Picture this: it’s the Fall of 2020, you’ve just ”won” a multiple offer scenario for your dream move up house, having beat 20 other buyers that also wanted this house, and you are finally ready to get your current home on the market. First question everyone asks: what do I need to do to my house to get it ready? Remember, this is the Fall of 2020. Everyone’s answer: NOTHING! Houses sell themselves these days! Just get it on the market and you will have buyers breaking down your door to offer hundred’s of thousands of dollars more than you are listed for!!! This is soooooooooooo easy!
Now, while that example is slightly facetious, it alludes to the general feeling towards the real estate market at the time that even the worst house in the world will sell in multiple offers with little to no work or preparation. And while that is false, a lot of people both in and out of the industry believed it.
In reality, not every house sold, not every house attracted multiple offers, and sellers were still required to prepare their house for marketing materials and to make the best impression possible on any interested buyers that walked through the door.
The reason I am painting this vivid word picture is that things are not quite the same out there in today’s market. Far fewer homes are selling for over list price or in multiple offers, and many more homes are not selling at all. There are many reasons for this, but here are some stats to back this up.
Average days to sell in London, currently 21. Pretty easy to understand, houses that sell take 3 weeks on average to get there. That number is actually down from Fall of 2022 and earlier this year, but is much higher than it was in 2021 (Average for all of 2021 was 11.5 days to sell).
Average days on market in London, currently 35. That number was between 17-20 for most of 2020 and 2021 meaning that homes are sitting on the market 50-100% longer than they were over the past 2 years. Also, because this number is considerably higher than the average days to sell, we know that there are a lot more listings on the market that are not selling.
Last but not least, my favourite stat: the Sales to New Listings Ratio, or SNLR. How many sales do we have for every 100 new listings. Last month, that number was 46.9%. For most of 2020 and 2021, that number was 80-110%. This really drives home the point that it is much harder to sell a home right now than it was in the previous 2-3 years. An SNLR below 60% points to a balanced market, and SNLR below 40% points to a buyer’s market wherein only the cream of the crop listings are sold.
It is now more important than ever to do everything possible to prepare your home for market. That extra week of work is almost mandatory right now if you want a successful sale and there can be no stone left unturned when considering selling your (likely) biggest asset. So let’s re ask the question: what do I need to do in order to get my house ready for market?
Great question! Here are some of the biggest turnoffs that buyer’s experience when they walk into homes.
#1-Smells. While this might not be the first thing that a buyer experiences when they visit a home, a bad smell has far more of an impact on a buyer than anything they might experience visually. I have never had a client walk out of a house within 5 seconds based on something they saw, but I have had clients immediately turn tail and run out of homes based on a smell that greeted them upon entry.
In my experience, the biggest contributors to bad odours in a home are animals and smoke. So if you fit either of those categories, pay special attention to this before you list your home. Febreze wasn’t lying when they told us that we become blind to the smells in our own home, so ask a friend or your chosen representative to give you honest feedback about the smells in your home.
Bonus point: don’t go too far overboard in the other direction! Homes that are overly perfumed or scented are also a turnoff for a buyer and beg the question “what are they covering up?” If I see a ton of plug ins or diffusers, I always look just a little bit harder for any sign or source of a bad smell.
#2-Cleanliness. After smells, dirty homes get the next worst reaction. To me, this is something that no homeowner has an excuse for. It should be the easiest thing to clean your home before a complete stranger walks through the door to evaluate whether or not they want to fork over their hard earned dollars. I understand that everyone has different expectations when it comes to cleanliness, but this is the easiest thing to tackle on this list. Spend 3-4 hours yourself attacking every visible aspect of your home or hire somebody with a sharp eye and better tools to do it for you. Please, you owe it to yourself to put in the effort here.
A lot of buyers will question the condition of the rest of the home based on how clean the home is.
#3-Unkempt exteriors. Now this is usually the first thing that can negatively impact a buyer. Upon approaching the home, buyers will begin to evaluate the condition of the home and the easiest thing to spot is an unkempt lawn or garden. Similar to above, if the exterior of the home is in shambles, they will assume the rest of the home is as well. Not only that, the first question they ask themselves is “how long am I going to have to spend to get this under control“.
Visually, I think that taking care of the exterior of your home has the most potential to positively impact an buyer and that’s why I put this at number three.
#4-Light. Dark homes are a turnoff, plain and simple. Nobody wants to live in what feels like a cave. However, this is also something that a lot of people don’t have control over based on things like the size of your windows, how close your neighbours are, or the trees around your house. There are some simple things that a home owner can do, to change all of that if your home is negatively impacted by any of the above.
Interior lights are number one. If you have a dark interior, either add lighting or change the bulbs to a brighter option. Also, make sure that they are on before a buyer enters the home.
Window treatments should not hinder whatever natural light is trying to get into the home. I prefer drapery to any roller shades or shutters because they can look high end with low investment, but are also easy to move completely out of the way of the window and optimize your natural lighting.
Awnings on the exterior of your home are 100% disposable. Why? Because they are permanent and you can’t move them or open them when you want to bring in more natural light. Again, opt for drapery or easily operable blinds to block sunlight when you don’t want it.
#5-Clutter. An overcrowded home will never show as well as a home that is carefully curated. Often times, less is more when it comes to furniture and decor and anything that is too personal is an automatic turnoff. Keep in mind that you want a buyer to linger in your home and imagine themselves living there. That is going to be very hard to do when your home is overfull with your personal belongings and family photos.
First thing you can do if you have an overcrowded home, establish what you will not be bringing to your next home and either sell it or throw it out. Easy start.
Next, take any other excessive items that you want to keep and put them in storage. Chances are that you are going to be storing some of your personal belongings during your move anyway, why not break an undesirable task into smaller, more manageable sessions? Done!
#6-Undisclosed deficiencies. Now, why did I say undisclosed deficiencies, and not simply deficiencies? Because deficiencies should either be disclosed or addressed by the homeowner. Undisclosed deficiencies are basically lying to any interested buyers and that’s the worst way to start any sort of transaction. So don’t be that person that tries to sneak something past a buyer, be honest or be action oriented and address anything that needs to be addressed in your home.
Deficiencies are wide ranging and sometimes impractical for a homeowner to do anything about. That’s why I didn’t include them in this list, it’s not an easily actionable item for most people to take on.
Those are my biggest turnoffs when it comes to in person viewings. These are the things to think about when preparing your home for sale and often times, it is best to consult a professional to help you take the appropriate steps before your home hits the internet.
What about when people view your home online? What kinds of turn offs might they experience? There are a few, but there is only one I want to mention right now because I think it is the worst thing somebody can do or allow when selling their home: cell phone photography.
Why is this the worst thing, probably worse than any of the things I mentioned above? Because there is no excuse for it and it has a massively negative impact on the sale of a home. When you choose a realtor to represent you and your home both in person and online, there is absolutely no reason that they should be taking photos of your house on their phone to then post online for the general public to see. If they insist that they are just as good as a professional or that it isn’t that big of a deal, massive red flag because they are either A) lying to you or B) not smart enough to know that what they are saying is false.
This is a hill that I am prepared to die on and something that I will continue to fight against in our industry until I am no longer able to. NO EXCUSES, BE A PROFESSIONAL!
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