5 House Selling Mistakes You Must Avoid
When it comes to selling your home, half the stress is trying to work out what might go wrong.
After all, it’s not a one-step process.
Rather, there’re heaps of opportunities for things to not go to plan—from a poorly advertised listing to buyers changing their minds—as a seller you have to navigate through all stages before you even reach exchanging.
The problem is if you enthusiastically bounce into selling your house without considering the potential issues, you’re setting yourself up to fail.
And, this is often the reason why selling a property can feel overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to be.
The best way to ensure a stress-free smooth process is to prepare. And this means, understanding the common mistakes people make, and avoiding them.
Here are five top house selling mistakes you must avoid if you want to find the best buyer and secure the deal.
Choosing the wrong agent
Finding the right agent will ultimately determine whether you sell your home or not.
Your agent essentially will act as your guide through the process—you’ll depend on them to help you avoid mistakes.
It’s vital you find someone who not only understands the local market but also, has experience selling similar properties to yours. They should also have good communication, so for instance you don’t have to wait for them to call or email you with updates.
Whatever you do, don’t go with the first name that pops up on a search engine. Instead, do your homework—research local agents, find out if they’ve sold similar houses successfully and for the asking price, and also ask friends and family for recommendations.
Overpricing your property
If you want to attract serious buyers, you must price your property correctly according to its local market value—not what you wish it’s worth.
Don’t forget buyers these days are informed and well-researched—they know the value of your home. So, inflating the price will just put them off from even arranging a viewing. Worst-case scenario, you’ll end up languishing on the market for ages and losing house value.
Badly taken photos
The majority of house buyers start their journey online. So, the quality of your photos can make all the difference between getting buyers interested or totally putting them off.
Here are a few tips to take the best photos:
- Hire a professional.
- Use a tripod.
- Get a wide-angle lens for your camera.
- Use landscape orientation.
- Stage your house beforehand.
- Focus on the best feature in each room.
- Get the lighting right.
Leaving clutter and mess
Great—you’ve got lots of viewings lined up. But your property is full of your stuff—not great.
To help buyers envision themselves living in your home you need to remove as much of your belongings as possible. As the problem with clutter is that not only does it make your home feel small, but also dark and dirty, which is a major turn-off.
Hire a storage unit and put all your belongings in it till after the sale. Also, make sure the whole property gets a deep clean. And, finally, on the day of the viewings, buy fresh flowers, brew coffee to create a welcoming ambience to help prospective buyers feel at home.
Ignoring key repairs and updates
Fine, you might not have much time or budget to undertake any major refurbishment works. However, buyers will spot neglected repairs straight away. And the message this sends is that you don’t care about your property.
So, if the taps are dripping or doors are squeaking, buyers will immediately think ‘hmm what else is wrong here?’ And, they’ll be out like a shot.
If you’re not naturally DIY yourself, instead a hire handy man to help you fix any faults immediately.
Need help selling your house?
If you’re struggling to sell your house due to its condition or you don’t have time to invest in getting it ready—don’t worry.
Instead, consider selling your property to a cash home buyer as this will give you more options.
You can use a company like House Buy Fast who will buy your property for cash and manage the whole process on your behalf, so you don’t have to worry about a thing.
