Help! No showings... (Dallas, Carrollton, Howe: days on market, sales, real estate)

[arizcats13]

I wanted to throw my situation out there and see if anybody else has any opinions or ideas.

My home has been on the market for about 10 days now. We listed it right before the memorial day weekend thinking that may be a hot weekend to show houses. Nothing. We have had exactly 2 showings since the initial listing, both of which occured on one day last week.

The house is definitley listed more than what it comps out for. I would say that it is roughly $5 more per square foot than the comps. However, it is also one of the nicest homes in the community. More importantly, my wife and I did not anticipate a slightly highter list price being a problem because we figured people would want to negotiate anyways. In absolute terms, the house is only listed 10-12k above what similiar homes have sold for in the neighborhood that aren't nearly as aesthetically pleasing.

Any suggestions??? We're thinking about dropping price... we have another home we're supposed to close on in July and need to sell!

[momof2dfw]

What area of the metroplex is it in? Don't need the neighborhood name. Just a general idea of location.

How many days on the market were the other homes that were in your area that sold? What was the original list price and how far did they come down to sell?

Do you have pictures online that the prospective buyers and their realtors can see BEFORE they show it? If not you best do this before anything else. Make sure the pictures are AWESOME!!! If you need to hire a stager if your trying to get top dollar.

What does your realtor say?

[momof2dfw]

Saw in another thread you live in Carrollton. What is the area around you like? You don't need to tell me or post it, just questions to ask yourself if the immediate area could be hurting more than helping. If your too close to apartments this could bring it down REAL fast. How do the neighbors keep their yards/houses?

You might still be overpriced and might need to come down to get some showings that can turn into an offer.

[vulches]

Sounds like it was priced a bit too high or just isn't in a highly desirable neighborhood, so traffic in general could be low. What's the average days on market for sold homes and the average sales price as percentage of list? Unfortunately, Carrollton doesn't have the best reputation among Dallas suburbs and a lack of interest is probably hurting you more than the price. But there are many other possible reasons. Did you have the photos done by a professional? First impressions are huge!

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

Anything that is over-priced these days is going to be ignored. People think it's a buyer's market and it is, so over-priced houses just aren't worth a look. If you want a quick sale, you need to be under-priced for the market. This is true no matter where you live.

[cr1039]

Maybe because it was the end of the school year? Parties, camp registration, holidays?

[nsumner]

It sounds like you need to drop the price immediately. No showings means that Realtors that are familiar with the neighborhood know that you are overpriced and will only bring their buyers after you have a realistic price if they don't buy something else first. Don't wait for the listing to become "stale" before you drop the price.

Is the buyer's agent commission at least 3%? many Realtors will not show homes if the commission is below that. If your Realtor gave you a break on the fees, make sure that the buyer's agent side still stays at 3%.

Do you have good pictures on the MLS. I don't mean on a website. The MLS is where Realtors search for homes. If I see a listing with no pictures, I will think that the interior may not look good enough to take pictures. We can put up to 10 pictures, I say you post 10. How does the write-up about the home look?

Since you are in Carrollton, and if you are in the older part (Woodlake etc.) has your house had any foundation work done? and if that is listed in the MLS, it will reduce the number of showings.

Lastly if not most importantly, what has the feedback been from the 2 showings been? that is very important.

Naima

[Texsez]

What do you think it is?
Drop the price.
You're welcome.
Oh and p.s....do NOT drop it 5 k.
Your Realtor must be very new, pompous and prideful.
Re-evaluate your objective. Do you want to sell the home or not?
Drop the house 30 k. Get back to us.

[momof2dfw]

Originally Posted by SouthernBelleInUtah

Anything that is over-priced these days is going to be ignored. People think it's a buyer's market and it is, so over-priced houses just aren't worth a look. If you want a quick sale, you need to be under-priced for the market. This is true no matter where you live.

Not exactly. In my neighborhood the houses that have been selling are listed up there and not at a "buyers market" rate at all. And they DO sell. However, the house must have all of the current updates. Anything outdated is bypassed and sits on the market until the price is dropped really low. Only had 1 of those in our area in the last year.

Originally Posted by cr1039

Maybe because it was the end of the school year? Parties, camp registration, holidays?

Holiday weekends are normally not the best time to be showing. Most people are busy themselves with other things. Only those that may have come for the long weekend from out of the area to look will be out on the house hunt.

Originally Posted by Texsez

What do you think it is?
Drop the price.
You're welcome.
Oh and p.s....do NOT drop it 5 k.
Your Realtor must be very new, pompous and prideful.
Re-evaluate your objective. Do you want to sell the home or not?
Drop the house 30 k. Get back to us.

Obviously someone that doesn't really know much about anything.
Dropping a house in this price range 30K sends up a HUGE red flag that it has MAJOR problems or the sellers are so desperate they will take anything.

[lh_newbie]

Originally Posted by arizcats13

In absolute terms, the house is only listed 10-12k above what similiar homes have sold for in the neighborhood that aren't nearly as aesthetically pleasing.

If it's "only" $10K... could you write me a $10K check? I don't know what the average price/sq ft is in Carrollton, but I have to assume that $5/sq ft is equal to roughly 5%, which is a pretty big deal in real estate. Especially in a soft market.