Selling your home is not something that you do habitually – you may do it once every decade or even once in your lifetime. Because it’s not something people do regularly, many myths have cropped up around in real estate and the selling. Here are some of the more common myths about selling your home – demystified.
Myth 1: How the inside of my home looks is more important than how the outside looks.
This couldn’t be further from the truth.
Curb appeal is very powerful and an effective motivator for potential buyers. A lot of sellers invest so much time and money on interior renovation projects that can potentially improve the home’s return of investment. But that can all be wasted if you neglect the “curb appeal.” Curb appeal allows clients to create a snap positive judgment as soon as they round the corner, coming up to your driveway. If your home’s exterior is poorly kept, buyers may not even get out of the car. A clean, neatly trimmed front lawn, a fresh paint job (at least the front door), repairs of rotted wood and the placement of more stylish patio furniture are cost-effective ways that you can improve the curb appeal of your home.
Myth 2: A buyer can easily look past my home’s paint color.
While most homebuyers know that they can easily change the current paint inside of the home, many simply don’t want to. Most homeowners want to purchase a home they could easily move into without changing a lot. If your rooms are painted in bold, dark or unusual colors it’s wise to consider adding a fresh, neutral color coat of paint to those rooms. Even if a neutral color isn’t the preferred color of a potential buyer, it will at least enable them to look past color and focus on the rooms themselves. Neutral colors also allow photographed items to speak for itself. You do not want a “busy” wall that is distracting. And a fresh coat of paint makes a home “smell” newer or fresher.
Myth 3: For best return on investment, price your home high and this will leave you room to negotiate down, if necessary.
In many bargaining situations this can be an effective way to start. But in real estate it’s ineffective and, often, you may not even get an offer to negotiate.
If you price your home too high, you’ll risk turning off prospective buyers before they even see your home in person. Buyers have access to so much information now on the internet and apps; they can and will be able to tell if your home is priced abnormally higher than other homes in the neighborhood. Worse, when you overprice your home you place it in a category of other homes which are likely larger, in better condition or offer more amenities than yours. This will rule you out instead of get your home considered by buyers (and their agents).
A realistically priced home will, at least, give you room wiggle room for leveraging and negotiation. Your real estate agent will be able to price your home appropriately and make sure that it is comparable to the local market.
We have several other great ideas to help you get your home ready to sell, so contact us today!