Every so often a seller calls me with the same question: the market's moving, the house down the street sold in a week, so why is mine still sitting? Most of the time the answer is one of a handful of things, and almost all of them can be fixed.
The price was set for the market you hoped for
This is the big one. Buyers in Vaughan are comparing your home to every other listing in their price range, and they know the recent sales as well as we do. If your price is 5% above what similar homes sold for, most of them won't book a showing. They'll wait for you to drop it, or buy something else.
The hardest part is that the best time to get the price right is before you list. Your first two weeks bring the most attention you'll ever get. If the price is off then, a lot of the right buyers see it once and move on.
The photos don't do the job
Nearly every buyer sees your home online first, usually on a phone. Dark rooms, a cluttered kitchen or a first photo of the front lawn in March will cost you showings. If people aren't booking, look at your listing the way a buyer scrolling past would.
Something in the home is putting buyers off
If showings are happening but offers aren't, ask for feedback and take it seriously. It's often something specific: a smell, an old roof, a dated kitchen at a price that suggests it's been redone, or a basement that feels damp. Some of these are cheap to fix. Others are better handled with the price.
It's hard to see
Tight showing windows, a tenant who isn't cooperating, or "24 hours notice only" all cut the number of buyers who walk through. The homes that sell are the ones people can actually get into.
What to do if you're already sitting
Look at the numbers honestly. How many showings have you had, and what did people say? If the showings are low, it's usually price or photos. If showings are good but there are no offers, it's usually price or condition. A small price change rarely moves anything. If you adjust, make it enough that buyers who passed on you take a second look.
Thinking of listing, or already on the market and not getting offers? I'll take an honest look at your price and your listing, and tell you what I'd change.
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