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6 Reasons why your house won't sell.

1. Your photos are unimpressive. The vast majority of home buyers start their search for a home on the Internet, your house had better look great in print. Not just nice... downright fabulous. Today we are considering internet views as a 'virtual showing'... if your house gets past that, then they might (just might) make an appointment to see it in person... We consider that your SECOND showing. Today's buyers are expecting good quality photos (and lots of them... just 1 shot from the street won't cut it!), a virtual tour, maybe even a floor plan, if applicable.

(btw... for those who've asked, and have them in their areas... I use Video Home Tours..[vht]... they offer incredible pricing partially subsidized by Coldwell Banker... and it's honestly cheaper to have them do it, than for me to spend my time on photoshop... and they offer professional quality.)

2. It's overpriced. You've got to view your own property as objectively as possible. Look at the home like a "buyer"... if necessary, go out with your Realtor and view other homes that are priced comparably to yours. Be objective. Given the other options on the market (and yes, you DO have to include short sales and foreclosures on your list... your potential buyers are!), would YOU buy your home, over the others on the market?

If no, then you either have to "update" your home to meet or beat the competition... or lower your price to adjust for it. if you can't afford to sell it for the price, that you KNOW it should sell for, you may want to consider just removing it from the market.

3. It shows poorly. This could mean almost anything... from the barky, barky dog, to the smell of the diaper pail. Maybe the carpeting is a bit worn, or the woodwork shows a lot of wear. All things that don't show up on the internet, but whoa.... once you get inside the house... they show up, like a cat-urine-smell on a 95 degree day in New Orleans!

4. You're invisible. Today's buyer comes from the internet, almost exclusively. Have you (or your agent) simply plopped the property on the MLS, and started praying? Are you on all the websites...(Trulia, Zillow, Craig's List, Google Base, etc...) all the places that buyers are searching? If not, you want to be.

5. Your listing is tired and stale on the market. Okay... yes, you overpriced your home initially when you first came on the market 2 years ago. But since then you have reduced your price almost monthly... constantly chasing the market down.... Now, finally you're truly priced where you should be... but your listing is tired and stale. Everyone looking for your type of property (ie: 3br/1.1 bath) in your area has already seen it, sometimes twice... and they remember that there was "something" about it that they didn't like... but what they don't remember is... what they didn't like.... was the price. Time to take the listing off market. Let it cool off (3-6 months), and bring it back on fresh in the Spring. Yeah, you'll have 6 mos. worth of holding-costs... but you'll more than make up for it in your purchase price.

btw... Resist the temptation to bring the house back on at a higher price, than when you left the market. Just "don't do it"!

6. Your house won't appraise. The house looks great... you've finally gotten someone to bring you a bid on your slightly over-priced, but beautiful pied-a-terre. But the bank appraiser says it's worth $20,000 less than what they've agreed to pay. Heavy sigh... bite the bullet.... negotiate with them. If you have to drop the price $20,000 to make it work.... "make it work"... chances are, anybody else trying to buy your house will run into the same problem.

ALAN MAY, Realtor®
Specializing in Evanston Real Estate and North Shore Real Estate
-------------------------------
Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate, 2929 Central Street, Evanston, IL 60201
847.425.3779 Cell: 847.924.3313 Email: Almay@aol.com

Evanston Real Estate, Evanston Realtor, Evanston Buyers, Evanston Sellers
North Shore Real Estate, North Shore Realtor, North Shore Buyers, North Shore Sellers

Posted by Alan May, Coldwell Banker Evanston Realtor, North Shore Realtor on 08/19/2009 12:47 PM

Comments (192)

6 Reasons in the ActiveRain Channel

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192 Comments on 6 Reasons why your house won't sell.

AUG

This is a great post and really sets it out for potential sellers in this market. I can't get over how many listings in our MLS don't have photos or have poor photos. With today's inexpensive and easy digital cameras it shouldn't be that hard to get at least one picture while agents are out listing the home. I'm going to reblog, this is great information.

June - with today's inexpensive digital cameras, one picture isn't adequate. If you can't manage to put up at least 6 good quality photos, with your listing, (and that's the bare minimum), you are doing your seller/client a terrible disservice.

[ they remember that there was "something" about it that they didn't like... but what they don't remember is... what they didn't like.... was the price.]

Indeed. It almost always comes back to price, doesn't it? :)

Alan, all good reasons, and that last one about not appraising for the buying price a buyer agent and listing agent need to really reconcile that one prior to contract. Wonderful thoughts...

What sellers (and I suppose their listing agents) don't understand is how many buyers hear the Days On The Market and the first thing they always say is

"Goodness, what's wrong with it?"

I simply say, probably nothing, just overpriced. Then I set out to find out. Often when I look at the listing history, I see a house that was originally priced about $100K over market and has been chasing the market down for over a year or two.

Unless, of source, it's a divorce situation where the occupying spouse won't let anyone in to tour the property.

We must have been on the same wave length recently Alan. Couldn't agree more with all your points!

Alan,

Well said. How ironic the seller controls all these pieces; however we get the blame if it does not sell.

Good post Alan. Sellers have to have their ducks lined up!! I've sold plenty of property that have been listed awhile. I think it gives the agents jitters too (bad)!! And that was in a good/strong market. A property can become stigmatized by DOM (days on market), but might be a very good deal

Alan - This is a solid dose of reality for sellers with homes that are sitting....and sitting.....and sitting on the market. Sometimes, people want to hear the truth. Other times, they are content to fail.

Alan...

Very informative post and a well deserved feature!

Great post and so true! Pictures are so easy to take and now easy to upload, EVERY listing deserves multiple photos!

Oh WOW! This is exactly what I tell people when I go for listing presentations only not quite so eloquently!

So you some how got into my notes! I could have (should have) written this post, You did an excellent job. Hopefully some sellers will see it an appreciate it. I have gotten the response that for real estate agents, it's always about price. Looks to me that you have pointed out several of the other things it could be about.

To Lenn: Just had that exact situation with a divorce, seems to be prevalent lately.

Alan,

Excellent points. There is a line where photos can look great, but the place is a disappointment, because of the photographer's skills. I think that needs to be taken into account. The Wall Street Journal recently covered this issue in an article, about how people can be deceived by both the description and the photography.

Alan,

That is a very good post. We were in the market a while back and I can't tell you how many good homes on realtor.com appear to only have 1 or 2 photos. I skipped past them. I am the type before I talk to a realtor or go visit a listing I want to have a good idea about the layout/floorplan of a listing. My time is worth a lot. I don't understand why buyers don't insist on great pictures or a virtual/video tour. I think in these times it is just mandatory.

Hard words and much needed. That's probably something listing agents should just go ahead and print out and give to every new client. And for sure, clean that mess up and take lots of pictures. Get rid of nearly everything! (Ever watch Clean House, huh?) Word.

Yes, I took this picture.

Orange County Photography

Candice - it sure OFTEN comes back to price.

Gary - I can't tell you how many times I've heard the seller say "a buyer has already indicated it's value by stating they're willing to pay it"... but of course, once they hear that appraisal, all bets are off.

Lenn - I've heard that too... "how many people have already viewed this property, and decided not to buy it... and WHY?"

Cynthia - glad to hear we're wavy together.

Richard - and a good thing these are all controllable.

Carla - "ducks lined up".. you quack me up.

Richard - thank you.. .and I didn't realize it WAS featured, 'till you mentioned it... woo hoo! That's the quickest feature I've ever had.

Mary & Paul - you're darn tootin (or your tootin' darn!) thanks!

Sybil - feel free to use it! And thanx

Farnese - hopefully they will

Ron & Alexandra - thank you!

Knightyme - you'd be surprised at how many sellers have no idea what's on the MLS! If they only knew.

Dave - that's a beautiful photo, and a terrific stove.

All so true, thanks for the great post to remind us to stress these issues with sellers...

I wish all Agents and Sellers could read this blog post!

Caron - you're welcome

Tim - they can... that's what that little "reblog" button is for... reblog it, and send it to "all Agent and Sellers".

Alan! I love this cut-to-the-chase post about WHY a home didn't sell. Very worthy feature...congrats!

Alan,

Nice but do you always hit them between the eyes with these reasons or just let the gagging and watering eyes do all the talking for you on that humid day in New Orleans?

Thank you Kim. We do what we can to edutain.

Larry - that entirely depends on my level of sobriety at the time.

Hi Alan, Over priced and bad pics in the MLS ! Probably don't need to go any further. Well done !

Bill, and the likelihood that with being overpriced, and bad MLS photos... they probably WOULDN'T go any further! thanx

I am shocked at the amount of bad photos on our MLS system. If the first photo doesn't look good, what will make the buyer want to see the rest?

Erica - that is indeed beautiful... it helps when you have a beautiful home to start with.

All your points are so true Alan. I recently saw a photo of the driveway as the opening (primary) photo on a listing. This is the one that the public sees when searching for homes. It was a great driveway shot. The home was not to be seen from it though. Not quite what buyers need to see when home shopping...unless they plan on living on the driveway.

Such good advice. REALTORS need to be checking their properties constantly to be sure the information, pictures and marketing is up to date. We need to be constantly in contact with our sellers for the same reasons. And...we need to visit those properties regularly to remind ourselves of what we're attempting to sell. This is our JOB.

Alan...there are 6 very good reasons to hire a Realtor to set you in the right direction, and lets face it #1 issue is always price.

Thanks Craig. I know there's a tendency to try to show images in the order in which they'll be seen when you visit the property (you'd see the driveway first)... but you have to remember that the first photo that the internet shopper sees, is often the ONLY photo, if you haven't captured their imagination with that first shot.

Marian. We do need to keep up on our listings...

Steve - you're right... when push comes to shove (and push often comes to shove) ... price can overcome any objection.

Hi Alan,

Excellent points! In our business, we find ourselves constantly stressing points #1 and #3. And we don't even offer photography services. We just feel strongly that it needs to be done right. Thanks for the post.

Alan: Excellent way to show people why they should use you to list their properties. As a buyer broker, I have a real problem when I have to deal with listing brokers who: 1) do not take adequate photos, 2) do not price the property well and 3) do not advise their sellers on how to make a proper presentation of their home. Good post.

Can I send this directly to a current lister? It's an estate sale, the mother died and there are five adult siblings, all of whom live out of town, except for one n'er do well who is living in the house. He pays no rent so has no impetus to do anything other than mow the grass. Did I mention that he is a HEAVY smoker . . .

Really, its more like I need to send this to the executor of the estate. Ummm, not a bad idea.

Michael

Michael C.- I take a good photo myself, but i pay a professional to come and take them, so that the seller will listen to them... after all, they're the "expert".

Claudette - interesting to hear a buyer broker's perspective.

Michael B. - yes, you have my permission to forward this directly to your current listing and/or executor.

Hi Alan -- Solid advice and impossible to argue with, not that some sellers won't try.

Chris - I've never found an argument that couldn't be assailed.

It really boils down to the price. If the location is bad, you have to lower the price compared to others. If the condition is bad, your have to lower the price. There is always a price someone is willing to pay. The art is to determine what that price is and to get the sellers to understand that.

#1 reason is always the price. Everything else is secondary. Of course if it is not in financeable condition, then you lose a whole bunch of other buyers too.

So true. It's price first then pictures. Couldn't agree with you more. Alma

Sharon, Rob, Alma - price is always a major consideration. always.

Alan

Great post. All of your points I face every time I work an expired listing. As for the photos, if they are bad, I make copies and take them with me when I talk to the sellers. One picture is worth a thousand words.

good advice nice blog Mahalo

Alan - Good stuff. I like how you characterize the appointment to see the house in person as the "second showing". If only more realtors understood this, perhaps their houses would sell quicker and we could move this inventory along.

Alan - Spot on. If sellers want to sell their house they need to heed to iseda in this post and "listen" to their agent. Great post

Nice post today, thank you. I'll show it to some sellers I'm dealing with now and it will reiterate what I've already told them I hope.

Patricia Aulson/portsmouth nh

Alan, congratulations on the feature. You also have a really great conversation going on here in your comments! I enjoyed reading all of it and you couldn't be MORE right.

I am not a photographer, so I always have a professional within a few days, upload the virtual tour and provide professional pictures.

Brian

Alan, A well written blog to potential clients about 6 possible reaons why their house has not sold. I can think of more reaons than these, but they all still go back to either the property is not showing well or the agent is not marketing well. People in your area would do well to call you if they really want to sell. A great post about possible reasons why a property languishes on the market from a real estate agent that obviously knows how to market it and get it sold.

I have selllers right now who I wish could read this post.

Excellent post Alan, often it is very hard for sellers to hear the truth.

Showing expired listings their old photos, Jayne, could be a rude awakening for them. great idea.

Thank you Jeffrey

Dan - it's so true today... by the time they decide to actually visit they property... they've seen it already.

Claude - listening to your agent is always a good idea.

That would be great, Patricia. Let me know what happens.

Christianna - I agree. The conversation is great.

Brian - I AM a photographer, and I still pay for a professional

Judi - you're right... there are lots more reasons than 6... but that wouldn't have fit nicely with my recent series of 10 ducks, 9 posts you might have missed, 8 feminine posts, 7 reasons why... which has lead us to THIS post. who knows what the next in the series might be?

jennifer, feel free to print it out for them... let me know how it works.

Lourdes - so true.

price and getting the house ready to show is so, so important. And so many people don't do it.

Stunning still images, capturing the essence or flavor of the property with sharp copy helps. But videos of the property are 30 frames per second, put all the house, farm, land..whatever together inside and out. Not doing video, branding yourself, showing the property AND the area is missing a major major marketing tool to sell the property your listing period time clock is ticking by on.

Congratulations on the feature blog! Of course your blog that had me in it would have been a better choice but I guess the gods liked your serious one. You're a super blogger!!

My buyers are suspicious if there aren't many (or any) photos. They figure the home must be trashed and the home will be overlooked.

Alan:

Shucks!! I thought you might really be Elvis!!! Loved the post. You write with such wit and you speak the truth. The pictures are priceless. A bad picture is not better than no pictures. A messy unkempt house says a lot about the people who live there. Congratulations on the feature. You/ve raised the bar for the rest of us.

I'd add one. Your house won't sell because you really don't want to sell it. Some folks will put a house on the market, knowing they don't really want to leave!

In cases like that you might as well not have it on the market at all. There will always be a reason they weren't ready to show it, won't come down in price, didn't manage to pick up the dog turds on the carpet...whatever...things just won't work out until people decide they really and truly want to sell that house.

Hi Allen~ Those are six great reasons why homes do not sell. If the seller isn't motivated and doesn't do the right things, it just own't sell.....

Great article with great points! As a listing agent, I couldn't agree with this article more!

Hi there Allen: We just had this same conversation in our Keller Williams office today. As we have heard so many times before, here on Active Rain, It's a beauty contest and a Price War! This is a great post, thanks!

All good reasons that a house won't sell and also reasons to make sure that your realtor communicates and knows what's going on in the market.

Pricing is a huge issue in today's marketplace.

Alan: These are great expamples of why a home don't sell. Great job highlighting them

AUG

I am amazed at some of the listing pictures on MLS. Why bother. Thanks for the great post!

Russ - price and showing-ready! Very important.

Andrew - video is a great new tool

Barbara - any blog with you in it, is a better blog.

Becca - mine are too. If there are no photos of kitchen, or bathroom... we become suspiscious

Carol - what makes you think I'm not (winky, winky)

Monica - if you're not motivated, you might as well sit the dance out.

Vickie - I couldn't have said it better myself.

Stephanie - I'm glad you approve

Sandy - it's a price war, and a beauty contest... and we have to be prepared to win BOTH of them.

Christine - critical to know that your Realtor is up on all the market trends.

Bob & Carolin - pricing is more important today, than ever.

Roland - thank you.

Marcia - I know... sometimes I wonder the same thing... why did you even bother to post these awful photos?

This ia great. I wish more and more Realtors would say these things to their listing clients. It is also a great thing to give to your buyers so that they will be prepared when they are ready to sell.

#7. There are no buyers.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Finally I know that I am not the only one out there seeing things as described above. It is so, so true and I wish sellers would adhere to it.

Love the additon of house must appraise! Even tougher now with the new appraisal rules! I've actually had a few sellers (that were overpriced) have an independent appraisal before we listed to bring them back to reality!

Great list....

I think you hit the nail on the head Alan. These are rules to live by if you hope to sell any of your lisitngs.

B lucas - glad you approve.

Steve S. - I couldn't disagree more. I've been busier than a 1-armed-wallpaper-hanger, working with buyers over the last 3 months. I wrote up to contracts (which were accepted) this weekend. There are plenty of buyers... they're just not pushovers, nor are they willing to jump through sellers hoops. They recognize "value" and are willing to wait for it.

Manon - we all wish...

Amber - it's a fact today. Without appraisal, we ain't goin' nowhere.

Brian - they're definitely good rules, if I do say so myself.

Thanks Alan. Great post. I've been working a lot with Buyers lately, since Sellers are just not accepting the market conditions, and don't fully understand the stigmatism caused by even having to chase the market and keep reducing the price. To see a listing that says drastically reduced spells desperation to a Buyer and they, more times than not, pass those listings by. Oh yes!!! The condition of the property.....just showed one yesterday evening. Everything was in its proper place for the listing pictures, but that didn't stay the case!! Thanks again.

Today all sellers should be getting their home appraised 1st .(ask the appraisal company if they will re-appraise when the home finally gets to contract for a reduced price) and of course all of the common sense issues remain the same. Sellers need to know that their home needs to be picture perfect inside and out all of the time. How many times have we all called the seller to tell them we have a showing and we here "oh I have to clean up first and I get get home right away)????I tell sellers that their home should feel and look like walking into a fine hotel room.

So true Alan... Wow you look like ELVIS...

All of these are NO brainers. Good Realtors are aware of these. One needs to be ahead of the market, and succumb to it. Most of these issues are do to not knowing what one is doing.... or keeping up with technology.

Absolutely on target. Remember, without staging, your photos won't look good, no matter how great your camera is. Staging sells homes.

I tried to post before but something happened...anyway-

I think your post is right on the money.

Kathy- I was going to say that.

You speak the truth! Now more than ever sellers need to be aware of how important it is to follow those action steps you listed. It takes a lot more work on our (agents) part to make a convincing argument to unwilling sellers and sometimes agents just need to walk away.

YES YES......be leary of the appraiser's value!!..Seems to be particular prevelent these days..Dose of reality for the sellers! I guess if they won't listen to us..perhaps this will prove the point! And sellers>> PLEASE TIDY UP THE PLACE!..Imagine yourselves looking at a home to purchase..Nice, but sloppy..Some folks just CANNOT get past this..First impressions are everything to a buyer!

Great post!

#5 - Your listing is tired:

Hmm, nothing says this like an exterior photo of the home taken when there was snow on the ground, and now it's August :) Maybe it's time to update the photo? :)

I like your blog for one reason. It's simple common sense and how could anyone argue with that? Sometimes when I am visiting with clients and start discussing what their goal is how to get there they seem to lose that common sense. Good reminder. Kym

How about the agent has a picture of a different house or a "drawing" that doesn't resemble the house. I will add that there are agents who don't drive their directions or don't bother to put any in...even with technology - if they can't find it - they won't show it.

Alan - good & concise summary of what needs to be addressed when listing...everything has been said already but I just thought about what I came across yesterday on our local MLS...listing has been on the market for 340 some days and it doesn't have a picture at all! How is that for advertising, eh ?

With smiles,

Bo in Yukon

Yea! Re-blogging option. More can see this important post. Thanks Elvis...err, I mean, Alan!

I tell my clients (and agents) "there are 5 reasons a house won't rent" (we are mainly a property management company). Price, condition, location, availability (is the house full of furniture and your best prospect needs to move in tomorrow?), and marketing. Marketing includes, as you said, great pictures and max websites (have you found dwellicious and postlets, too?).

And we tell our clients, since we use the internet extensively, if we're not getting calls off the websites, it's price (could be bad pictures, of course, or poor curb appeal) . If we're getting calls off the signs (I use a lot of directionals) but no appointments, it's price not location. The bigger the spread between sign calls and web calls the stonger the indication it's overpriced. If we're showing the house but no applications or offers, it's more condition or availability (which is not a problem with a vacant house, of course).

All of this means it's very important to track your traffic as closely as possible. Every phone call & email, appointments and what results from those appointments. It totally puts the burden on the owner, and the blame on the market.

Spot on.

What amazes me is how many real estate 'professionals' think photos are "worthless", "an afterthought", "something nice, but not necesessary", and then there are the egos, the agents that think they can outshoot a pro (they can't).

I have several clients that report to me that agents in their offices keep trying to get them to use 'commodity' virtual tour companies (I won't name names, but you know who they are) for the simple fact that their cheaper!

another concept to consider.....many "short-sale" and "bank owned" listings are

minimal with # of photos and quality...why? cause many are priced so competitively

the "lister" feels it will sell fast no matter what is "left-out"....

currently...."pricing" ia 95% of marketing...so why do anything else. that's the mentality

i've run into....and this attitude will be "copied".....

http://www.just-ask-mike.com

mike schneider, abr, cdpe

REMAX SUPERIOR PROPERTIES

Home sellers would do well to read your post carefully, and follow its advice.

Great story. Here's my version, almost identical.

http://activerain.com/blogsview/1169294/six-reasons-why-your-house-won-t-sell

I love this pos! I will bookmark.

The combination of making the house look great on the internet and in person is what can make the difference between it just sitting there and actually selling. I stage homes and love working with agents who use a professional photographer - the difference in the photos is amazing. I know the houses look great in person but if the MLS pictures don't look spectacular - people just will keep moving on to the one that does. I can't stress enough the benefit of using a professional for the pictures. Around here in the Nashville area, there's a company that does this for a super reasonable fee - for under $100 you can get 25-45 still shots that look fantastic. This company is www.showcasebyagent.com but I'm sure there's lots of companies like this around the country. On the selfish side, I love getting these photos from the agents because it makes my work look even better than it is!

One more point - the sellers should consider a pre-listing home inspection - I always recommend this when I work on a project. This way, the sellers can fix any issues ahead of time instead of being blindsided by them after a contract.

Excellent points - and I wish more agents would take this to heart. As a stager, I can only do so much - the rest is up to them. I've got some great agents I work with who really get it - and this post nails a lot of what I see out there.

Jay-

I just checked out your website-

you take beautiful pictures!

Excellent post. Yes, price is king, but those pictures are SO important. If that very FIRST picture is poor, a buyer will probably just go to the next. Pictures should show the house as it is TODAY. I just saw one last week with snow on the ground and another with no leaves on trees, and it's August. Also, sellers MUST make the house sparkle and get the clutter out.

Great post! I love when a real estate agent "gets it!"

There are too many agents that ignore the fact that bad photos will effect your listing in a negative way.

Great post! Pictures can truly say a thousand words and may leave a potential buyer wanting to see more or feeling they have seen enough.

Alan: Great post you have here. Just perfect to be re-printed and given to our sellers who for some reason don't believe US when we tell them the same things. Thanks so much...

This resonates with me...great post!

Alan, great post filled with basic common sense. As a stager, I agree with Liz. How many listings are posted with 14 photos like these: 3 of each bathroom (how many houses these days don't have a toilet?), 3 of the dark living room where the flash didn't work, 5 of the luxurious rose garden completely hiding the house?

One of the biggest issues is an over priced home. In this market, with property values declining, pricing a home correctly is huge to getting a sale.

"Sellers control all the pieces to the puzzle?" Certainly do. I guess it's time for we agents and sellers to "bite the bullet" and deal with the inevitable price drop. Just to break even now alone is beyond most properties.

I have to comment, as well, on how effective staging can be with a "stale" listing. In the past year, there have been 3 homes that had been on the market for 6+ months unstaged and after I staged and listed them, they sold within 60 days. On two of the properties, the existing price was actually okay -- after the benefits of the house had been emphasized and the drawbacks deemphasized with staging.

Of course, staging can't sell an overpriced listing -- nothing can -- but it can help buyers overlook some objections because it helps them "fall in love" with the house, despite the problems...a price adjustment would certainly help make up for any drawbacks a house has, but sometimes creative staging can address that just as well, and usually for less money than a price reduction.

Uncanny! I just sent an email to one of my sellers with updated comps showing they are way overpriced! No activity, niec house, great location, hmmmmm? Same house listed for $10K less one street over? And the appraisal issue is dead on!

Hi Alan,

Can't say much about the appraisals or overpricing... but I do know that you must show a house well, in pictures and in person. As for Erica's pic, it does not look like a beautiful home to a buyer. It shows HUGH white garage doors that any potential home owner will think "What am I driving up to every day and what are my neighbors seeing!" She should suggest that the owners put some labor into sanding and painting the doors a softer color and add a little flair with red painted trimmed wood to match the architecture of the neighborhood. Wood, paint, nails and labor - minimal cost, maximum benefit. If they aren't overpriced and/or overextended, I promise this will sell it!!

Great post! This will be my first re-blog! Thanks

Thank you for the article. I'm a Home Stager in Nashville, TN. These key items you pointed out just validate our services in the industry. I always tell my clients that three factors contribute to a good sale condition, location and pricing. In today's world so may potential buyers surf the net before even calling an agent. Why take a chance that your listing does'nt show it's best. Again, thanks for the great article.

Alan, great post. You are so right, great blog!

Great post Alan. I almost think this should be tweaked for a handout in a listing presentation. Very candid and eye-opening for our Sellers.

That is all soooo true! Some clients really "get it" when you tell them these things....then there is the client with rainbow walls and carpet that just knows someone out there has the same taste as she does and IS NOT going to change these things........oh yeah, a year later and she is still waiting for that person.......

Great post and I will definitely reblog!!

Thank you Alan

Excellent post Allen

There are a lot of issues. Price, FHA financing, apprasails, not enough buyers, economy and the list goes on.

Today's buyer unlike the buyers just a couple of short years ago, is a patient shopper more than an enthusiastic buyer competing with 4 other offers. Price and timing is everything in anything nowadays. Not just RE. It'll will take something like a "Cash For Klunkers" incentive to make a lot of buyers budge in today's economic environment.

I always love a listing photo where the bathroom has a towel thrown across the shower rod and the toilet lid is up. Your photo with the playpen in the front is priceless! It all comes down to the 3 P's - Price, Presentation & Promotion to get your listing SOLD - right?

One thing is for sure. If you do not have a good first photo, you have a real good chance at not being shown. It seem with the technology today, so many use the first photo to make a decision....so now more than ever a house with good curb appeal will capitalize.

Your #1 point is right on the money. I was shooting a home two days ago in Westwood when buyer's agent arrived with an older couple. I was trying to stay out of there way and do my job at the same when the couple approached me and the gentleman asked what I was doing. I told him shooting real estate photos and video. He said that he had been using the Internet in his search and came across so many lisitings with no or horrible photos and that they just kept browsing past those listing. He said those listings with bad photos "never had a chance." And his wife stood by nodding her head. Ironically, as they blasted away at listings with bad photos, they were at this listing which had just went on the market and had no photos or video yet! I don't know, maybe their agent knew the property as it went on the market, I dunno. But that couple taking their time to tell me that coupled with your points just reiterates the importance of getting people to the listing through high quality photos and video -- and it's pretty reasonable nowadays to get it professionally done!

Nice blog, did not read all comments, but "a picture is worth a thousand words" ... nice graphics. thanks for sharing!

www.charlottelakewyliehomes.com

I'm surprised by sellers who complain that they have to keep the house clean. Nothing like an unmade bed and a dirty litter box to make a house appealing to buyers!

Our MLS gives classes on taking photos for properties. There is definitely a technique to it that is different than taking pictures of your kids. It was valuable to me!

When a house is basically a good listing well presented, and it is behaving and it lingers for a long time and the price keeps dropping... it is acting exactly like a stigmatized property.

It is not a know stimatizing event, but people are reacting to it as if it were. So there is something unseen, but subtle that feels 'wrong' or not right to potential buyers. The classic situation is a house at which nobody shows up for open houses. People don't even want to go there and they get it from the listing.

My work is helping with that kind of property, so I see this all the time. All the factors you list are important, and even more important in this market, but sometimes there is something else going on.

I have a blog post about this.

Blissings...

Wow... lots and lots of comments... let me get to each of you, and thank you so much for the interest...

Mary Ann - many, many sellers just don't get it...

Flat Rate - I'm not a big fan of having the home appraised to come up with market value. appraisals can vary depending on their purpose. They are critical, however, in supporting the final sales price. If they don't match up they can be devastating.

Kathy - you're not the first to mention that... personally, I don't see the resemblance.

Valerie - you're right. Many of these are "no brainers". Unfortunately we often have sellers, in fact agents who are functioning without engaging their brains.

Karen - I'm a big fan of staging when necessary.

Dave - beautiful photo, thanks for sharing it (can you reduce it slightly, please, so it doesn't overwhelm the post?, thanx)

Terri - oftimes sellers don't want to hear the truth. That doesn't mean we shouldn't try.

Laura - you're preaching to the choir

Rick - that a pet peeve for me... a spring listing, with snow on the ground (or vice versa)

Kym - you'd be surprised how many people want to argue with common sense. The funny thing about common sense, is it's not that common.

Yvette - it comes down to verifying the listing, once it comes on... is the photo correct, do the directions make sense?

Bo - 340 days and no picture... someone deserves to lose their listing. How about a listing that's 340 days old and says in the description "Hurry, this one won't last!"

Bev - you're welcome... I love the reblogging option too... thus far this one's been reblogged 21 times... i must have hit a nerve.

Doug - works just as well in the rental market. Thanx

Jay - photos.. "worthless"... they're our front line today!!

Mike - REOs seem to be their own world entirely... still, you're right... a few pix would help.

Joetta - thank you.

Ilyce - surprisingly similar... although I totally disagree with #5... co-op commission (IMHO) does not help sell the property. Give incentives to the buyers, not to their agents. But your comment about "inspection" is totally valid, and should seriously be considered.

Kim - thanks for the bookmark.

Liz - excellent thoughts

Barbara - photos ARE so important

Ian - thank you.

Chris - agreed!

Karen Anne - thank you

Edward - great.. .thank you

Debby - bad photos are almost worse than no photos

Integrity - pricing is becoming quite a skill these days.

Eddie - not sure what you're saying here, pal... but thanks for the comment.

Sharon - staging can definitely make a stale listing come to life.

Tim - thank you

Kristy - first impressions count

Damon - thanks for the reblog. I love it!

Gary - you're welcome.

Bobby - thank you.

Eric - it would be easy to make a handout. Feel free to use it.

Debbie - some will get it, some won't. We have to try.

John - there are lots and lots of issues. There were just 6 important ones that came to mind.

John & Janis - today's buyer is looking for "value".

Teresa - those are some of my favourite photos... especially when the commode has been... (how shall we say) ... 'used'.

James & Home View - that first photo is very important today.

Ginger - glad you enjoyed it.

Marcy - I'm surprised by sellers all the time.

What a great post!...gone are the days where mystery became part of the buyer's house hunt....what were they going to see with their realtor?....will they like the interior?...the yard??...the location?...it was up to their agent to pick out the houses to show...now the buyer tells you what they want to see!

Very good Post. It is important to get the property to be in a proper selling mode when it first hits the market.

Annie - thank you. Today, the buyer expects to see it all, before they've stepped foot in the place.

Gene - thank you. No question... hit the ground running.

Thanks for the post. All good points. No photos, or poor quality photos on the MLS and websites are one of my pet peeves.

A single photo of a listing, taken on a cell phone, while driving by at 20 miles per hour, in a rain storm, 8 months ago, is NOT good marketing.

Great post - information every home seller should read and heed.

I especially like that you point out the importance of including the short sales and repossessions when analyzing the price of homes for sale in the neighborhood.

Too many sellers think that because they aren't in a financial bind, their house should sell for more.

When I was still selling real estate, instead of helping agents with marketing, we had very few repo properties - but every time we did, it affected the price of other homes in the market. We were always glad when those properties were sold because prices would come back to "normal" within a few weeks.

Buyers really don't care who owns the home - they just want the best house for the lowest price.

Keep writing great stuff!

Marte Cliff, Real Estate Copywriter

www.copybymarte.com

Alan, WOW!!!!!!!!!!

"Flat Rate - I'm not a big fan of having the home appraised to come up with market value. appraisals can vary depending on their purpose. They are critical, however, in supporting the final sales price. If they don't match up they can be devastating."

Alan, appraisals are part of what got us into this mess......An appraisal is an "appraisal" it should not matter what it's being used for.

WARNING!!!! For a "REALTOR" to repeat the above quote one might be questioned on their ethics..........

Flat rate - I have seen appraisals come in high (when someone was trying to refinance), and low (when they were looking to pay out an insurance policy).

I am saying that appraisals are not always true "market value"... an appraisal SHOULDN'T matter what it's being used for... but the truth is, that it sometimes does. I'd have more confidence in a CMA done by a quality agent who buys and sells in the area, as to the real MARKET VALUE, than I would in an appraiser, who may be coming from 25 miles aways.

And there's nothing unethical about my pointing that out.

This one kept you busy, didn't it Alan?

it sure did, Jason. It sure did. I hadn't been on AR most of the morning... I was at a closing. Only to find this flurry of activity when I returned. Wow!

Alan, your most CMA's don't take into consideration "bank owned properties","short sales"etc.....in the end the banks listen to the appraisal period..............The government and banks are very critical on appraisal these days.........go figure~

Flat Rate - actually, my CMAs DO take into consideration REOs, Foreclosures and Short sales.

in the end the banks do pay alot of attention to the appraisal (no question, no argument)... but if we return to what we were discussing... we were talking about MARKET VALUE... and for Market Value... I'll trust a CMA from an active local Realtor anyday, over an appraisal.

The Realtor has some "skin" in the game. S/he may have his/her bluff called at any moment, and be told by the seller "okay... sell that house for that price" and have to perform.

The appraiser, on the other hand, will rarely, if ever, be required to "proof". I've had appraisers tell me that the value of my listing (under contract) was $20,000 less than the purchase price.... when, in fact, we'd had multiple offers from multiple clients, and we didn't even accept the highest offer.

Alan, If you are researching all that data then you are above the crowd!!! But "Market Value" is almost a extinct word in today's real estate world.....just watch CNBC and listen - no one know what market value is....after all something is only worth what somebody is willing to pay for it....

Check this article about appraisals:

Lenders gain control as real estate appraisal process shifts

NYSSA SmartBrief | 08/19/2009

Real estate appraisers helped pump up housing prices during the boom, urged on by brokers, real estate agents and lenders. A change in the process took place on May 1, however, as part of an effort to diminish conflicts of interest and ensure the independence of the appraisers. Lenders are now in charge of the process, while brokers and real estate agents are no longer allowed to order appraisals. Industry participants, however, are arguing that new issues have stemmed from the effort to resolve the original problem. New York Times, The (08/18)

Hey you nailed it, if you do not mined I would like to post your link to this article on my Twitter and Facebook.

Keep up my friend great job

Hey I believe I know your face did we ever meet before?

Aprraisal are irrelevant when paying cash.

I agree!

Very valuable list Alan - I just tweeted a link to this post - are you on twitter? I searched you and could not find your name. I'm @homestarstaging if you are - please let me know so I can follow your tweets.

...I do and have done all of the opposite of the above problems, which is exactly the reason all of my listings sell. I don't pussyfoot around! I list for 90 days and give them all the tools to get an offer and GET IT SOLD! I can't imagine any agent in today's market would do anything less! Get it right the first time. Peace.

Hi Alan,

Thanks for your wonderful post...I very much enjoyed it!

The points you made are all things that I have thought about and told other people through the years.

I have found that many agents are not completely honest and straightforward with their sellers and do not properly set their expectations from the beginning. If you will go ahead and set their expectation levels up front, you will have a much easier time going through the entire process because they already know what to expect.

Thanks for sharing!

Bill Hornsby

FR - (do you mind if I call you FR?) I agree that appraisals, were a part of the problem we had in the past. And that's part of the reason why I'm more trusting of CMA's today. And appraisals are rarely called for, when paying cash.

TIMO - feel free to go ahead and reblog, or retweet, or reface... whatever you'd like to call it. Hey, maybe you've been to one of my concerts?

Karen - glad you liked it... I am @AlanMay although I'm not sure if my "tweets" are worth following... but sure, hey, what the heck, why not?

Michelle - great tag line... "Get it right the first time. Peace."

Bill - glad you enjoyed it

So true. I almost fell over on my last 2 listing appointments when the seller said "what do you think it will sell for? We don't want to overprice." (I wanted to say thank you, thank you.) Instead I just praised them for their ability to see beyond their own wants.

What do you do with the sellers who want what they want. They don't believe the market. They just want to make the profit they want. Doesn't matter what the market is. Real Estate Intervention on HGTV shows you how out of touch the sellers are with their own home.

<<What do you do with the sellers who want what they want. They don't believe the market. They just want to make the profit they want. Doesn't matter what the market is.>>

What do you do with them, Faye?? You let them list with someone else. You can be their 2nd Realtor.

Dan:

Really liked this post. I am about to bring a friends townhouse onto the market and will be showing this to her. It is nice to show her that othrs have same thoughts on marketing the house.

Okay, I just love the comment "like a cat urine smell on a hot New Orleans day". I'm dealing with that now and the sellers keep saying "what smell?"

To every listing appointment I bring a book. This book shows everything my Broker does and everything I do, i.e. my listing of a previous property is on the left side, a respected competitor on the right side. My Enhanced Realtor.com vs. their regular. Property specific web sites vs. plain Jane MLS. The global ranking of my Broker's web site vs. the global ranking of competitors. That I can pinpoint the sources of those who view my virtual tours because my virtual tour company sends me the data weekly - which I send on to the seller. I can convert a virtual tour into video and automatically post on social networking sites. That my company has an iPhone application so Buyers can view property on their schedule. An up-to-the-day ranking of my Broker vs. the competitors in sales, market share and a sale price to list price ratio, etc. Every Generation, from the greatest to the latest, recognizes a corporate and individual investment on satisfying their every need. And if they balk on my market analysis and I can't overcome their price objections, despite the marketing advantages my Broker and I are offering them - I promise them some bit of future info about property taxes, that I'll keep them apprised of something they mentioned while I listened to their concerns, I shake their hand, smile - and walk. For the FSBO types I make them a free virtual tour. Finally, I put them on a mailing list and send them something every month until they list with me or someone else. Mail merge and a stamp or email. No sweat. But I will not list outside of reason.

Bob... I don't know who "dan" is.. but I'm glad you liked the post.

Bev & Bob.. it does "paint a picture" doesn't it?

John, that an impressive amount of prep and presentation work.

Alan,

This is one of the best posts I have ever read! Really great points...so obvious, but so often overlooked.

I recently looked at an MLS photo of a house that showed the reindeer and Santa figures on the lawn from Christmas! Yes...it has been for sale for awhile...and the price has been reduced several times in search for that elusive buyer.

I also saw a listing which had a picture of the nearby park as the lead photo. I guess the agent wanted something interesting to show in place of the somewhat dated house that was for sale. At least he understands the importance of location, location, location.

The Medford Team always puts the maximum photos on the MLS that our system allows. In addition, we put more than two dozen photos on the various websites that carry our listings. Not only the free national sites, but paid sites like www.38580Goodrich.com

And, although both Carl and I think we know how to work a camera, we use a professional photographer to shoot and prepare our photos for MLS, websites and flyers.

John - one of the best posts you've ever read?? a little hyperbole, perhaps, but thank you for the kind words. I thought it was good, myself... but worthy of this many comments and reblogs... hardly. It's basic common sense... but hey... give the people what they want, right?

Alan, I love all these comments as much as your post! Basic common sense is so underrated these days... :) Well articulated, appreciated, and antithesis of today's market. Happy to share this as a re-blog. Much thanks for that as well. Question: Is it ever too late to re-shoot, even if a property has been listed over 100 days?

Pictures are the most important "First Impression" you can give to your clients. Show your prospects that you can show their homes better than anyone else, which is the most basic thing you can do. Make sure the picture of the outside of the house is STRAIGHT. Next picture should be the view entering the inside, then the Kitchen and other living areas, the back of the house and the view if impressive. Pictures of Bedrooms are generic, maybe the master bath, if outstanding. 8 pictures should be enough, the most 12. Build them a VIRTUAL OPEN HOUSE, like they would be walking through it. This is the correct to photograph a house. Add a virtual tour if it is very high quality, otherwise save your money, they hinder you. Good luck with your picture taking

Alan, This is a wonderful post and you are SO right about the pictures! I hope many real estate agents around here read this AND use it!

Alan - Great Post! I'll help you along with your reblog!

AMEN! I loved your post. It's usually always the money, but sellers have got to get their home ready to show, and show well from day one. As the saying goes, you only have one chance to make a good first impression.

It sure would help if they let the agents price the home instead of themselves too.

Cheers,

Tap

www.TeamTapper.com

Alan - 6 EXCELLENT Reasons and a very well written post! Thanks for sharing.

Alan,

So true, so true...and yet...the sellers just won't listen...maybe someone should write a blog post "Stop Wasting our Time"....Oh, wait....that's my idea...don't run off with it....

I'm going to follow some othes here and print this out and hand it out as needed....

Carin - I love the comments, too. And no, it's never too late to reshoot, and reinvigorate a listing.

Sylvio - photos are the first impression

Carole - it's just basic common sense

Lisa - thanks

David - "usually always"?

Michelle - thanks

William - let me know if it helps.

Wise words very well summed up Alan!

Great post. I'm incorporating some of these ideas into my listing presentation.

thank you Andy... I do what I can.

Great post. I hope you don't mind if I share with others.

please do, Pamela... reblog away.

Good Post - hopefully LOTS of sellers who don't want to listen to their agents will read this and think twice about at least one or two points you presented! :)

AUG

Alan...Good work and good visuals! I think that the biggest "sleeping bear" to most agents is the Internet. So many of them are from the 'List and Run' hay-days that they don't think INTERNET or what it takes to be a SELLING agent. Many of them can barely pull a Listing Report, let alone do anything creative on the WEB! That's OK, we younger one's have the 'doors' wide open....BTW, I am 71!!! I am sure that you will keep up the good work and do well! JIM-IN-PARADISE

Excellent blog, stagging is becoming of greater value to set yourself apart from the rest...

Alan...I wonder how many sellers have stopped and looked at their home from the street, and asked themselves would I want to buy it if it looks like this. Great post!

Jerry Gray CRB,CRS,GRI / Prudential Carolinas Realty / Winston Salem, NC

Great post!! We still have Realtors with no pictures, no remarks, or directions to the property. I hire a professional photographer from OBEO to take pictures and do a virtual tour it is an inexpensive marketing tool. They also send it too many different websites. Also with the tour of the home it is loaded with lots of information about shopping, churches, schools and neighborhood statistics and much more. They also send high resolution photos to use in my printed marketing materials.

Stacy Lyons

Realtor. CHMS, e-PRO

Ronck Realy

James - I was just about to tell you that I dont fit among the 'younger ones' until you mentioned that you're 71... okay then.

Gulf - thank you

Jerry - I doubt that many sellers have stopped to do that... but the answer would undoubtedly be "yes", since they already DID buy it once. Most people love their home, and don't take kindly to their Realtor (or anybody else, for that matter) telling them that it's no "practically perfect in every way".... it's almost like criticizing a child.

If you want to have great marketing photos then be sure to work with a home stager to prepare the house first. That is one of the biggest benefits of staging a home, to improve the visual appeal of a home. And it's not expensive, it's amazing what a home staging professional can do in an hour or two.

Jill Nelson Sacramento's area home staging professional

AUG

no question, Jill, that homestaging can be highly beneficial... if you have the budget to stage.

This is a great post. Too bad every seller could not read it.

I don't know... durham... with all the reblogs (your's included) we're getting mighty close. Thanx.

Alan, great post and worthy of the feature. I was going to reblog this but I don't want to give Mr. Fixed Rate Realty any time on my blog! All of a sudden we spun off in a ditch about appraisals? There's medication for you now if you can't stay on topic guy.

Lyn - when you reblog, the questions don't travel with it... just the main post. Mr. flat rate will stay right here, with me! :-)

a little side-trivia for you Lyn. I've gone on AR all week... looking to read the latest greatest from some of my faves. I get excited to see the pop up to the top of my "blogs" list... and click. Only to find that I'm reading a reblog of myself!

Now, I like myself as much as the next guy (okay, okay, maybe more)... but even I can only take so much of ME!

This is a great post. May I re-blog? I've just stated a real estate photography business and woul love to use this.

please do... Jody. You don't need my permission to "reblog"... just press the reblog button at the top right, and follow the instructions. If i didn't want reblogs... the reblog button wouldn't be available.

Alan - Great points that every realtor should have with their sellers. Sadly, it seems there are not enough agents willing to have the hard truth conversation with their clients. When their home expires for the second time after more than a year on the market the sellers want to trash all realtors thinking we don't care about them. Nice you put this out there for sellers to read ---lets hope they do!

Kathie- thank you.

AUG

Price, Price, Price...in this market it is all about price in most areas of the country. If you get this one variable wrong...nothing else matters.

Fort Collins - as goes fort collins, so goes the world.

Pictures make such a difference, gret photos result in more showings. Unfortunately, some things are harder to change such as a listing that backs to a busy road.

AUG

Great advice Alan. Thanks for taking the time to share.

Patricia - I've never been able to affect that railroad change... you?

Mark - thank you...

Excellent points. I'll be sharing them all with a tired listing of mine.

AUG

Great Post!! I couldn't agree more!!

Sue - I hope they enjoy them.

Megan - thank you.

AUG

I agree, a good set of photos or a virtual tour can do wonders as more and more Buyer's are turing to the internet to look for a home BEFORE picking up a phone. Plus any good Virtual Tour provider will syndicate your tour and listing information out to multiple websites for you!

Kimberly... it sounds so simple, doesn't it?

SEP

Very good post! I am a real estate photographer, and found that allot of RE Pros are attempting their own photography and failing miserably. With this in mind, we have begun doing mandatory SEO for every Virtual Tour and client listing. It has really helped us establish a niche, but the most important part of all of this is that we are able to provide our clients with a service that no other VT provider in our area can.

The internet cannot be overlooked, and if an agent doesn't know how to use it to the fullest... they really should look into finding a company like ours. It will not be the sole reason that a home gets sold, but it will without a doubt help immensely.

Great Post, and thank you!

OCT

Great Post

Lots of good points. Especially the bad photos,
no excuse for those in today's day and age.

OCT

Wow Alan: Looks like you got hit with three SPAM comments in #'s 189,190 and 191. I suggest you DELETE them, and do NOT CLICK on any of the links. They can lead to a virus, a trojan horse, or worse. I will report them to Active Rain. I suggest you do the same. Take care...

Karen - i have reported all three.... but I have not deleted them, as Jeremy has asked that we report them, and then leave them in place, so he can figure out who they are and effectively block them.

Alan: Good ! I had not seen Jeremy's request to leave them in place rather than to delete them. My fear, of course, is that some of the Newbies might get curious and click on the links, and then who knows what that will lead to. Take care...

I know... I wish I could paste a "censored" banner across those three... but ah, well. Thanks for the concern Karen. I appreciate it.

NOV

Hi Alan~ I have to agree with your reasons above. The biggest culprit it that it is overpriced!

DEC

Hi Alan,

Very excellent post. Keep posting. All the best. Happy New year.

Best - Sash

Vickie - thank you.

Sasha - thank you very much... I do what I can.

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Alan May, Coldwell Banker Evanston Realtor, North Shore Realtor

Evanston, IL

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Evanston Real Estate, Evanston, IL

Address: 2929 Central Street, Evanston, IL, 60201

Office Phone: (847) 425-3779

Cell Phone: (847) 924-3313

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