Avoid These Mistakes When Selling Your Home

Putting a house on the market is hardly the easiest task in the world but luckily you can make life a little less stressful for yourself if you are able to avoid these mistakes when selling your home.

Avoid Overpricing

It’s extremely easy for a potential buyer to see whether or not you have inflated the value of your home by viewing comparable homes in the immediate vicinity and how much they have recently sold for.

Furthermore, an investigation by industry consumer watchdog magazine ‘Which?’ found that in areas such as Blackburn, houses that were priced accurately sold in an average of 27 days, whereas those that were overpriced took an average of 91 days to sell. It is also worth bearing in mind that the longer a house stays on the market, the more likely it is that several price drops will be necessary to entice buyers. You may, however, still fail to sell as potential buyers will be apprehensive about purchasing a house that has been hard to sell.

Don’t Choose The Wrong Agent

With so many online agents to choose from, combined with your local high street alternatives, finding an agent is never as easy as it sounds. While you may get tempted by the low flat rate promises by the online agent, it is extremely unlikely that they will have the same level of area knowledge as an established high street agent.

It is also important to enquire about their successes as an agent, especially when dealing with houses similar to yours.

Don’t Sell At The Wrong Time

it’s always best to avoid both summer and winter as parents tend to be busiest during summer and Christmas thanks to the stress of having the kids at home 24/7, and they can’t imagine dealing with the pressure of looking for a new home. Moreover, many workers aged 18-45 tend to go on holiday during the summer – and with the steadily rising prices, it’s unlikely they will have too much spare cash at that time of year even when they get back.

Get The Presentation Right

If a prospective buyer turns up, they have to be able to imagine themselves living there. This means that not only do you have to keep the house in showroom condition, you will also have to remove as much of your own personality from the house as possible. In terms of presentation, a pot of paint and varnish from the local DIY store can really make your home stand out from the crowd, and using neutral paint colours such as cream and vanilla will help to accentuate these features. You can also invest in a new front door, as well as use weed killer on your garden or yard. Many sellers even hire power-washers to remove the build-up of carbon that often leaves the outer walls of their homes looking shabby and undesirable. In short, a little effort goes a long way to encourage a sale.

Take great pictures

If you have decided to sell your home in the near future, make sure that you are pro-active and have a professional photographer take some inspiring photos of your home on a bright summer day with clean windows and a nicely presented yard or garden. Some sellers and estate agents are happy to take pictures themselves, but a professional will possess the skill and equipment needed to make your house look spacious and inviting.

Don’t Hide The Truth

If there are faults with the house can be fixed prior to it being placed on sale, you should try to have these taken care of as soon as possible. If, however, there are bigger problems with the house and you try to hide them from prospective buyers then there is a high chance that your house sale will fall through as the issues are uncovered in the required Homebuyer’s Report that will take place before the purchase is complete.

Remember To List Every Feature

When potential buyers read through listings of homes, they often have a semi-formed picture in their mind as to what they want. These desires can be for a garage, a decent garden, whether or not it is freehold and so on. It is also a good idea to list all of the local amenities that will be available to them if they decide to buy. These can include locations such as local shop, leisure centres and bars.

Ultimately, finding the right buyers for your home can be a pain. Sometimes it can feel like it will never sell – but it’s important to maintain hope and remember that you can also change your agent if you feel it is necessary.

Are you interested in selling your house for cash? Why not ask National Homebuyers for advice, as we buy any house. Call 08000 443 911 or request a call back to find out how much you could get for your property before it’s too late.