If you’re asking yourself, why isn’t my house selling? You’ve come to the right place. If your house is not selling, there are a few common reasons why.
From clutter to a high sales price, we’ll go over all the reasons a house won’t sell and how to fix them. Think of this as your go-to guide for what not to do when you’re selling your home. Let’s dive in and get your house off the market.
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1. Why My House Isn’t Selling 101: The Price is Too High
If you price your house too high, it’s going to sit on the market longer. This is one of those facts of life. Your house is only worth what people are willing to pay.
The longer your house sits, the less attractive it becomes to buyers as well. You’re also likely unable to make an offer on your next home. If you are, you run the risk of carrying two mortgages.
Go into a home sale knowing what your home is worth. Take some time to look at comparable properties and what has recently sold. Pay specific attention to the price per square foot.
If your home is overpriced, you’ll be able to tell by comparing it to other homes that recently sold based on the price per square foot. You should also look at how long they were on the market.
If a comparable home sold in ten days and for less money, it’s likely that your home is overpriced. You may also get feedback from potential buyers and other real estate agents that the price is too high.
While it’s difficult to accept less money for your home, it might save you money in the end. The longer you carry the mortgage and expenses, the longer you’ll be there.
Before you list your home, do some homework as to what it’s worth. iBuyer’s home valuation tool will give you an estimate of what your home is worth. You’ll then have access to the network of iBuyers ready to pay cash for your home.
2. Your Home is Cluttered
Potential buyers don’t want to see all your stuff when they walk through the door. Clutter makes your home feel smaller and as if you don’t have enough space. Even a home with multiple walk-in closets will feel like there isn’t enough storage if they are filled to the brim.
To make more space and clean up your home, declutter before you list it. Remove anything you don’t need. This includes collections, trinkets, toys, paperwork, mail, personal items, and souvenirs.
While you don’t want it to look like no one lives there, you need to scale back dramatically. The cleaner and more open your home looks, the better. Potential buyers want to picture themselves in your home, they don’t want to see your stuff.
One perk to decluttering is that anything you pack and put away is all set when you’re ready to move. Consider tossing items into boxes designated for moving, donating, selling, and trash or recycling.
The purge will also lift a huge weight off your shoulders. You’ll have less to pack later and less stuff around stressing you out. Potential buyers will love walking into a clean, fresh, clutter-free space.
3. Showings are Difficult
When your home is on the market, you need to be ready for showings at all times. You want buyers to be able to access your home whenever they are available to avoid losing them. If you constantly say no to showings, this will be frustrating for all involved.
Your realtor won’t be able to do their job selling your home if no one can see it. Potential buyers could also get turned off when you are always rescheduling. Make time for showings.
Before you sell your home, speak with your realtor about ideal times for showings. If they ask to fall on other times, be flexible, and try to make them work. The more people that come through your door, the more likely one of them will be your buyer.
To help make showings easier on yourself, make a plan to get your house ready to show. Keep it clean and have places to put away toys and other clutter quickly. If you need childcare or pet care, have a plan for where to go with everyone during a showing.
If showings are difficult for you, consider iBuyer.com to avoid showings all together. You’ll be presented with cash offers without anyone needing to come and see your home.
4. Your Home Needs Cleaning
Messy homes don’t sell. A messy home could be a sign that there is trouble ahead. Messy homes look unkempt and not as updated.
Even a recently updated home will look years older if it’s messy. To help your home show better, clean it up. Have a professional come to clean it or tackle everything over a few weekends.
Before you list your home, in addition to decluttering, it’s also a good time to deep clean. Clean walls and fingerprints off appliances and windows.
Clean windows equal more natural light. Clean floors show buyers that your floors are in good shape and they can save money. The less mess and stuff they see, the more they can focus on picturing themselves in your home.
Messy homes look like they need work. If someone does make an offer, they will come in lower anticipating cleaning, painting, and updating the home. Your messy home could sell for less money.
5. You Aren’t Showcasing the Best Features
When you’re selling your home, it’s important to showcase its best features. Things such as outdoor space, high ceilings, updated kitchens, and updated bathrooms, sell homes.
If your home has any of these features, you’ll want to show them off. Let’s say you have a fireplace. If all your furniture is in front of it and you’ve never used it, it’s time to rearrange.
If you have a home gym that is now doubling as a place to fold laundry, clean it up. Make your home shine and show potential buyers all it has to offer.
For outdoor space, consider buying new accessories to show it off. Things such as a new patio umbrella, new planters, or outdoor rugs will make a great outdoor space shine.
Decks, for example, add tremendous value to a home. If you have one, stage it to show off all the outdoor entertainment space you have. A small investment will help your home sell for more.
Anything you buy, you can also take with you to your new home. A little money spent now is worth it if it sells your home faster.
6. You Don’t Have the Best Advice
It’s hard selling a home if you don’t have a real estate professional you can trust. You want them to be experts in your market. Make sure you have someone you trust to be your partner.
If you have other outside people giving you advice, politely tune them out. Your home is likely your biggest investment, don’t trust just anyone to give you bad advice or get it sold.
7. Your Home Needs Updating
Just because your home needs updating doesn’t mean it won’t sell. Plenty of buyers actually prefer for a house to be unfinished or outdated so they can put their own spin on it. To help your home show better, remove as much stuff and furniture as possible.
Show people the good bones of your home so that they can picture it renovated or updated. Your sales price will also come into play here. If your home needs a lot of updates, you’ll need to keep the price down.
People will pay for good bones and location, but they won’t overpay if they have to put money into renovating. If your home is in a desirable location or on a huge lot, for example, show that off. You can update a home, but you can’t move it or make the lot any larger.
To make your home appear more updated, focus on inexpensive updates. This can be things such as new paint, new cabinet hardware, or even painting cabinets. The more you do, the fewer buyers have to do.
If updating isn’t in your budget, iBuyer could be the solution. With cash offers, sight-unseen, there is no need to update your home or put any money into it.
8. Is It Too Unique?
A super unique home is a selling feature to a lot of people. Unfortunately, it might not be as many people as you’d like. If you have a unique home, it helps to know going into the selling process that it could be on the market longer.
Unique homes are often some of the homes with the most character, however. When you go to sell, make sure your realtor feels the charm and understands it’s beauty. Play up the unique features.
Remember that it only takes one person to sell a home. All you need is one buyer, to feel how unique your home is and appreciate it.
9. Bad Staging is Why My House Will Not Sell
Bad layouts and furniture placements could keep your home on the market longer. If your furniture is too large, too small, or outdated, it costs you, buyers. People want to walk into a home feeling cozy, fresh, and like they can picture themselves there.
Bad staging or furniture will throw people off. To help your home sell faster, consider removing some furniture or making small updates. Buying a few new pieces could also transform a room.
Anything you buy will be put to good use at your new place, so you won’t be wasting any money. The money you do spend on staging or new furniture will all be worth it when your home sells quicker and for more money.
10. Online Photos Aren’t Professional
If you’re listing your home yourself, it might be tempting to save money and take your own photos. While phones these days take great pictures, they aren’t going to be enough to get your home sold.
Buyers are always looking online on their phones for listings. If they see one with terrible photos and bad lighting, they will keep on scrolling. Show your home in the best light possible with a professional photographer.
Professional photos will make your home look stunning. They know all the right angles to give you the best light possible. They make homes look larger and showcase their best features.
Make your home stand out against all the other homes people are seeing online. Money spent on photography could mean less time on the market and more money at closing time.
11. You Need Some Curb Appeal
Your front yard and entryway are your first chances of appealing to potential buyers. Make your home inviting and welcoming to guests. Lure potential buyers in with good curb appeal.
If your home lacks curb appeal, people could be tempted to leave or pass you up online. A home that sells quickly makes a great first impression. To add curb appeal, you don’t need to spend a lot of money.
Add some curb appeal by planting new landscaping or potted plants. Use mulch or landscape rocks to freshen up your flower beds. Consider getting a new front door and welcome mat to make visitors feel at home.
Use pathway and landscape lights to make your front yard pop. Small updates will make a big impact here. If you’re selling in the spring, don’t forget to clean up dead plants, leaves, or other debris left from winter.
The cleaner and more updated your home looks on the outside, the less work potential buyers will see. Stand out and leave a lasting impression in front of your home.
My House is Not Selling
So why won’t my house sell? There’s often more than one factor at play when your house is not selling. For starters, you’ll always want to look at your asking price and the condition of your home.
From there, you can make small improvements and adjustments to make your home more appealing to buyers. If traditional sales methods aren’t appealing to you, there are other ways to sell a home.
With iBuyer, you’ll be connected to reputable online buyers. You’ll be given a home valuation as well as cash offers, sight-unseen.
