Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think that picture you showed of your competition is a better photo than your home. Your exterior photo just does not flatter your home.
I have this problem with one of my current listings. My clients refused to do what I suggested to make their home more "photo appealing." They chose to drop price instead. It is my opinion that you need to make it as marketable as possible FIRST, and then drop price (assuming that you are priced correctly to begin with).
They still have trouble getting people in to look at the home. Most people are visual and they look at photos first and screen out. It HAS to look good online. You can't make the tiger photo, etc look good in a picture.
I think your house looks better than the other house. Some inexpensive fixes could include larger lighting on each side of the garage door (I like the black lantern-type lights), replacing the rocks with black mulch and adding some shurbs (flowering and non), about two feet high, and some flowers. I'd put a large shrub on the left side of the house right beside the open porch area. I liked the idea a PP had about the cafe set (even if you bought one at a yard sale and spray painted it white).
You need larger scale things to balance the garage area. But I think you can work it to draw the eye.
I also agree that the pictures are doing your house a disservice, and the staging will make it look really cute.
Your house is not unattractive. IMHO it's more like a diamond in the rough. It's obvious you took very good care of it.
The realtors that have done comps on my house say that it's priced right.
If it was priced right, you would have showings. You would have second showings. You would have an offer to negotiate.
I suspect those agents were either telling you what you wanted to hear or they do not understand your market. Heck, they may even have listings competing with your home and want you to stay at your price point, so that it helps sell their own listings.
I do a lot of trading. Sometimes I buy a stock that tanks. I can either do the "I am not going to give it away" thing and hold it, waiting for a bounce or I can accept that the market will not pay me what I paid for it and get rid of it, before it loses more value.
Most people are visual and they look at photos first andscreen out. It HAS to look good online. You can't make the tiger photo, etc look good in a picture.
Yep, The house I bought several months ago is a good example.
The house didn't even make it onto my initial list of houses to look at. It just didn't look that appealing in the pictures. Nothing horrible mind you, just a rather boring looking house.
The houses at the top of my list all had pictures that made we want to go see what they looked like 'up close and personal'. Even though I didn't buy any of those houses, the pictures at least got me in the door.
If I hadn't been tired and discouraged after looking at dozens of houses in a month, and if my agent hadn't prodded me with "what do you have to lose?" I never would have bothered with what I thought of as the blah house .
What do you know, it turned out to be a house that was just the right match for me. Once I was in the door I was hooked. I put an offer in the next morning.
Yep, The house I bought several months ago is a good example.
The house didn't even make it onto my initial list of houses to look at. It just didn't look that appealing in the pictures. Nothing horrible mind you, just a rather boring looking house.
The houses at the top of my list all had pictures that made we want to go see what they looked like 'up close and personal'. Even though I didn't buy any of those houses, the pictures at least got me in the door.
If I hadn't been tired and discouraged after looking at dozens of houses in a month, and if my agent hadn't prodded me with "what do you have to lose?" I never would have bothered with what I thought of as the blah house .
What do you know, it turned out to be a house that was just the right match for me. Once I was in the door I was hooked. I put an offer in the next morning.
I had that happen last year with a buyer. They ruled out a house because the exterior was lavender and the landscaping was not in great shape. The interior photos did not do the home justice. I asked them to look at it several times and they passed calling it the "ugly bushes house."
After going through everything else, they went in it with me and bought it. I drove by it today and the ugly bushes were all pulled out over the weekend with our nice weather.
You all really have me thinking. I'm going to work on taking all the pictures down, pick the rug up, change the curtains and comforters, get rid of the headboard, box up all the knick knacks and move some furniture around. Hopefully this will stage things better and then I can get some better photos. I think things are picking up too, so hopefully that will bring more traffic.
You know, Becky, reading your thread has me doing some thinking about some "spring cleaning" too. I need to get rid of some stuff. I'm pretty decluttered but the furniture for this place is too big, I think. I should get some new stuff in here. I'm also going to get rid of all my pictures (I only have a few) but I'm going to take them down. I think I'm also going to get a professional photographer to take my pictures.
It's springtime and I'm feeling really good about it!!
I had that happen last year with a buyer. They ruled out a house because the exterior was lavender and the landscaping was not in great shape. The interior photos did not do the home justice. I asked them to look at it several times and they passed calling it the "ugly bushes house."
After going through everything else, they went in it with me and bought it. I drove by it today and the ugly bushes were all pulled out over the weekend with our nice weather.
Lousy photos...great house.
And this is the value of a local agent, who knows the inventory.
You all really have me thinking. I'm going to work on taking all the pictures down, pick the rug up, change the curtains and comforters, get rid of the headboard, box up all the knick knacks and move some furniture around. Hopefully this will stage things better and then I can get some better photos. I think things are picking up too, so hopefully that will bring more traffic.
From what you've said, you should seriously consider at least going to say JC Penney and looking at some bedding photos there, it will give you room ideas.
Is there any other way you can arrange the master? I wouldn't remove the headboard if there is another place for the bed, if that's the only spot for it, then yes I'd take it off. I would change out the bedding and use European shams as well as some regular pillows. I would also change out both shower curtains.
I would unclutter the kitchen, even the dish towels, anything above the cabinets. The picture over the window doesn't appear to fit. The picture with the table, remove the shelf & personal pics.
The bathroom, take the stuff off of the window ledge. Is that a toilet brush up there? Why don't you have some nice towels on the towel bar? The other bath, I'd totally remove that photo. Bathroom looks small. Remove that shelf behind the toilet.
The blue bedroom; if you keep that bedding, change the skirt to something not white. Change the curtains, remove everything off of the window ledge. Penneys has curtains that would work well with the bedding.
Too many personal pics. As a buyer I don't mind some and could probably look past it but you need to get them down and replace it with something else or nothing to get people to want to see your home. I agree that there really isn't anything inviting about any of the pics you posted.
The rooms appear small due to the type of camera used. Go online and google virtual tours, you can get one done usually from $100 to about $300 last I looked. They use a wide angle lens which will make the house look bigger.
I agree with whoever said your house looks like it's going to eat someone. I think that if you tone down the white around the garage door it would help. I also do not think the red walkway helps.
Good luck. Don't wait too long to make changes because you may end up on the market longer if your buying season is active right now.
FWIW, and this I forgot to mention - the agency you use, do they list on the MLS? Are you on realtor.com?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
