With all the talk of the market being at a standstill, I decided to see what properties have been out there the longest. Why have these homes been on the market days upon days, upon days? Why have they sat, while other have sold, and resold?? Is it all about price? Let's see....

This 3 bedroom 2 bath "nearly new" bilevel on 3 acres has been on the market for an astronomical 955 days. Hmmm, 955 days is quite a while. The picture of the home looks nice enough, and one would have to wonder, why this listing is STAGNANT!! The interiors are less than desirable, showing the kitchen to appear smaller than an efficiency kitchen. The other pictures are also, extremely unappealing, which does'nt help this homes salability at all.

So, I decided to do a drive by of the home. Doing some realtime investigative work, checking to make sure the property was not on a flag lot, or backing to a pig farm, etc. Nope, neither. Yet the home was placed strategically near one of the busiest roads in Harford County, Md. Rt. One.

Yes, the home is on over three fabulous acres, but over two of the acres is the front yard, which has a great view of the busy road. Great for a state trooper to set up shop with his radar gun on a hot summer day with a lemonade and a beach chair. Not good for your average buyers.

Lets see the bigger picture. Yes this home would and could sell. IF.... Yes, if the negative factors were taken into consideration during pricing. This property was assessed at $267,000 this year. In my opinion, this home needs to be below, or at the least close to this value to sell. Unfortunatley, pricing is key, and when a home has a negative feature; exterior, interior, or nearby, pricing needs to be adjusted accordingly.

This home has been through numerous price reductions in the last 2 years, and almost 8 months. Statrting high at 449, 000 this home never had a chance at sale. It was lowered and raised, and lowered, there was never a method to the madness. Finally, at a steep and overpriced $369,000, it will still sit, and continue to accumulate the days on market. Because it is stilll 100k overpriced! Hey we are almost at 1000 days!! Maybe that will reel in the buyers!

photo courtesy of MRIS