Why is my house not selling?

Why is my house not selling? As a real estate professional I hear this all day long. Have you looked at all the factors? Here in the Park City, Utah real estate market we deal with some of the same issues the rest of the country does, but with a twist.

So, you have an agent, they have put it on the MLS. You have a sign, they put flyers in the box, maybe even an ad or two. You get showings, yet no offers and no sale. What is wrong? After all, your home is wonderful. Really, is it?

Here are a few issues that are overlooked here in Park City as well as other areas of the country:

1. You want your home sold, but you don't want to stop living your life while it is on the market. Get over it. Buyer's don't care what you want. If you want to sell it, get it ready. Put the toys away, pack away stuff you don't need this season, clean the carpets, put your interests on hold or out of sight .


2. Your home isn't in showing perfect condition, so you don't want to show it. Sure, you want to put your best foot forward, but things happen. Every Park City Realtor will tell you "We would rather show it dirty than not at all". Resort Realtors have a short window to show a prospective client a property. They are usually in town for a limited time and once they go, they may not come back with the same focus. How can they fall in love with your home if they can't get into see it?


3. If you have taken the price down so much from where you started, you can't justify putting money into fixing the little stuff. Wrong. You must. In today's market, Buyers have so many homes to choose from, why would they buy yours when there is deferred maintenance? Especially here in the Park City real estate market, most of the second home buyers are not looking for a long distance project.

Well, now we come to the last and most delicate of today's reasons your home is not selling.
Smell. Yes, smell. I cannot tell you how many homes I have shown in the most recent past that smell. Sometimes it is a general pet smell, sometimes a strong cooking smell, other times it is just a closed up musty smell. The worst is an overwhelming pet urine smell. Ask a friend or neighbor your trust to tell you what they smell in your home. Four times in the last 3 months I have walked a buyer in the door and right out because they did not want to even consider a home based on a strong odor.

Thanks for joining me today for a little bit of Park City Real Estate 101. Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or comments.