How frustrating to put your home up for sale and nothing happens. No showings, no offers, no quick sale. You thought you would have moved on by now but it's already been six months. Now your asking yourself - "Now What Do I do?"
Well, first find out if you have been on the market too long or not. This is easy - all you have to do is ask your agent to give you a report of what has sold in the area and how many days they were on the market and how many days under contract before they closed. If you have been on the market two months and the average is 6 months, you simply need to be patient. While you are being patient make sure you do everything possible to make your house the best buy on the block. This can mean a lot of cleaning up and cleaning out both the inside and outside of your home. I know it is hard to keep up but it can mean more cash in your pocket on the other end.
Has the property been exposed to the market well enough? I am not talking about putting an ad in the "paper" every week but what has your agent done to sell your home to all the other agents in the area. After all 95% of sales are between two agents. I always say "You have to sell a house 4 times - First to all the other agents in the area, second the buyer who comes with the agent, next (the most important one) to the appraiser, who in turns sells it to the bank for the loan"
Where are you on the internet? It's not just entering the home into MLS anymore. There are lots of other tools including Craig's List, Zillow, Trulia, and more. Buyers are out there looking on line every night. You want your home noticed so that they will call their Buyer's agents to set up the appointment. How many pictures are on line and what quality are they. Do they show your home from all the best angles? Are there more than 6? Check it out by asking your agent to send to a full listing sheet with all photos attached.
But the most important factor of all is price! Are you priced right for the neighborhood you are in? What has your competition been selling for? I know it is hard to face that your precious abode is not worth as much as you would like it to be, or how much you have put into it, or even what you paid for it 2 years ago. But price is everything. You have to take the emotion out of it and look at the hard, cold numbers of what similar properties are on the market for and recently sold for. It's natural to overestimate the value of your own home but you are better off to stick with the market facts. Ask your agent to give you the information to come up with a reasonable price. You may have to postpone selling and possibly risk losing more in the future or bite the bullet now and get on with the sale!
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