priced incorrectly
Pricing your home is a delicate art. Price it too low, and you risk losing out on profits. Price it too high, and buyers will look elsewhere for better deals. And then there’s the matter of home improvements that may or may not affect resale value. If you feel like you’re shooting in the dark, talk to a professional agent, Colleen Meyler, who can provide a price range for your home using recent comparable home sales in your area.
You’re too attached to the property
It’s easy to overestimate the value of your home when you’re emotionally attached to it. If you’ve spent years making home improvements and upgrades to boost resale value, you’ll naturally expect all the hard work to pay off. But this isn’t always the case.
Keep in mind that buyers will not view your home in the same lens. Buyers have individual tastes and preferences that may not necessarily be reflected in your home’s décor and custom upgrades. An experienced agent can bring some objectivity to the situation and help you see things as they really area.
You didn’t stage your home
28% of agents reported slight decreases in time spent on the market for staged properties versus comparable non-staged properties, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Staging a home makes it easier for buyers to imagine what they can do with the space in terms of furniture arrangement and décor.
If you don’t want to deal with the costs of professional home staging, consider making a virtual home staging feature available on your listing instead. This gives you the benefits of home staging without having to deal with actual furniture and décor.
You don’t need to do anything too complicated either. 95% of agents recommend simple decluttering while 89% advise clients to clean the entire home and remove pets from the premises prior to an open house.
Low quality photos
According to NAR, 90% of buyers did an online search at some point during the buying process. When you’re competing with hundreds to thousands of other listings for their attention, you’ll need high resolution real estate photos that will make them want to inquire about the property. If you’ve been using dim, blurry photos that don’t capture the beauty of your home, it’s time to invest in professional photography.
If you insist on taking the photos yourself, invest in a good quality camera and photo editing software to help you create better results.
Interested in selling your home in Monmouth County, NJ and/or surrounding areas, contact Colleen Meyler here. You can also reach her at 732.995.5102 or ColleenMeyler(at)gmail(dotted)com . With over 30 years of experience in NJ residential real estate, Colleen will tailor a plan to sell your NJ home/property. With the right strategy, you’ll be able to move onto your next chapter.