Tag: e. Baton Rouge

The 6 main reasons your Ascension Parish home isn’t selling.

We all have seen homes that have had a “For Sale” sign sitting in the lawn for way longer than it should. It makes you wonder what has happened to make this home sit on the market so much longer than other homes in the same neighborhood. Our minds swim with the idea that there may be something wrong with the home. We can sometimes even create some kind of scandalous scenario as to why the home listing gets as stale as last month’s news.

1. Price-

Most of the time when a home has been properly marketed, the main sticking point is the price. Sellers are often unwilling to come down to the price that market dictates. Everyone wants the best price for their home, but if the market rejects that price it can be hard for some sellers to drop the price. Some agents may say “I can get you top dollar,” but “top dollar” is only the top that the market and buyers are willing to pay for your home. If you only have a few showings and no offers, its simple math -you are priced too high.

2. Your home is taste specific-

I’ll give you a perfect example. You and your neighbor have the exact same floor plan. Your neighbor and you list your homes for the exact same price with the identical listing broker. Two weeks pass and your neighbor gets two offers, and you haven’t got a single one. It’s time to re-evaluate what was the difference. The neighbor’s house has neutral paint color throughout the home that compliments many peoples’ tastes. Your home has dark colors making it feel cold and uninviting. Your neighbor’s counter tops are light simple patterned granite. You chose the darker more interesting granite with loud gold flecks. The neighbor’s carpet is in fairly good shape that is in a neutral shag style. You also have carpet that is slightly worn, but you choose the less expensive carpet showing a worn treaded path and stains. You thought having a big storage unit in the back yard would be a good selling point, but it doesn’t match the home’s exterior and takes up half the yard. All of these things you love about your home, but buyers’ like what the masses like – decluttered, neutral and clean.

3. Deferred Maintenance-

This is my favorite verbiage to use when telling someone that they need to fix everything in the house that has been put off for years. For instance, gutters that are overfilled with leaves and debris, chipped paint in and outside the home, broken and fogged windows. This one is the most common one I see here. (Never pressure wash your double pane windows. It breaks the seal and causes moisture to fill the space making that foggy look). A good rule to follow before you put your home on the market is “If you can see it, they can see it.” You can save yourself a laundry list of repair request from buyers if you just get all those repairs done prior to putting your home on the market.

4. The area-

Your house is in pristine shape. You have taken meticulous care to ensure that when you go to sell your home, everything is in tip top shape. Your lawn is always the greenest. You always maintain the outside just as much as the inside; but your neighbors…… not so much. Before any buyer even sees your home, everything comes in to play prior to the showing. If your home is in an area that has been decreasing in value, it can make the most beautiful of home seem less desirable. Nothing is worse than having a neighborhood that has given up on caring for their homes. There really isn’t much you as a seller can do, but this could be a reason why your home isn’t selling.

5. Marketing-

This one is a touchy subject. Some agents love to throw stones at how the last agent marketed your home, but sometimes it’s the sellers that crush the marketing plan from the beginning. If you will not allow your home to be put out in every media outlet available, you are limiting its chance of exposure. I know some people have special cases and reasons for this, but you have to weigh the pros and cons of limiting your agent.
On the other hand if your agent only puts your home on the MLS for 6 months never to be heard from until your listing is about to expire, you should think about interviewing a new agent. The MLS alone doesn’t sell a home.

6. Timing-

Spring time is the best time to put your home on the market, traditionally. This is true of the Ascension Parish area as well. If you list your home starting in Mid-October through the month of May, your home will take a little longer to sell.

Some listings can be more difficult than others for reasons listed above and for various others. If your agent is truly working with you, you will be aware of how the market is working as your home is for sale. Your REALTOR® should be available for you to ask questions and get updates of showings along with feedback of those showings.
***BONUS**** A little known fact to sellers is “Open houses don’t sell your home.” We have all seen on TV that the agent gets a listing, has one open house where numerous couples walk through the home, and by the end of the day they have 3 offers. But that is Hollywood’s smoke and mirrors. In our area an open house does get potential buyers to preview your home freely on a Sunday afternoon, but in my experience, rarely at the end of the day do you end up with an offer in hand.

If you are having trouble with your listing and like would some expert advice please feel free to call me, I’d love to be a service to you and selling your home.

“Because YOU matter”
#yourrealestatewhiperer