Here are some of common mistakes home sellers can make. If you want to sell your home, try to avoid them! To some, these may seem like common sense but you would be amazed at how many sellers make these mistakes.
1.) Smelly House: Nothing is worse than opening the door to house and being hit by a strong smell. Some of the common ones are pet odors, dirty clothes, body odor, and stale food. But what you may not know is that strong incense, candles and air fresheners can have the same effect and it makes potential buyers wonder what you are covering up. You want the house to smell clean and fresh no over-powering smells of any kind.
2.) Beware of Dog: I mentioned pets earlier but while we are the subject, contain your pets. Not everyone loves animals and they can be a huge distraction. Your sweet dog may scare or intimidate a potential buyer. They may focus more on not being eaten rather than your home. Find an area outside to contain the animals while the home is being shown. Locking in the master bedroom is not a good idea! It causes the room to smell and the buyer to rush while looking at it.
3.) No High Pressure: Speaking of rushing a buyer, don't follow the buyer around and point out all the great features. This is incredibly uncomfortable for the buyer. Allow them to look at the home in peace and at their own pace. This gives them the chance to think about the home and picture themselves in it.
4.) No Grumpy Gus: This one is related to #8 above. When someone shows up to view your home be a gracious host. Don't be grumpy and appear inconvenienced by their presence. When you greet the buyer smile, welcome them in. Let them know that you are available to answer all their questions then make your self scarce. When they are done looking at the house ask them if they have any questions and thank them for coming.
5.) Less is More: Get rid of the clutter and big furniture. When every flat surface of the room is covered with clutter the house comes across as dirty. Clear the clutter. Remove large pieces of furniture. All that big furniture makes the rooms appear smaller. You want the buyer to be able to see the room and imagine their furniture in there.
6.) Personal is Personal: Over the years you may have made personal design and decorating choices that you love. Do not expect that buyers will be willing to pay more for these. You may love your upgrades but others may not. Remember when goldenrod was all the rage? You may love your Berber carpet but buyers will not be willing to pay more for your home because you put it in.
7.) Don't Test Me: Do your research before you put your home on the market. Don't list high and then lower the price later. You only have one chance to make a first impression. Your property will get the most interest when it first goes on the market. If you list high it will turn off potential buyers and you will have an uphill battle later trying to convince them to give your home a second look. Also the longer the property is on the market without selling the more buyers are apt to think there is something wrong with it.
8.) Too much Media: Do not do virtual tours. It is true that buyers start their home search on the internet and gather much of the information there. But there can be too much of a good thing. When buyers run a search they may get 20 or more listings that meet their requirements. They do not want to look at all 20 so they begin to eliminate them. They are looking for reasons to remove a home from their list. The virtual tours can provide this by helping them find one little reason to eliminate it. Give the buyer enough to interest them and nothing that can change their mind.
9.) Don't be Difficult: Right now buyers are pretty spoiled with all the vacant homes on the market. They can see homes at the drop of a hat. You need to make your home easy to show. You need to have a lockbox so the property can be shown if you are not home. Do not require that the buyer give you a large amount of time as notice. Do not require a confirmed appointment unless you are going to answer the phone right away. Make it easy for buyers to see your home.
10.) Terms: Price is important but don't forget the terms. Be open to helping buyers with closing costs, be open and honest with the disclosures about the property and make it easy for the buyer to get their inspections done. Have a plan of where you are going before escrow closes, buyers usually want to move right in and not rent back to you
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