Top 3 Avoidable Home Seller Mistakes
Published On: March 3, 2014 Posted by: admin
“It’s a seller’s market!” At least that’s what the SW Florida real estate market figures are saying. Then why aren’t all sellers getting the price they think they should from their home sale? Actually, there are three common stumbling blocks that we see occurring over and over again. It’s true, according to the numbers, this is the prime time for selling SW Florida real estate, but if you’re actually going to get the listing price when that offer comes through, you’ll want to keep reading. Here’s the breakdown:
Don’t Get Emotionally Attached To The Property
One of the most common mistakes sellers make is getting too emotionally attached to a property. This can be especially true for the relatively new Florida real estate investor who purchased a rehab home and spent several months on renovations, rehabbing, and, –you guessed it, getting attached to it during the process.
What’s wrong with getting attached to the property you’re working on? Emotional attachment to your investment property can lead to seller’s remorse or overly emotional responses to feedback and “lower-than-expected” offers. Home sellers must keep in mind that putting their home up for sale invites feedback and criticism, especially in this era of house flippers and HGTV. When it’s time to list your home, it’s time to disconnect. If you can follow that, your bank account will thank you later.
Never List Your Home Before It’s Ready to Be Shown
Another big (and avoidable) mistake is sellers who put their home on the market before it’s ready to be shown. Often, inexperienced or overly anxious agents and sellers advertize the property to the public before pre-listing items have been addressed. Listing your home during the renovation process or before major repairs and upgrades have been completed can cause a domino effect of problems. Most buyers are not creative enough and are too fearful to make an offer on a home in the middle of a rehab or before upgrades are completed. Listing the home before it’s ready can drive away what otherwise may have been a solid buyer, and can also cause your SW Florida listing to sit on the market for much longer than necessary. Bottom line? There’s no room for “test marketing” with real estate. Never list until your home is ready to be shown.
Don’t Overprice Your Property
Just because you think it’s a “seller’s market” doesn’t mean you should overprice the property. This is where an experienced real estate agent should be your best friend. Often, what sellers fail to realize is the fact that everyone is in this to make money (both the seller and the agent) so he is on your team. Your agent should be very familiar with the area, comparable SW Florida homes for sale and the selling price (as opposed to the asking price) of these comp homes.
Take his or her pricing advice (but don’t be afraid to ask questions about the strategy). Often, an agent will price the property low in order to create a bidding war, especially when inventory is low. Overpricing will lead to increased days on the market, red flags in the minds of potential buyers, low ball offers from buyers who realize your property is just sitting on the market, and ultimately, –price reductions. No one wants to go down this path.
Are you ready to sell your SW Florida home? Give us a call today and allow decades of successful investment strategies and seller tactics get the best price and the shortest length of time on the market for you.