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I was debating about sharing the listing, which includes the address, but it would have been nice if others waited for me to make that decision. This is just basic consideration. Regardless of whether I shared it before on this web site, it really wasn't cool for anyone to jump in and post the links for me on this thread.
I was debating about sharing the listing, which includes the address, but it would have been nice if others waited for me to make that decision. This is just basic consideration. Regardless of whether I shared it before on this web site, it really wasn't cool for anyone to jump in and post the links for me on this thread.
I agree that although you have a post history here that reveals a lot of personal information that nobody else should have posted a link to your listing in this particular thread, but the truth is that information is already available here to anyone who does a simple search of your post history, and you posted it originally, so it is fair game.
Having said that, we all should be more circumspect about what we post here, myself included, if privacy is a concern. I noticed that on your profile page you have given out certain facts about yourself; maybe you should delete that if you are concerned about privacy? I left mine blank.
Also, looking back over your older posts, it is obvious that you have tried to sell this house before, and you mentioned 5 years ago, evidently in response to someone who asked about the 1/2 bath, that it would not be physically possible to expand it (one of my questions on this thread), and you also mentioned that when you tried to sell the house in 2009 and 2010 that your chief competition was homes with 2 or 2.5 baths (again what I conjectured as a possible problem in selling the house). I have taken some heat from a poster on this thread for asking about the bath situation and how it might be affecting your ability to sell the house, but clearly it was and still is a factor, right?
And because of the bath problem you are probably going to have to show the house to more buyers, even if you have priced it right, before you will find one who can overlook the bath deficiency, so my best advice is to devise a simpler pre-showing prep plan, spending as little time as possible straightening up the house, since that is the part of your exasperation you can control (you can't control what buyers think, or their feedback, so I wouldn't even ask for it anymore).
Anyway, good luck with the sale.
Last edited by Westbound and Down; 05-15-2014 at 05:57 AM..
Our house has been on the market 1 month today. Does that mean "it has not sold"? I think the average days on the market in my zip is about 90 right now, so I am not yet worried it won't sell. Maybe in another couple months.
I am confident that there is - out there in this yuppie-infested, HGTV-brainwashed world we live in - people like hubby and me who fell in love with this old house that is oozing charm, solidly built (made with real wood, not particle board) and has those features that you just don't find in new homes unless you are rich and can lay out big bucks - like solid wood floors with inlay, thick wood moldings everywhere, wood burning fireplaces with substantial, solid wood surrounds, high ceilings, solid walls, etc. Maybe hubby and I were naïve, but when we found this house, we didn't even care that it has 1.5 baths (of course, we are only 2 people so we don't need more anyway), or an outdated kitchen. Yes, we noticed the kitchen but we didn't care because the house had so much else to offer that we felt more than compensated for the fact that we didn't have granite countertops or new kitchen cabinets.
So why are we selling (you are probably wondering)? At this point in our life (middle aged!), we no longer want to be homeowners and worry about things like mowing the lawn, weeding, property taxes, maintenance, upkeep, etc. We want to downsize and simplify. But for 10 years we've loved this house and know there is someone out there who will love it just as much as we did (and do)!
Oh my, that is beautiful outside can only imagine the inside.
trust me watching a friend go through a house sale, there are still people out there that don't even know what in the hell HGTV is.
I agree that although you have a post history here that reveals a lot of personal information that nobody else should have posted a link to your listing in this particular thread, but the truth is that information is already available here to anyone who does a simple search of your post history, and you posted it originally, so it is fair game.
Having said that, we all should be more circumspect about what we post here, myself included, if privacy is a concern. I noticed that on your profile page you have given out certain facts about yourself; maybe you should delete that if you are concerned about privacy? I left mine blank.
Also, looking back over your older posts, it is obvious that you have tried to sell this house before, and you mentioned 5 years ago, evidently in response to someone who asked about the 1/2 bath, that it would not be physically possible to expand it (one of my questions on this thread), and you also mentioned that when you tried to sell the house in 2009 and 2010 that your chief competition was homes with 2 or 2.5 baths (again what I conjectured as a possible problem in selling the house). I have taken some heat from a poster on this thread for asking about the bath situation and how it might be affecting your ability to sell the house, but clearly it was and still is a factor, right?
And because of the bath problem you are probably going to have to show the house to more buyers, even if you have priced it right, before you will find one who can overlook the bath deficiency, so my best advice is to devise a simpler pre-showing prep plan, spending as little time as possible straightening up the house, since that is the part of your exasperation you can control (you can't control what buyers think, or their feedback, so I wouldn't even ask for it anymore).
Anyway, good luck with the sale.
I had not seen any posts from 5 years ago but concur if the homes in the area are two baths or more that could be an issue.
Also the zillow listing says TWO baths so that may be why she is getting traffic that is then suprised at the 1.5 bath
Wow... it's a 4 BR, 1.5 Bath? That's a pretty terrible BR/BA ratio!
I can imagine larger families being attracted to the home, only to be repelled by that particular problem. You'd have to find a couple or small/new family that wouldn't be too distressed about that or else would be fine with converting a bedroom into a bath.
Sidenote - Property Taxes in Jersey are EXPENSIVE! 7k for a house assessed at 119?!
Thanks for the nice comments on the house. The way you see it in the photos is how we prep it for showings, so you can see we really pride ourselves on making it look very clean, and staged (to the best of our ability).
I am so glad that someone here pointed out it is listed incorrectly as having 2 bathrooms. I have immediately contacted our realtor and asked her to correct that. It is odd because the MLS listing is correct but everywhere it is listed is incorrect. Our realtor says she will make sure the error is corrected. We definitely do NOT want to mislead people.
Yes, the bed/bath configuration is a challenge. The house is very spacious. Not only does it have 4 bedrooms, but it also has 2 bonus rooms on the third floor which could be made into bedrooms. Perfect for a large or growing family, but the bathroom situation is an issue.
For various reasons, adding a bathroom, or enlarging the powder room is un-doable for us at this time, so those options are off the table. We just have to hope for a buyer who either is like us....small family that likes a lot of space but doesn't need many baths, or a regular sized family who is willing to add a bathroom.
The only real feedback is a contract. I was a broker for over 27 years. Feedback is just that...opinion and sometmes as was said here previously, buyers like the style or curb appeal of your home and are looking at it to indeed see if they could add a bath somewhere, etc. Obviously, you need to adjust your price once again.
Angiebuttercup, I wish it was that easy. No matter how clean we try to keep it, because we have cats, the area rugs get hairy and all need to be vacuumed. The kitchen floor ALWAYS needs to be swept and mopped (again, thanks to the cats), the litter boxes have to be scooped so there's no smell in the house, the kitchen counters have to be wiped down, the beds have to be made, the furniture has to be dusted (most days), the bathroom sink area has to be wiped down, any laundry that was done has to be put away, if we've eaten/cooked anything, we have to make sure all the dishes are clean and away or empty the dishwasher, vacuum the furniture (hair/cats), lock up valuables like jewelry, adjust all the blinds, turn on all the lights. Hard to keep up with all of this throughout the day, since we work.
This may be your problem right here. Because of your cats, you have to vacuum all the floors, area rugs, and furniture... A quick fifteen minute run through won't do it.
Plus, even if you scoop out the cat box, there is a good chance that your home still smells like cats. This is a huge turnoff to many. Maybe potential buyers don't tell the realtor that they don't like the home because it smells like cats. Maybe they don't even put their finger on it. But it's there.
You likely have grown used to the odor, but I can assure you that others haven't. When I walk into a home that smells like cats, I don't stick around long enough to get comfortable
I would encourage you to come up with somewhere else for the cats while your home is on the market. I realize it would be uncomfortable for them to stay with friends, relatives, or perhaps someone who boards animals in their home. But if you are serious about selling your house, I would urge you to consider it.
Then clean the carpets, etc. to get rid of the odor.
Apparently, there is no changing the 1.5 bathroom situation. (Changing the information on Zillow might be useful as you are likely attracting people who think your home meets their minimum qualifications.) Your kitchen seems fine to me, though I'd ditch the mismatched rugs.
As you posted, you fell in love with this charm and solidness of this home. Someone else will as well. Your job is to make it as easy as possible for them to do it.
Thanks for the nice comments on the house. The way you see it in the photos is how we prep it for showings, so you can see we really pride ourselves on making it look very clean, and staged (to the best of our ability).
I am so glad that someone here pointed out it is listed incorrectly as having 2 bathrooms. I have immediately contacted our realtor and asked her to correct that. It is odd because the MLS listing is correct but everywhere it is listed is incorrect. Our realtor says she will make sure the error is corrected. We definitely do NOT want to mislead people.
Yes, the bed/bath configuration is a challenge. The house is very spacious. Not only does it have 4 bedrooms, but it also has 2 bonus rooms on the third floor which could be made into bedrooms. Perfect for a large or growing family, but the bathroom situation is an issue.
For various reasons, adding a bathroom, or enlarging the powder room is un-doable for us at this time, so those options are off the table. We just have to hope for a buyer who either is like us....small family that likes a lot of space but doesn't need many baths, or a regular sized family who is willing to add a bathroom.
So it can be done? There is no stumbling block, walls stairs etc for buyer to add another if they want too.
Not a realtor, not familiar with Cherry Hill area as I'm in North Jersey but for what that house has to offer, the detached 2 car garage, bonus rooms on third floor..in my unprofessional opinion I don't find anything wrong at all with your pricing.
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