When we were contacted by the property owners, their listing had just expired, they had already been on the market for over 120 days, had cut their price, and were at a loss for what to do next to sell their home. The previous listing was very nice- the agent had done a video, drone shots, and nice interior photos, the price also checked out; it didn’t seem so far out of where it should have been priced or where it would sell. So why was this house not selling and what could be changed to get it sold after it had already been on the market for 4+ months? We set an appointment with the owners at the house to walk the property and talk through a new strategy.
Before the appointment, we ran comparable sales, analyzed the market data, and toured homes in the area that might be competition. For the appointment, we prepared the information we had gathered but left the full recommendations for the physical visit to the home. During our meeting at the house, a walk-through was performed both in and outside, we took pictures, and notes, and jotted down ideas. It only took an hour, but we knew exactly what needed to be done, what had gone wrong, and how to sell this home as quickly as possible and for the most profit.
It’s not easy to break bad news to owners, or to point out negative things that may be impacting the sale of their home- but it’s absolutely necessary and can be done in a solutions-based way that makes sense. We walked the owners through what we felt the buyers were experiencing at their home, and how 5 changes could make that experience more positive.
- Painting- the home had some accent walls and colors that made it feel dark- when the space was so bright and had amazing views. We recommended going with Dunn Edwards Milk Glass for the walls. We also recommended lightening up the wood floor. Since the wood was already painted a dark color, we lightened the floor paint as well to give the photos a bright new appearance.
- Staging- this one may seem obvious, but the owners had the home furnished for their short-term rental, so they felt it was adequate for the listing. The issue was the price of the home didn’t meet the quality or style of the furnishings- it needed to be cohesive throughout and needed to be de-cluttered in areas they were using as storage. We used Simply Staged to do the main areas of the home and removed all furnishings from secondary bedrooms, bathrooms, garage, and storage.
- Cleaning- since doing a short term rental at the home, they were receiving regular cleanings, but the home needed a deep clean- appliances, baseboards, fans, etc. This helped the home feel super fresh and ready for the next owner.
- Price- although the price was within the range of other homes that had sold in the area, we needed to relaunch the listing with a new, hot price that would more attention. We dropped the price from $825,000 to $799,000 as we knew the shoppers that were looking at $800k and up had already seen the listing, we wanted to get to the shoppers that were looking up to $800k.
- Showings- this was the biggest and most impactful change we made. The home is challenging to show if you are not familiar with it. It is hillside with a steep driveway, a steep entry and unique floor plan, we opted to physically be at every showing AND changed the entry from the steep incline to the entry you would take if you lived at the home- through the garage. We asked Simply Staged to make an “entry” as you entered from the garage, so the buyer would feel more welcome. This new entry and showing tactic ensured the showings were focused on the interior and the views, not the challenges getting to the front door.
In this challenging market, experience and strategy are keys to selling homes. Once we relaunched the listing with a fresh look, new price, and showing strategy, we received multiple offers within the first few days and closed within 60 days! This was a fun listing to take on and we had a great time getting to know our sellers.
Thank you to Simply Staged, Hub Media, and our sellers for a successful closing!