By Vanessa Saunders, MBA, MIMC , Broker Owner, Global Property Systems Real Estate.

If you’ve listed your home to sell, and it’s had showings after showings with no offers, there must be a reason. In the current Hudson Valley’s hot seller’s market, even white elephants - homes that have been listed for months (even years!) are being snapped up by eager buyers. Some buyers are making ridiculous offers over listing price just to get their foot in the door.

The fact is, a home that isn't selling is actually costing the owner money. Statistically, a home that sells in the first 30 days on the market sells for the most amount of money. The longer a listing sits, the less it sells for. If a home has spent too many days on the market, this “stale” listing is often interpreted to be damaged goods, as buyers speculate that there is something wrong which made the property hard to sell to previous buyers.

So, you have a problem. Here are six of the most common reasons buyers aren’t biting, and what to do to overcome them.

1. Priced too high.
If a house in good condition isn’t selling, the problem is almost always the price. A top listing agent will combine “boots on the ground” knowledge with relevant information based on comparable home sale prices in the area to develop a pricing strategy. We find that pricing a new listing slightly below the market price stimulates a lot of interest and often brings multiple offers.

If you priced the home yourself, resisting the temptation to overprice is the biggest challenge sellers face. listen to the feedback you’re getting from people at open houses and showings. You can even just browse local listings. If your home is priced higher than comparable properties in your area, your problem is probably price.

The solution:
Time for a price reduction. Don’t feel bad. 40% of sellers reported reducing the asking price of their home at least once, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

2. Yours is not a typical property.
Not all houses fall under the 30 day rule. Some homes are unusual in one way or another, and may be a challenge to find a fitting buyer. Very large homes, ones with unusual layouts or locations, or just have odd or unusual features fall into this category.

The solution:
Be patient and market the home to the buyer you’re looking for. In your marketing materials, website and virtual tour, present the unusual features as desirable benefits.

Think about why you bought the home in the first place. What made it appealing to you? If it was a low-ball price, you’ve already read the solution.

3. Poor (or non-existent) staging.
Typically, an attractively decorated home will sell for 1%to 5% more than a poorly decorated or vacant house, and will sell faster. The idea here is to allow buyers to envision their own furnishings there. Unstaged, or worse, badly staged homes can seem cluttered, dark, and small.

The solution:
A homeowner can make small upgrades and declutter, but a home in serious need of a trained eye will benefit by the expertise of a professional stager. To show off your home at its best, a professional stager will know what’s possible and will often bring a large return on your investment.

4. Dress your curb appeal for success.
Curb appeal is as old as real estate, but it is important. You want buyers to feel your property is well looked after and cared for. An ugly facade and messy yard will shout “Fixer-Upper” instead.well-landscaped homes are worth anywhere from 1% to 10% more than homes with no landscaping.

The solution:
Upgrade the exterior, especially the front, with green grass, flowers and a neat and tidy lawn. A landscaper can make economical suggestions that will help dress your house for success.

5. Poor photos on your website.
If your listing photos don’t show off your property in its best light, why would anyone come to see it? Professional listing photos ranked as the most valuable website feature among nine in 10 buyers under age 55, according to NAR’s 2020 Generational Trends Report.

The solution:
Put your i-Phone back in your purse or pocket and save it for photos of the kids and puppies. A professional photographer is a must, and professional photography can sell your home 32% faster.

6. Your marketing isn’t doing its job.
Even if your Realtor is experienced in showing homes and knows the area inside out, if your marketing isn’t targeting the right buyers, the wrong people are seeing your house. Marketing a home for sale takes know-how, and a serious Your marketing isn’t doing its job.

Even if your Realtor is experienced in showing homes and knows the area inside out, if your marketing isn’t targeting the right buyers, the wrong people are seeing your house. Marketing a home for sale takes know-how, and a serious investment in time and money. Time, because your marketing can’t be the cookie-cutter one-size-fits-all type so often used by agents without marketing expertise. Money, because your Realtor should be willing to spend the money it takes to place your property on the MLS with the ability to make it stand out, using professional services, social media sites, public relations, a website of your own highlighting your home and featuring a professionally narrated virtual tour, plus the ability to handle all the buyers we capture by using a cutting-edge CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system, with agents trained to handle the follow-up. 

The solution:
Be sure the real estate agency you hire has the capability to market your property thoroughly and professionally. Global Property Systems Real Estate is a marketing agency, with a marketing team trained in the art and science of selling homes, plus a team of local area experts throughout the Hudson Valley region. We place our listings on eight different MLS services in the Hudson Valley, and in 50 languages in 120 countries around the world.

Contact us HERE, to discover "Real Estate done differently."