The document provides tips for selling a house that is not attracting buyers. It suggests reviewing listing photos, feedback on the home's dated features, cleanliness, and ease of viewing. The key factors are pricing accurately based on current market conditions and comparable recent sales. If a home has been listed for months with no offers, the seller likely needs to significantly reduce the price, by at least 5-10%, to attract buyers and sell the home. An experienced real estate agent can help determine the right price reduction strategy given market trends in the local area.

1. How To Sell The House Nobody Likes
www.thelasvegasluxuryhomepro.com/blog/how-to-sell-the-house-nobody-likes.html
Why Hasn't My Home Sold?
You listed your home for sale a couple of months ago. At the time, you reviewed the closest comps with your agent.
The same model as yours had just sold down the Street for X. That home had a smaller pool. It had fewer
upgrades. The location was close to the main road into the subdivision. Your home had several advantages over
this one. So you priced it at the X price the other home sold for plus a little premium.
Now you’ve had the home listed for two or three months. You’ve had a few showings and no offers. What should
you do now? You should explore the following issues to improve your home's marketability.
Issues Affecting Your Home's Listing
The first step is to look at how your home is presented online. Is it visible in the major search websites? Zillow,
Trulia, RE/MAX, Redfin, etc.? How do the photos look? Did your agent hire a professional photographer? If the
agent took the photos with their cell phone, the photos may be turning potential buyers off.
Sometimes even decent quality photos can be too small to see well. We’ve even seen them turned upside down on
some occasions. If you see dark, hard to see photos in the MLS that could be part of your problem. Insist that your
agent get professional photos asap. If the agent used good photos and many of them, then we should look at other
issues.
Why Don’t They Like Your Home?
What kind of feedback has your agent received from people who saw your home? Are other agents telling them the
home is dated? This is one of the most common complaints we hear from buyers. Shiny, brass fixtures of the 80s
or white tile countertops will turn off most buyers. They’ll see dollar signs for all the things they have to replace.
How are the paint colors? The deep red you chose for the dining room may add glamor but most buyers will not
approve. And the children’s bedrooms in turquoise or violet will turn off buyers. Yes, they can be re-painted, but
buyers don’t want to go thru the hassle. The best colors are the neutrals, beiges, greys.
If your home needs a little TLC, it could be worthwhile to spend the money on it. Flooring and countertops may be
best left to new buyers. They will want to pick their own finishes. They’ll calculate the cost of replacing those things
into any offer they make. And they’ll usually over-estimate how much it will cost.
Less expensive things like painting and taking care of necessary repairs should be considered. If you can’t invest in
updating, you should discount the price accordingly. Even a dated home with garrish paint colors will sell if you
price it right.
Are You Putting Your Best Foot Forward?
1/4

2. Don’t be the homeowner who
cleans everything up for the
photos and lets it fall apart the
next day. Don’t let buyers
arrive to find a messy kitchen
with dirty dishes all over.
Clutter is another don’t.
Before listing your home, you
need to pack away everything
that isn’t essential. Do a deep
cleaning and make sure
everything looks tidy. Then you
need to maintain it. Yes, you
still live in the home but you
have to keep it presentable.
Buyers assume you’ve
maintained the home the way
you’ve cleaned it.
Is It Easy for Buyers to View Your Home?
We understand that you have a life and need time to have a quiet dinner without home buyers traipsing thru. At the
same time, buyers also have schedules. They may be moving here from out of State and only have a few days to
find and buy a home. Or long hours on the job could mean they only have evenings to see your home.
Serious sellers do their best to allow showings to qualified buyers. You may think that “serious buyers” will come
back at your convenience. That isn’t true. Serious buyers are on a schedule. They need to see all their options so
they can pick their favorites. Make them wait and they may move on. Unless your home is spectacular at a great
price, limiting showings can be a mistake.
Is It Time For a Price Reduction?
After going thru the checklist, it’s a good idea to take another look at your price. You know that a similar home sold
for X before you listed your home. You came in a little higher because your home had a few more upgrades.
You’ve had no offers after a few months. That’s the way the market tells you the home is over-priced. You may
have upgrades, but buyers aren’t valuing the upgrades. It isn’t worth more than the one that sold for X. At the least
you should reduce your price to X.
Will that do the trick? It may or you may have to take a more drastic reduction. If you need to reduce the price,
sooner is better than later. Today’s buyers are informed. They know how long your home has been on the market.
If it’s been 90 days, they know the home is over-priced or there’s something wrong with it. The price reduction
signals that you’re motivated.
How much should you reduce the price?
2/4

3. That will vary depending on the
current comps and your
situation. You should be
working with an experienced
agent who can tell you the
latest market trends. You can’t
count on it selling for the price
the previous home sold for.
That one sold at a particular
point in the market. Markets
change. Maybe a new
development has gone in
nearby that is having a
negative impact on your
neighborhood. The home that
sold earlier may have been
lucky to get sold before the market started to slide.
Ask your agent to tell you how much inventory there is in your particular subdivision.
For example: 27 homes sold in your subdivision over the past year. That’s 2.25 homes per month on average.
There are now 40 homes listed for sale. If the subdivision continues to absorb 2.25 homes per month, current
listings will last 17.8 months if the subdivision continues selling at this pace.
A “balanced” market has 6 months of inventory. Lower than 6 months favors sellers. More than 6 months favors
buyers. With 17.8 months of inventory available in your community, you need to get aggressive. You and your
agent should consider a price reduction.
Example 2: your community sold 66 homes over the past year. It now has 49 homes for sale. You’re in a better
situation. With 5.5 sales per month on average, the current homes will last 8.9 months. Not quite a balanced
market but much better than scenario number 1. Even in this situation, no offers after 2 or 3 months isn’t a good
sign.
Example 3: If your community sold 30 homes last year and only 10 are listed, you’re in much better shape. Your
subdivision has averaged 2.5 homes sold per month and you’re down to a four month supply. Your neighborhood is
hot with buyers watching and waiting to buy a home in it. The fact that your home isn’t getting showings or offers in
a hot sellers market is a warning sign. Your home needs work or a price reduction.
All the above scenarios are indications that a price reduction is a wise move. To get attention from the bargain
hunters, the reduction needs to be sizeable. If you’re priced at $500K, drop $450K to $475K. The drastic reduction
will let buyers know you’re motivated. Dated homes and fixers do better at lower prices. The discount leaves
buyers with room to fix things.
How much you need to reduce the price will vary based on the comps and your specific price range. A good rule of
thumb is that it should be at least a 5 to 10% reduction. That’s if your home is only moderately over-priceed.
Unfortunately, some agents “buy” listings by telling the sellers it’s worth an exorbitant price. Your home has to be
priced in line with the latest comps.
3/4

4. Whether you can do the price
reduction will depend on how
much equity you have in the
home. If you don’t have
enough you will have to
consider alternatives. You may
stay put until the market
improves. You could consider
renting the home. Short sales
are another possibility.
Take the emotion out of pricing
your home. You love the house
and have great memories. As
weeks go by without an offer,
you may find yourself feeling
stressed. Maybe you’re having
trouble sleeping at night.
You’re irritable with family and
friends. These are all
symptoms of an expired listing. There is a cure for the situation.
Reducing your list price should not be viewed as “losing money”. In a declining market, getting the home sold before
prices go lower can save money. And you can’t lose money you never had. Maybe the home would have been
worth more two years ago. Maybe it will be worth more two years later. It isn’t worth more now. If you need to sell,
it’s best to accept what the home is worth in the current market and move on with your life.
Debbie Drummond is a Full Time Realtor with over
ten years experience in the Las Vegas Real Estate
Market. She and her team of Real Estate Pros
offer the highest level of service. If you’re buying
or selling a Las Vegas home, call (702)354-6900 or
email Debbie@LVHomePro.com. They’ll be happy
to assist you in your move.
4/4