5 Signs that a Seller is Foolish
With the housing market heating up in many parts of the country, it can be hard to find the bargain homes that were common in the Great Recession, when many sellers were desperate to unload their homes. Today, Sellers trying to get as much money as possible. Nonetheless, it’s still possible to get great deals from sellers who haven’t done their homework or who have let circumstances cloud their judgment. Here are 5 signs of a foolish seller.
Frequent Price Reductions
Smart sellers generally follow the rule of thumb that if they’re going to drop the price, they should reduce it enough to make a difference — not cut it a little here and a little there. Small price cuts every few weeks can be a sign that the sellers didn’t pay enough attention to pricing initially or aren’t listening to their agent, or worse still, the agent is inexperienced. You can tell if there have been frequent price reductions by having a buyer’s agent check the multiple-listing service, or MLS, in your area.
Too Long on the Market at a High Price
The flip side of the frequent price reducer is the seller who waits months to change the price. To see if a house has been on the market far longer than most other houses in the same area, have your agent check its days unsold in the local MLS. Compare that to the average figure in the area. If you know a home has sat unsold for a long time, stay firm with your offer. You never know: The sellers may finally see the reason.
No Online Photos
Most buyers today start their home search online, so a seller who doesn’t bother to post any pictures with a listing — or who posts bad photos — may be clueless about the property’s value. Unfortunately, sometimes the listing agent for the seller doesn’t understand how important these photos are.
The House Stinks
Many sellers get used to the smell of pets in their home and don’t realize how overwhelming the scent can be to potential buyers. These people are not thinking about how this affects their property. Mentioning the odor might alienate the sellers, but you could get a better deal by offering less than the asking price. Chances are, other buyers have noticed the stink, too.
House or Grounds not Kept Up
Letting a house or garden fall into disrepair is one of the most glaring signs of a foolish seller. If you’re the kind of buyer who doesn’t mind a fixer-upper, you could get a great price on a diamond in the rough. Over a period of time the market is improving, but the value of the home is going down, because the Seller has not tended to its needs.