I have an amazing colonial to sell and it's just not budging!

[mirancs8]

Thank you all for your opinions. I too agree with the basement picture because I did not want that posted. Realtor seemed to think otherwise. When the person came to do the pictures of the house I didn't expect him so the house was in a tizzy (to be honest I have a few young children in the house so it's not going to look perfect when I have unexpected guests). I told him to let me push the toys back behind the bar area but he said don't worry about it. I had a bad feeling the entire time he took the pictures.

As for the white walls actually our walls are cottage white and our dinning room is a little darker. We did everything neutral because bold colors don't sell. I know when I've shopped for my 2 houses I was looking for a clean slate.

As for the age, in our area 95% of the homes are older homes this is not a new community it's been around for some time. The NE is very established around the city areas. If you go about 45 minutes away from us you'll see some new developments. So as for the age no I have to disagree that the house is dated and old actually there are many older homes in the area.

Conclusion, pictures never do justice. I agree about the basement and the toys. I disagree with the house looking so white since it's not and it's more marketable if neutral. Disagree about the age of the home being an issue because they are all old in this area. The reason I got excellent showing is because the house was clean and staged unlike a few of the pictures.

I think that's the problem today is people are looking at this new homes with the open floor plans and think other houses look "dated". They want every house to look like the model homes that have very few defined rooms on the main floor. I love the new house open floor plans mind you but if I'm looking at an older home I assume it's floor plans are going to differ greatly.

Thank you again for your feedback.

[pennylove76]

I understand what you are saying Mirancs8 about pics not doing your house justice. However, I just think that these picture do not capture the positive features of your house either. Also, the fact that the realtor did not bother to move th toys and told you not to worry about them, I believe is an issue that speaks to the quality of your realtor. I find that the good realtors are very detail oriented and they try not to overlook the little things. I definitely understand the toys as I have a little one and on any given day the toys are everywhere. However, in this market the buyers are very finicky and I think a picture like that could be a turn off. Which, makes me question why the realtor would take a pic like that....and that makes me further question the quality of the realtor.

You may want to figure out what it is that attracts people to homes like yours and find someway to showcase those qualities better than the current what the current picture do. As I said in a previoud post, I think you have a really nice house. However, buyers want to fall in love with a fantasy and usually that fantasy involves something new and trendy or some traditional and classic. Either way, I would argue, that the pictures need to capture whatever it is that makes the house stand out. That way, more people will be interested and that will hopefully lead to more people seeing the house in person.

Good luck.

[toobusytoday]

I agree with penny. Good realtors are detail minded and very market consious. I remember when we were trying to sell our first house and our realtor wanted us to move some of our essential furniture out of the house so it would look bigger, and that included a kitchen trash can! At the time I had two small children and tons of baby and kid clutter and no energy to anything besides the basics.

However, the pictures are THE best marketing tool you have. When someone is looking on line at many houses, they will simply eliminate the ones that don't appeal for visceral reasons, not good ones. My husband is very good at seeing the possiblities in a place and how it would suit our family. I could not see what could be without a lot of effort, I just saw what was. So, if many people are telling you things about your house that are not true from what we're seeing in the pictures, maybe you just need to change the pictures.

[mirancs8]

Thank you both for your replies. Yes I agree the pictures are the first impression people are going to get and those pictures that I have up are not showing the house how it is if you walk through it. Another thing is the realtor is my husbands very good friend. I know that sometimes friends and family can put you on the back burner when it comes to giving their all to selling your house. He does a great job but there are things that put us at a disadvantage. He's only done 1 open house because from his experience it doesn't bring buyers just people wanting to see a house as they are driving by. I disagreed with that because this house we bought it because of an open house. If I had ever seen the pictures I would not have even come to see it. Just so you know when we bought the house it was out dated and had a kitchen that didn't function. We gutted the house it was original from when they bought it some 30+ years ago. I pressed him this week for us to do an open house and he's going to do one on Sunday.

Thanks again and I will let you know how things go!

[gore2008]

I too am trying to sell my own home on BUYOWNER and Realtor.com. I (probably like you) want it sold yesterday!

To increase my traffic I placed "free" ads and links to my property on several free web sites.

How web savvy are you?

Many Buyers use the web.

To increase my “web hits” and hopefully “foot” traffic I placed “free” ads and links to my property on several free web sites

My suggestion is you may want to take ten to thirty minutes and place “free” ads of your home as well.

I would suggest you “link” back to Realtor.com page.


FIRST website: http://www.hoobly.com/0/0/278666.html (broken link)
You can copy/download your pictures off of REaltor.com and post them there too!

SECOND WEBSITE
http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/rfs/408298607.html (broken link)
Actually at least three of my four calls came off of this one.

THIRD WEBSITE
http://www.livedeal.com

FOURTH WEBSITE
http://www.sellhomeshere.com/

FIFTH WEBSITE
http://www.propermatch.com/PropertyP...ertyId=2387392
Also allows free ads.

SIXTH Website
http://property.ning.com/

SEVENTH Website
http://www.fsbon.com/handler.cfm?fil...d&autoid=20133
for free listing click. http://www.fsbon.com/handler.cfm?file=secure_signup

EIGHTH Website
http://www.realestatetalks.com/

Ninth Website
http://www.dealmakerscafe.com/forum/index.php

Tenth website
http://www.nj.com/forums/homebuying/

Eleventh
http://www.njville.com/

Twelfth
USLandCo Creative Real Estate Investing Resources


Thirteenth
http://www.einvesting.com/
Post under housing market section

Fourteenth
www.phillyEdge.com
Go to blog section, on left side margin.

Fifteenth
New Jersey Homes For Sale-Free Listings -- New Jersey Homes For Sale

Sixteenth
http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/sho...207#post565207

Seventeeth
Welcome to SoggyCracker.com The community for anyone... > Home

Eighteenth
http://activerain.com/blogsview/1951...ult-55-housing

Nineteeth
Real Estate for Sale in the Philadelphia Area - Lycos Classifieds
Real Estate for Sale in the Philadelphia Area - Lycos Classifieds


Twentieth
Zadzoo - Home

Twentyone
http://www.allhomesforsalebyowner.co...orsalebyowner/

I have gotten four calls in the last two days from my ads on these pages <I am certain because they referred to Craig’s List specifically

I know it may sound a little crazy but they are FREE and you never know where your ONE buyer you need will come from

My suggestion is you be sure to include these things in your FREE ads
your email address (where you have spam guard or get spam already)
your cell or office number
a link to your ad and photos by putting this full link in free ads Homes For Sale By Owner - 3 bed 1 bath Single Family Home - Penns Grove, New Jersey - PHL2568


I would say want to see a virtual tour HIT THIS LINK Buy Owner - Virtual Experience - Hear and See properties the way you were meant to.
Say BROKERS ARE PROTECTED then include link to your Realtor.com webpage once they synchronize it.
PHOTOS. To download photos go to your Realtor.com webpage. Right click on the photo you like, then choose SAVE AS, and save the photo to your computer (I put them on the desktop and rename them, LIVING ROOM, BACK YARD VIEW, etc). Then when you are on the above websites you can upload them from your computer!

Realtors aren’t allowed to swamp these sites with client’s ads, but as an individual you can place them

I am sure there are other free advertising websites in fact if you know of any good ones please post here.

[pennylove76]

I wish you all the luck possible. I have a suggestion regarding the work you have done. Tell the realtor, if she has not done so already, to put info about the repairs & upgrades you have completed. I love seeing that certain things have been updated as that let's me know that I won't have to worry about that item and usually the seller has all of their ppwk with the warranties with regard to the updates.

Again, I wish you lots of luck and if I hear of someone looking for a house in your area I will tell them to check your out..I work not to far from that county so I will keep my ears open around any coworkers looking for houses.

[pennylove76]

Gore2008, your msg looks really interesting but it is very hard to read, can you re-post it?

[watamensch]

The goal of staging is to make a house seem like a place where a buyer would like to live. Some examples:

1. If you collect something special... say model trains... and your family room shelves are filled with trains, your piano has pictures of you at the National Train Museum, etc... the potential buyer has to imagine the room without all the stuff that you have. What makes your "house a home" can get in the way. Since your moving, box that stuff up now and put it in the basement or garage neatly.

2. If you do have those "crazy colors" as someone said, repaint in white or creme to make the house neutral.

3. Ever been to a model home in a new development? Even if it is a sparkling sunny day, all the lights are on. When someone comes to look at the house, open the curtains and turn on the lights. This gives a bright and airy look to the house.

4. DO NOT pack up furniture! An empty house not only looks bad, but sends a message to buyers that you may be foreclosing or have some other hardship.

5. When showing the house, turn off the TV. The buyer should be looking at the house, not seeing how badly the Mets are beating the Phillies (Sorry, I am from NY)

6. CLEAN UP! First, a messy house gives the impression that you don't take care of things... like a leaky roof, broken faucet, etc.... second, as I said before the buyer wants to picture him/herself living in your house. Even if they are slobs, they don't see themselves that way and this just makes it tougher for the sale to be made.

7. PRICING: Look at your price on Realtor.com and other real estate websites. Notice that some sites have pre-determined price ranges for searching, say LOW: $200,000 HIGH: $400,000. If you're listed at $405K, any buyer spending up to $400 is missing you.

8. REALTOR: The Broker is your husband's good friend, but is he a sucsessful broker? Put it this way, if you won the lottery and had $45 million to invest, would you go to a good friend or a great investment expert? If your child needed surgery, would you go to a friend who was a doctor, or find the BEST surgeon out there? I am not saying your husband's friend isn't good, but ask how many homes he has sold. Sorry if this might effect a friendship, but it may be time for a change.

[rainrock]

Originally Posted by watamensch

5. When showing the house, turn off the TV. The buyer should be looking at the house, not seeing how badly the Mets are beating the Phillies (Sorry, I am from NY)

Stupendous advisement mensch but your thought process is tragically flawed here. The Phils swept the Mutts 3 times this year and have won 7 straight against those choking dogs.

Only out 1 1/2 games after tonight.

[cmow]

We are looking into putting our home on the market next year and the realtor suggested that we hire a stager who would recommend paint colors and furniture placement, items on walls, etc. in order to make our home more appealing. Since there are so many homes on the market you want to make yours more attractive than the others out there. You may want to look into that. Good luck!