Selling a home is one of the biggest transactions in your lifetime. Selling your house can be both exciting and stressful, especially if it’s your first time. Regardless of why you decided to sell your home, there are a number of pitfalls you can easily fall into, making your home selling experience less than ideal. We’ve put together a list of the most common home selling mistakes people make so you can sell your home knowing you have your bases covered.

The consequences of a mistake can impact your finances and most importantly, your peace-of-mind. We buy and sell thousands of homes per month, providing sellers the stress-free journey and peace of mind. We understand the challenges many of our customers face, especially in slower markets.

These are some of the most common mistakes you should avoid when selling a home:

Home Selling Mistake # 1: Pricing the Home Incorrectly.

Pricing is the most important part of selling home faster. The single most important factor to consider when you’re selling a house is that you’ve priced it correctly. Setting the right asking price is key to successful sale. Remember the comparable market analysis you or your agent did when you bought your home to determine a fair offering price. Buyers will do the same for your home. So, as a seller, you should be one step ahead of them. You don’t want to overprice the house because you’re going to lose the freshness of the home’s appeal after the first two to three weeks of showings. Demand and interest wane after 21 days or so.

Overpriced homes generally don’t sell. Don’t worry too much about setting a price that’s on the low side because, in theory, this will generate multiple offers, create a bidding war, and bid the price up to the home’s true market value. In fact, underpricing your home can be a strategy to generate extra interest in your listing. And you can always refuse an offer that’s too low. Overpricing will stall you property in the market and you may end up selling your home at lower price.

Home Selling Mistake # 2: Failing to Prepare the Home for Sale.

If you’re in the market to sale your home, prepare it first. Improve your landscaping. Curb appeal is crucial to a good first impression. Clean the outside. Make repairs, remove clutter and depersonalize. When living in a house for any period, hidden problems tend to lurk beneath the surface until you try to sell it. These issues present themselves as an unnecessary and avoidable headache for you when you are under contract to sell your house. Inspect your home and do necessary repair before you put it in the market for sale. Improve curb appeal, paint if necessary, remove un-necessary items and prepare your home for sale. Failing to prepare your home for sale in a big mistake. You miss the opportunity to get the highest and best offer.

Home Selling Mistakes # 3: Not Underestimating the Costs of Selling.

Being able to predict how much you’ll receive for your home can be tricky, and it’s not an exact science. Understanding these costs can help you better prepare for what’s ahead. The total cost to sell a home can amount to much more than the 4-6% in agent commissions most people expect to pay. When you account for closing costs, repairs, and other concessions to the buyer, the costs of selling can be closer to 10% of the sale price. Minimize your expenses by finding an experienced Realtor with low-commission rates or a flat fee pay structure.

Home Selling Mistakes # 4: Not Hiring a Skilled Real Estate Agent.

This is a common mistake most home sellers make. The professional real estate agent you choose to work with can make the difference. A good real estate agent will be able to guide you through every step of the transaction. But if you’re working with someone who does not have the experience, knowledge and skills of real estate sales process, knowledge of real estate market, and negotiation skills, then you’re missing out on the chance to have a strong advocate in your side. Ask your friends and family members in the area for referrals. Talk to a few agents before choosing who you’re going to hire. The longer a home sits on the market the less its perceived value. So, it’s better to take the time early on to select the best real estate agent for the job instead of having to switch agents after your home has already been listed. Look for people skills and technical skills. below are the skills and qualities of real estate agents that actual home buyers and sellers said they valued:

• Honesty and integrity
• Knowledge of purchase process
• Responsiveness
• Knowledge of real estate market
• Communication skills
• Negotiation skills
• People skills and technical skills

Home Selling Mistakes # 5: Hiring the Wrong Real Estate Agent.

Buying or selling a home is no small feat, and it’s one of the biggest financial decisions of your life. That’s why finding a real estate agent with experience and expertise to guide you through the process is key. Selecting the right real estate agent is an important part of home selling process. There are thousands of agents in the market. But getting the right agent is the key. There are many agents out there who will undercut the competition by seriously lowering their commission, in an attempt to win the listing mandate!

Reduced commission means reduced marketing resources available to assist in getting your home sold. The potential marketing tools that agent suggested he’ll be using, will be substantially less than what a full commission agent could offer as part of his marketing strategy of your property.

Home Selling Mistakes # 6: Setting an Unrealistic Price.

Determining the correct selling price of your home is extremely important factors if you want a timely sale at an optimal price. Listings get the most showings in the first 30 days of being on the market. If a home is priced too high, buyers may choose to ignore it or put it in a “wait and see category.” The longer the home sits unsold, though, the more negatively it is viewed. Buyers will think it must be overpriced or there is something wrong with the home. When your home is priced too high, you effectively screen yourself out of the searches. Your home will not come in online search if it’s overpriced. You won’t get offers, you lose credibility, you squander the early days and your house gets stale. The ideal scenario is that you price to sell in the first two weeks, you stand to get multiple offers. If comparable home sales over the last six months and current market conditions don’t support your sales price, then your buyer won’t get the mortgage.

Home Selling Mistakes # 7: Only Considering the Highest Offer.

We all know, cash is king, so it’s no surprise that an “all cash” offer will likely win a bidding war. The highest offer is not always the best offer. There are many factors to consider while accepting an offer. In addition to price, that should be carefully considered when deciding which offer to accept, and which to reject. Consider financing, the amount of earnest money deposit (EMD), contingencies, closing timeline, and the bigger picture of the deal.

A bigger earnest money deposit (EMD) is a proof that a buyer is serious about buying your property. If a buyer has the cash, they may sweeten their offer by assuring that if the appraisal comes in lower than the purchase price, they’ll either pay the difference (up to a set price) or offer a certain amount to help bridge the gap. An offer that caters to your timeline needs will be more desirable. Only considering the highest offer is not a wise decision. Get help from your experienced real estate agent in evaluating all offer seriously. The highest offer isn’t always the best offer given your needs.

Home Selling Mistakes # 8: Hiding Major Repairs. Not Telling the Truth About Your Home.

The seller’s disclosure of material facts is an extremely important part of a real estate transaction. And not only is it important; disclosure is required by most states in the United States. Therefore, you should know what should be disclosed and what impact disclosure has on the transaction whether you are a home buyer or seller. As a seller, you are required to adhere to the disclosure statutes where your property is for sale. You should also seriously consider disclosing other details that are not required by law but that are questionable concerns. The reason?  What you don’t disclose just might create future problems for you.

When selling your home don’t try to keep the home’s past history a secret. A home inspector could locate the problem(s) later into negotiations or the past history could affect the safety of the future homeowners. Be honest and take care of all repairs before attempting to sell your home.

Home Selling Mistakes # 9: Ignoring Major Repairs and Making Costly Renovations.

A long list of maintenance issues can turn buyers off and potentially decrease the value of your home. More importantly, buyers expect the condition of your home to match the property listing description. Consider prioritizing major repairs, particularly those that are likely to turn up during a home inspection. Many buyers will require an inspection before closing. Look for items that are broken, in poor condition, or can affect the safety, structure, or functionality of the home.

Home Selling Mistakes # 10: Not Preparing your Home for Sale.

Before you put your house on the market, improving your home’s presentation. Welcome buyers, make it sparkle, start packing, fix the small stuff, paint wisely, don’t forget the back. Buyers love to see home that are cleaner, less cluttered, and more well-decorated. The better it is, the more appeal it can have. Clutter can make your home appear smaller and make it more difficult for buyers to picture themselves living in your home. That’s why staged homes sell 75% faster and for 25% more than those that aren’t staged. Don’t forget about curb appeal. “Your home’s exterior is like the cover of a book, setting the stage for what’s inside.” If a home is disorganized or appears in disrepair, buyers may be more skeptical about its condition when they’re considering an offer. Consider hiring a professional cleaning company to take care of all of it for you.

Not Being Flexible with Showing & Limiting Showings.

One of the more common home selling mistakes is not letting buyers in when they request a showing. There are many reasons why your house isn’t getting showings. In almost every case, the reason your house isn’t getting showings is because it’s priced too high. If your house was cluttered when photos were taken, or the images turned out dark, the house’s first impression online, in the newspaper or on flyers is unwelcoming. Leaving your house in short order and always keeping it show ready is difficult, especially for busy families with young children and pets.

But if your house isn’t getting showings and you truly want to sell, you need to be welcoming and flexible when it comes to granting showing access. If you want to sell your home in the shortest possible time for the most money, let the buyers come on their schedule! Sellers can also play a bigger role in the confirming/declining process by being granted access to the Showing Time mobile app by their agent. If you are not flexible in showing, it limits buyers’ access and less offers.

Making Your Real Estate Agent Accompany Showing.

Real Estate Agent accompanying showing is a debatable issue. For listings priced under $1,000,000, sometimes sellers want their listing agent to be present for showings. This is not a good idea. Most of the time, buyers and buyer agents want the liberty of experiencing your home by themselves so they can talk freely. But not all agents share that view. Some believe they’re obligated to attend showings.  Not everyone who agrees that agents shouldn’t be present for every showing offers their clients the same reasons for why that is.

Hoping for Too Much, Too Quickly.

Many home sellers expect the sales process to go through very quickly and painlessly. Real estate transaction is very complex and time consuming. It’s more complex, if financing is involved. The reality is that with such a complex transaction—typically involving a buyer having to get financing and regulatory requirements.

Paperwork may not go through as quickly as you expect. Deals can fall apart. Buyers can walk out of the transaction and back out. Inspections can show something you were completely unaware of—something you have to fix to get the sale. You need to prepare yourself for some frustrations.

Not Being Flexible About Negotiation.

When negotiating price and other factors with potential buyers, your personal emotions should remain out of it. Your home is for sale and soon someone else will own it. Remember it is now a commodity and should be considered as such. Real estate agents are professionals and have negotiation skills. Try to listen to your agent during negotiations.

Using Listing Photo That Look Bad.

In real estate, pictures speak thousand words – they need to say what your home is really worth. If you want to sell quickly, adding high-quality photo is important. In the digital age, photos make the real impression on potential buyers. About 85 percent of homebuyers and sellers said they wouldn’t even consider buying a property if its listing didn’t have a good photograph.

Research also shows that the quality of listing photos has a big impact on home sales. Homes with high quality photographs taken with a professional digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera get an average of 61 percent more page views than other properties at all price levels. They also have a 47 percent higher asking price per square foot and have “an increased likelihood of selling” when priced above $500,000.  Bad photo does not impress buyers and may stall home sale.

Selling When You Are Upside Down on Your Mortgage.

If you still owe a mortgage on your home, use a portion of your sale proceeds to pay off the remaining balance of your loan. But what if your property went down in value? What if you owe more than what it’s worth? This is referred to as being upside-down, underwater or having negative equity on your home. If you sell it, you still won’t make enough money to pay off your mortgage. Breaking even on your home sale is at least better, but it’s still not great.

If you’re in either situation, don’t sell unless you need to avoid bankruptcy or foreclosure. There are other ways to handle an underwater mortgage. But, usually, the best option is to stay in your home and work hard to build more equity before you sell.

More Home Selling Mistakes

These are some other home selling mistakes you should avoid when selling a home:

• Hiring a Family Member or Personal Friend
• Selling “For Sale by Owner (FSBO)”
• Remaining Emotionally Attached to Your Home
• Skimping on Aggressive Marketing
• Ignoring Your Home’s Appearance. Neglecting curb appeal.
• Not Depersonalizing the home
• Ignoring Your Financial Situation (Liens, mortgages etc.)
• Working alone without an experienced real estate agent.
• Waiting for the home selling season.
• Pricing too high.
• Refusing to make changes.
• Keeping the home clutter.
• Opting not to neutralize.
• Skipping major repairs.
• Cutting costs on photography.
• Not staging your home if the home if vacant
• Not considering closing costs.
• Taking Feedback Personally
• Hiding problems.
• Using poor listing photo
• Being unavailable.
• Being unwilling to negotiate.
• Letting your emotions get the best of you.
• Not being ready to sell.

Take Away

There are a many home-selling mistakes to beware of. And each mistake could cost you thousands of dollars. Need more advice? Check out our free Home Sellers Guide. You also need to make sure you have a pro in your side to help guide you through the entire home-selling process. That’s why you need Faruk. We make it easy for you to help you avoid these home-selling mistakes.

Find a Top Local Real Estate Agent for FREE!

If you’re selling or buying a home, Call Faruk Bhuiyan for a FREE, no obligation quote today! You’ll get proposals from Faruk and see how much you can save with his  commission offers. Your home selling journey will be a breeze.  Contact Faruk Today @ 562-213-8892.