Selling our house

[jason]

curb appeal blah blah The back yard is very nice but also a bit sparse.

The red curtains in the boys room are way too loud for resale blah blah. You may want to use a beige tone similar to the one also in the comforter.

blah blah make the fireplace the focal point.

Baking cookies and having them out before an open house is a great idea and really makes people feel at home and is more inviting.

blah blah the walls look a bit too bare to me especially over the bed in the master. You want people to imagine it's their home not a model.

blah blah your powder bath doesn't match the rest of the house, it's a bit too contemporary, blah blah but maybe something in black or oil rubbed bronze in a style more like the kitchen faucet and then throw some hardware on the cabinet to match instead of the stainless.

 

[dkf]

Economy is the main issue IMO. Banks are being pricks also. It doesn't help that the people who were thinking about getting into a home went out and took advantage of the homebuyer tax credit. Since the incentive ran out the people that bought a house back then are obviously not in the market now. I think the incentive the taxpayers footed the bill for was a bad idea.

BTW the house looks good IMO. I'm not picky though, a lot of people have to have everything just perfect for their tastes and will go into debt tens or hundreds of thousands extra after buying a home to make it suit them.

 

[punkfan]

three things:
1. Take the office out of the formal dining room and make it a dining room w/a nice table and chairs. People look for that in a house.
2. Already mentioned, but move the chair in the living room away from the window.
3. unless you have to sell you may have to wait a little longer. the market is soft and people are looking for deals.

 

[rcracer]

three things:
1. Take the office out of the formal dining room and make it a dining room w/a nice table and chairs. People look for that in a house.
2. Already mentioned, but move the chair in the living room away from the window.
3. unless you have to sell you may have to wait a little longer. the market is soft and people are looking for deals.

also, to make the living room appear larger you might want to remove the small end tables on either side of the couch.
My wife subjects me to HGTV on the daily bases.. ugghh:roll:

 

[TXJeeper1]

To me it looks too sterile, other than the upstairs bedroom, the only color you have is very dull (wrong word but I can't think of the corect one but I am sure you know what I mean) When we sold our house 3 years ago we painted one wall in the living room a different, bold, color, my wife said it gives it a pop? She watches HGTV all the time so whatever, but it worked. We only had 2 people look at it in the 2 months that we had it up, afterwe painted we had 4 offers within 3 weeks.We also added color in the bedrooms and such nothing drastic just some nice color."thumbsup"

 

[dkf]

It seems some are focusing on the contents in the house. Unless the contents come with the house why pay attention to them? Pay attention to what you would actually be buying, not what is going with the PO when they move out.

 

[kikcaffine]

also, to make the living room appear larger you might want to remove the small end tables on either side of the couch.
My wife subjects me to HGTV on the daily bases.. ugghh:roll:

this

Thats how I know about the staging stuff.


I will say that girl who does the staging is so smoking hot.

 

[michael_lambert]

Its a buyers market right now.

The markets have tanked and people are losing their homes everywhere and due to that people are selling cheap.

We bought our house here 3 years ago for $225,000.00 our mortgage came up for renewal and my wife wanted to try and get a little more out of it due to having the twins and we did the appraisal on the house and two different companies came back with values in the $175,000.00 value Needless to say the bank claimed we did not have enough Value in the home to get more than we had.

I think if your house has been listed for soo long its best to pull it off for a couple of months, when people see it listed for so long they just start to think "Whats wrong with it"

 

[EvilTwin v2]

There are some little things you can do to make it feel a bit warmer... candles, flowers, etc... but honestly, as everybody else has mentioned, I think you're just dealing with a bed market where it's difficult to secure financing and those that can have their pick of houses.

If you could sit on it for a few more years...maybe another 5, the prices are likely to start recovering. Think about it. 5 years ago, you couldn't flip through the tv channels without running into a show on flipping houses. Where are all those shows now???

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

Any funny smells? Having a pet doesn't help sell a house at all. If your house is clean enough that you can't tell you have pets I suggest finding a home for your cat while you show the house.

 

[Eritex Inc.]

Nope, no funny smells. When people walk into our house they usually comment on it smelling like a new house or some kind of soap, I think it goes back to my OCD and hating mess and clutter. Our cat is afraid of people so when buyers come by or even our agent, the cat vanishes like a fart in the wind. A couple times after showings it has taken us an hour to find her.

I did get a message from my agent this morning that has me a little baffled. 10 days ago when my wife was in surgery I got a call from our agent asking if a buyers agent could show the house. We had not spit polished the house before we left (there were a couple dishes in the sink, clothes on the floor in the master bath, beds unmade, etc) so I said to set up the showing for the following Monday. Well, the buyers agent and the client went into the house anyways.

When we got home from the hospital I knew there had been someone in the house. Back to the OCD, I do things a certain way and I check them when I come home. The door was locked incorrectly, lights that are always on where off, doors were shut incorrectly, etc. I called my agent and he explained it as a misunderstanding.

Three days ago our agent asks for another showing and we set it up. That showing ends up being the people who came through when our house was a mess. Those people are really interested in our house and our agent says they are checking a couple things (easements and street improvement plans) but are planning on writing an offer today or tomorrow.


Go figure....

 

[JeremyH]

Gerame, I had some similar issues when showing a house that I sold several years ago. Agents calling saying they'd be there in several minutes......agents setting up appointments and never showing. It's a game, try to play it well....it will be over soon.

 

[kikcaffine]

Nope, no funny smells. When people walk into our house they usually comment on it smelling like a new house or some kind of soap, I think it goes back to my OCD and hating mess and clutter. Our cat is afraid of people so when buyers come by or even our agent, the cat vanishes like a fart in the wind. A couple times after showings it has taken us an hour to find her.

I did get a message from my agent this morning that has me a little baffled. 10 days ago when my wife was in surgery I got a call from our agent asking if a buyers agent could show the house. We had not spit polished the house before we left (there were a couple dishes in the sink, clothes on the floor in the master bath, beds unmade, etc) so I said to set up the showing for the following Monday. Well, the buyers agent and the client went into the house anyways.

When we got home from the hospital I knew there had been someone in the house. Back to the OCD, I do things a certain way and I check them when I come home. The door was locked incorrectly, lights that are always on where off, doors were shut incorrectly, etc. I called my agent and he explained it as a misunderstanding.

Three days ago our agent asks for another showing and we set it up. That showing ends up being the people who came through when our house was a mess. Those people are really interested in our house and our agent says they are checking a couple things (easements and street improvement plans) but are planning on writing an offer today or tomorrow.


Go figure....

Good luck man!

Maybe they wanted to see the house in a dirty state so they will know what it actually looks like, vs being all clean and spotless.

 

[bmuzz1]

:ror::ror:... I've been in the slab and tile design business for 17 years, I guess it shows.

 

[sally1800]

It's likely price, not actually anything that's wrong with the house.

x2 on this. right now it is a buyers market. Seller have to play the game.

Kinda sucks

 

[STANG KILLA SS]

havent read all the posts, but lower the price, and install brighter, and whiter bulbs in all the fixtures.

 

[Narly1]

To ALL: Notice how he never posted any pics of the garage, LOL!!!

Hey Gerame,

The place is immaculate. Whoever pulls the trigger is going to get a great deal. The word "sterile" that somebody else used was the same comment that I was going to make.

To me though that is not a bad thing.... I guess you have 2 factors at play, logic, and emotion.

The logical buyer who is looking the practical details (like your last prospects) don't worry too much about colour and style.

On the other hand the emotional buyer will jump if the place looks nice and then hassle you over the practical stuff (after they've fallen in love with the place).

I'd sooner deal with a practical buyer than an emotional one.

That being said, I predict you will have an offer in hand shortly.

Good luck!!

Narly1

 

[Code454]

i wouldnt change the price if the buyer thinks its to high they can put in a price that they think is right and you can counteract to a decent price that you feel is right, but its a waiting game even here in canada its a buyers market some house have been up from begin of summer till now its just time and the right person will come along.

 

[BigBaller]

Well move to MN and I've got a STEAL of a deal for you!

House looks beautiful. Very nice. You are getting showings and that's what counts. Interst will come along. Be patient, it will sell.

 

[camobob]

I have cat allergies . Wouldnt want to replace carpet . Hang a cheap flatscreen on the wall and hid ethe wiring for godsakes