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Our house is currently on the market and we are feeling exasperated by something and I wanted to get some insight from realtors.
Our house is a beautiful, older house that does not have an updated kitchen or bathrooms, and we have one and a half baths. Our realtor went to the expense to hire a professional photographer who took very comprehensive (and clear) photos for our listing which show a lot of detail and it is clear from the photos that the kitchen and baths, while clean and attractive -are NOT updated. Our listing also clearly states that we have 1.5 baths.
What is exasperating us is the feedback we get from buyers and their realtors after the showing that the buyers really loved the house, or the house is very beautiful, but too much updating is needed, and they list the kitchen and bathrooms specifically. Or they will say "one and a half baths just isn't enough."
Because we spend close to 2 hours prepping for each showing (our house is meticulously clean, de-cluttered and staged), it is very frustrating to us to receive this kind of feedback because it feels like these realtors and buyers are wasting our time. If a buyer wants a house with a remodeled kitchen and baths, or wants more than 1.5 baths, why are they coming to look at our house in the first place? I feel like this is a waste of our time, as well as theirs.
I would love some insight on this because it's driving us crazy!!!
It is very common, I'm afraid. The only thing you can do is just accept it and go with the flow. If you start thinking about all the dumb things people do, you'll make yourself crazy.
In the case of 1.5 baths, they're probably taking a look to see if there's room for expansion (like taking some of the bedroom and hallway space to make into a second full bath).
I'm a buyer and that's the only reason why I'd look into a 1.5 bath. An out of date kitchen wouldn't bother me much, but then my price point is in the lower end of the spectrum.
Maybe your price is attracting the high rollers that expect certain things?
1. Buyers don't know exactly what they want. One way they find out is by looking at houses.
2. "Feedback" is of limited value. The realtor presses the prospective buyer why he doesn't want the house. Buyer says the first thing that comes to his mind. Maybe it's the real reason, maybe it's one of the reasons, maybe he didn't like your furniture and didn't feel comfortable saying so.
Our house isn't really a "high roller" house. It's not a starter home, but it's not a richy-rich place either. But even if a high roller was interested, I would think they wouldn't bother looking at a house that didn't have the things they wanted.
I've looked at houses that *might* be able to satisfy my needs, in the hopes of being wowed into overlooking the things I didn't like. My third house was one I was sure I wouldn't want, but the realtor talked me into visiting.
There's no reason it should take you 2 hours to prep for a showing. I had 2 kids under the age of 7 and a dog, and I could be out of the house, with it in a showing condition, in 15 minutes. This came in handy a few times when I got a last-minute call for a showing.
If your house is already decluttered, have a basket handy where you can toss in everything that was currently "out" and not put away. Then you can either store the basket in the garage, under a bed, in your car, etc.
I cleaned throughout the day - swept the floors after every meal, wiped counters down as soon as they were used, made sure the sinks were always empty and clean, and cleaned the toilets and wiped the bathtubs every night before bed.
With 15 minutes you should be able to grab all the loose stuff, sweep or Swiffer the floors that need it, and open all the blinds.
1. Buyers don't know exactly what they want. One way they find out is by looking at houses.
2. "Feedback" is of limited value. The realtor presses the prospective buyer why he doesn't want the house. Buyer says the first thing that comes to his mind. Maybe it's the real reason, maybe it's one of the reasons, maybe he didn't like your furniture and didn't feel comfortable saying so.
Interesting! Do they really think the furniture comes with the house? Craziness.
I hate to say this, but I've been one of those type buyers in the past. I know specifically what I want when I buy, but I've looked at possible contenders too.
RE: less than wanted bathrooms. Some people will look at 1.5 baths with the idea that maybe they could somehow enlarge the room to put in a tub or stall shower. So they'll want to see what is in adjoining walls, if there are closets that could be moved, etc. Often it can't be done, thus the house is " only one and half baths, sorry. "
Same with kitchens.- Sometimes pictures don't quite capture the layout or the scale of the room or how the kitchen fits with adjoining rooms. So people will look with the idea of maybe they could remodel, then decide that their ideas for the space is not workable.
Then there are the idiots. I have a young cousin currently looking for a home with her hubby. They have looked at least 40 houses over the past 8 weeks. They know exactly what they want. The houses they have looked at are not remotely in locations or types of homes or room counts that they want. So why are they looking at so many homes. They feel they have to " shop around". They would not be happy looking at the few suitable houses that will come on the market that would be viable options. " only three' - it's not enough- we want to see more " They feel they have to explore everything. I have no idea why their agent is putting up with them. He must be ready to throttle them by now.
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.
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