There is no magic formula to sell a home. There are however, many things that can sabotage the potential for a successful selling. Here are 7 of the most common ways that sellers make mistakes when listing their homes.

#1 Picking the Wrong Agent

Finding a real estate agent isn’t as easy as looking one up in your area. Sellers who randomly pick a Realtor without doing their homework first, are headed into a potentially problematic selling experience.

A successful real estate agent is a combination of many things. Being knowledgable about the local area and comparable homes is one important factor. Another important factor is how quickly they sell their listed homes. A real estate agent should have their sellers best interest in mind with all decisions.

Bill Gassett from Max Real Estate Exposure writes about some important things to look into when picking the right Realtor.

#2 Setting an Unrealistic Listing Price

This mistake can go hand in hand with picking the wrong Realtor. An honest and knowledgeable Realtor will be able to correctly price your home to sell. Valuing your house too high can decrease your buyer interest and undervaluing your home can prevent you from making the most money off of your investment. Having a fair and accurate listing price can make or break the success of your home sale.

#3 Selling With Clutter

No matter what your situation is, in order to give your home a great representation during showings, you must declutter! Store away a good majority of your personal things. Show off your kitchen counters by keeping them cleared. If you have children, stow away a large amount of their toys until after the move.

The goal with reducing clutter is to open up the home and make it more spacious while letting the best features of it shine through. Take a look at these tips to make your home feel more spacious.

#4 Forgetting Your Home’s Exterior

A common mistake with sellers is to focus so much energy on updating the inside of the home that they forget about the outside. The exterior of your home is the first thing people will see as they pull up to your home. If they grass is over grown, the landscape is patchy and the paint is chipping, it does not give a very good first impression of your home.

Improve your curb appeal. Spruce up the landscaping by adding some colorful flowers. Pressure wash the siding on your home. Repaint shutters and porches. These are all examples of ways to freshen up the look of your home and gain the attention of buyers!

#5 Being Your Own Photographer

iPhones cameras are handy for many things but not for real estate photography. Having a professional Realtor or photographer take photos of your home is essential in making a good impression for online listings. When buyers look at online listings, the first thing they will tend to look at are the photos.

The right angles and lighting can make all the difference in the world. With the right techniques, real estate photography can bring out the best features in your home and make it stand out among the competition.

#6 Forgetting the Importance of Home Staging

Although giving your home a good deep cleaning and decluttering session is important during the home selling process, home staging is another critical factor. When sellers decide to forgo home staging, they also forgo the opportunity for buyers to be able to fully visualize themselves living in your home.

That guest room you turned into a craft room? Returning the room to it’s original guest room state is better to appeal to more buyers. Furniture can be moved around and laid out differently to maximize the efficiency of the room and the flow of traffic. There are many different ways that home staging can give your home the best potential to sell that it is almost hard to ignore!

Tina Israelson, Orlando Realtor, writes about the importance of home staging when selling your home!

#7 Not Disclosing

All homes have at least one thing that sellers would prefer not to announce to buyers. As the saying goes, “honesty is the best policy.” Whether it is a small pipe leak or a history of a home fire, sellers must be upfront with buyers about the homes past in the sellers disclosure. In most cases the buyer will hire an inspector to go through the house. It is far better that a buyer find out from the seller a problem with the home rather than them finding out from the home inspector.

Other Resources

• 5 Fail Proof First Time Home Seller Tips – Kyle Hiscock
• 7 Awesome Tips to Accurately Price Your Home – David R. Millar
• Don’t Make These Mistakes When Selling Your Home – Deb Rhodes
• 8 Costly Home Seller Mistakes – Realtor.com
• Preparing Children’s Rooms for Showings – Teresa Cowart
• House Not Selling? Try These Tips! – Teresa Cowart

More Articles for Home Buyers 
More Articles for Home Sellers

Thanks for reading my blog! It is my goal as your full service real estate Realtor specializing in the Richmond Hill, Savannah, Pooler, and Hinesville – Georgia areas, to provide you with exceptional service at all times. My promise to you is to openly and honestly answer all your questions, help you navigate through the process and to make myself available to you day and night. I work for you and you are my priority. My local expertise and extensive real estate training and experience will benefit you whether you are serious about buying or selling a home at this time, or are a returning client checking out the many homeowner resources I offer. I am a “real” person and my reputation depends on every client, every deal, every day. I LOVE my job and it shows! You can also connect with me on my Facebook Page and/or Google Plus for area info and events, things to do, real estate news, home ownership tips, tips for both buyers and sellers, and so much more! I’m also on Pinterest!