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14/01/19
Selling

5 mistakes to avoid when selling your home

All homes are individual but that doesn't mean there aren't a host of common mistakes made by people selling their properties.

Whether the cost is financial or simply time you don't have, avoiding these mistakes can help you sell your home quicker and get a foot on that next rung of the property ladder.

Here are the most common mistakes we see from sellers here at Parkers...


1. Overpricing your home

Even though you are trying to sell it, you'll almost certainly have a level of affection with your home. You'll certainly think everything you have done to make it look and feel fantastic is great.

But does that mean it's worth more than every other house in the street? Not always.

Try to leave your emotional attachment to the property to one side when considering its value. Be realistic and ensure it's asking price is relative to other properties nearby.

Most importantly, speak to your estate agent and take their advice and guidance on board. They know what to look for when valuing a home and know the area and the market, while also having a passion to sell your home for the best price.


2. Using amateur photos of your property

This is where choosing the right estate agent is vital. The first thing your potential buyers see, whether that's in the estate agent window or on an online portal, is a picture of your property.

If that image is dull, uninteresting, blurry and poorly lit, there's a strong chance they will walk or scroll straight past it.

Taking professional pictures of your property is vital.

If you are marketing your home yourself, bring in a professional photographer. Your smart phone simply won't do the job.

And if you are using an estate agent, question them on the way they photograph properties and ask to see some previous examples of properties like yours they have marketed.


3. Over-personalising your home

While the family photos of holidays past help make your property a home, when it comes to selling it they can simply be distracting to buyers.

Equally, bright colours on the walls may be to your taste and reflect your personality, but a loud interior design will make it hard for buyers to visualise themselves living in your property.

Once you are committed to selling, tone down any bright walls with a neutral tone and remove personal clutter such as photos or canvases from your rooms.


4. Becoming emotional over offers

In the same way as overpricing your home can cost you, so can reacting with your heart to offers that don't (initially at least) match your valuation expectations.

Remember, offers are dependent on a number of factors: The buyer's own budget and position, the market conditions and your asking price can all affect how much people are willing to pay to buy your home.

Once an offer comes in, don't react right away. It might seem unacceptable but taking time to weigh up all the factors above can often result in a certain figure looking far more appealing after some thinking time.

Consider all offers with your head rather than your heart.


5. Ruling out 'early' offers

Sellers can often sway towards rejecting a good offer simply because it comes very early in the marketing process.

In the same way you should never become too emotional over offers, you should also ensure you consider early offers in the same way you would any other.

While the temptation is always to think, 'If I have got this offer after just one or two days there must be a higher offer out there if I don't accept it', it is not always the case.

In fact, you can often use the early stages of your home being for sale to get higher offers from buyers by explaining to them that it is very early in the process so their offer would need to be X amount...


If you are thinking about putting your home up for sale, get an instant valuation now to find out how much your property is worth.

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