Home on the market need opinions?

[kissme]

we worked on it for months...Any ideas to get it sold would be great other then giving it away! I am ready to start dumping $ into our forever home but this one has to sell first! Thank you all in advance. Removed link as requested even though the home is empty and no one lives there. Here is what the realtor says about the house.

Unique floor plan full of upgrades! Laminate wood floors throughout, stylish kitchen with white cabinets and dark granite, opens to living room and dining area. Set on a huge lot that backs to farm land - lots of privacy, on cul de sac. Master has full oversized bath. sprinkler system, vaulted ceilings, ceiling fans, abundant storage, one of only a few homes of this style in neighborhood, maintenance free vinyl siding, new roof and interior paint, new bathroom tile, refinished deck.

[magdala9]

I would rewrite the listing. "Unique" is usually code for odd. The upgrades are not readily visible so you should describe them. Spacious yard, quiet neighbor hood...light filled rooms .....
Good luck. In general, most neighborhoods are having a hard time selling.

[kissme]

around here upgrades are vinyl fences, tiled floors, granite counters, not basic cabinets, marble vanities instead of laminate. Trayed vault ceilings. This is the only house in the area with all these things on the mls at this price point and even at $10,000 more. I will give you the unique. I know she meant unique to the neighborhood but it could come off as an odd floorplan when in fact it is pretty basic and flows beautifully. What are considered upgrades where you come from?

[emoflamingo]

I would say "lovely open" floor plan instead of "unique" because it's not really that unique in the sense that other houses could have it -- it's not a custom floor plan. It's nice and open and airy, full of light, so I think those words would be better descriptors.

Unless you've been on the market for a long time and other houses are selling faster (and with similar prices), I wouldn't hurry just yet to dump more money into it. It looks nice as it is and there are plenty of upgrades so it doesn't need more. Are you getting positive feedback on showings? Do you have open houses? I mean, it could be because the house is empty and people can't 'see' how it's supposed to look with furniture in it (though I find that to be a plus because sometimes their stuff is too much clutter to look past in some situations).

[kissme]

Lol no it has been on the market 3 days...Just trying to make sure that I am not missing anything and that the colors I picked for paint doesnt give anyone that knee jerk I hate it reaction. I personally prefer empty. I found homes with stuff in them tend to hide problems. Stains, flaws ect or just be so overwhelmingly cluttered that you cant really see the house. But many buyers in the market are new and dont know any of that. I havent sold a house in years... All of them have been renovated and then rented. This one I would like to sell. Houses in this neighborhood tend to sell in less then 30 days. It is the cheapest by 30,000-60,000 in the neighborhood but also the smallest and a split. Most of the homes are large two storys with walkout basements. Or small ranches with large basements. Ill have to talk to her about the unique term.

[emoflamingo]

We've been on the market for almost a month now with one showing and one open house with 3 people coming in (the realtor website AND the newspaper messed up and didn't advertise it so that was all people driving past). As long as you're getting positive feedback from any showings, then I wouldn't change anything. Maybe buy a shower curtain for the shower, but that's the only thing I would do. Only because it's nice to have a shower curtain up when you move in and the rod is there anyways. The sellers of our current house took the rod, the plastic curtain AND the mirror in the bathroom.

[mnvegas]

I can't say I see anything "unique" about the floor plan so I would change that since it is misleading. Also not sure what upgrades you are referring to, can't really see anything that stands out. Laminate floors, white cabinets, mismatched appliances, standard bathroom. Are these upgrades compared to other homes in the area?

Don't get me wrong, I think it is a cute house, nice paint colors, shows clean and neat, great yard, just not what I would consider unique or upgraded.

[5thofjuly]

One thing I'd have the agent do is re-take (or take down) the picture of your backyard with the three trees. The angle it's at is a bad one, I think, because it makes it look like all of the water in the yard runs directly into your house, so one good hard rain and it'd flood. I'm sure that's not the case, but since the picture's not adding anything, just take it down.

[kissme]

No we dont live there so I didnt see any harm in posting the link. Anyway Yes the white cabinets are not painted but made that way with some kind of foil plastic coating stuff that is really easy to clean. They are considered an upgrade over plain oak or oak faced. The granite is an upgrade, the tile in the bathrooms replaced the vinyl. Appliances I was starting to change out as they wore out. But the only thing I got around to was the microwave. On the plus side it is a convection $800 microwave No we are the ONLY house in the neighborhood who doesnt use their sump pit. In fact ours is full of cobwebs. The neighbors next to us get all the water run off and have had their basement flood several times because of it. The trayed vault ceiling is not normal either and I paid a lot extra for it. The 2.5 car garage is finished with painted drywall and a ceiling. Though that isnt pictured. The 6 month old 30 year roof. Also it has weird upgrades that I wanted all around the house there are electric outlets and the deck has a gas connection for the grill. Stuff like that. I did talk to her about taking the term Unique out. As there is nothing odd about the plan itself. The picture with the 3 trees I believe is to show the lack of neighbors in the back and the length of the yard? Thank you so much for the suggestions! They are really helping.

I just realized we are having the college world series right now and that maybe effecting buyers or the lack there of? Everything seems to stop when it is here.

[kissme]

Jun 22, 2012 9:51:04 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

We've been on the market for almost a month now with one showing and one open house with 3 people coming in (the realtor website AND the newspaper messed up and didn't advertise it so that was all people driving past). As long as you're getting positive feedback from any showings, then I wouldn't change anything. Maybe buy a shower curtain for the shower, but that's the only thing I would do. Only because it's nice to have a shower curtain up when you move in and the rod is there anyways. The sellers of our current house took the rod, the plastic curtain AND the mirror in the bathroom.

They took the mirror and the rod?? Everything you see stays lol. I didnt put a curtain in because I thought it would look messy and take away from the clean, uncluttered feel I wanted.

[emoflamingo]

I would see if she could take another picture in the back yard, maybe from the other corner so you can see the deck AND the back fence.

[kissme]

here is an idea of what we are up against in this range www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68118/15938-Nottingham-Drive-73338259

www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68154/1618-N-150-Court-72413736

www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68118/15225-Locust-Street-75266860

www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68116/2315-N-167th-Avenue-75603320 This one I consider direct competition but everything is really tight in this plan and the neighborhood is mostly tiny multi levels, and splits. The plan when you get into it is like a very scaled down version of a large home. But it is comparable I think if I were in the market in this price range

[kissme]

Jun 22, 2012 13:01:29 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

I would see if she could take another picture in the back yard, maybe from the other corner so you can see the deck AND the back fence.

I will take that up with her if we dont get a showing by next weekend.

[craftyesq1]

The thing that really jumped out at me is that the siding in the first picture looks messed up. It looks messy and warped in a lot of places. I would ask the agent to take some pics in the evening when the sun isn't directly hitting the house.
I kind of loathe that type of siding though so maybe I am just overly finicky.

[emoflamingo]

Yes, they took EVERYTHING out of the bathroom. So when H moved in (the day before I moved in from my dorm), he had to rush to get a rod and curtain for the shower. They left their shitty polyester curtains in the other rooms though! I found something that worked as a mirror for awhile before I found the one we have now.

[kissme]

Lol yes I know what you mean and would you believe the siding on this house looks better then most in the neighborhood? We have really extreme temp changes here which is why I prefer vinyl. Wood doesnt take -20 in the winter to 110 in the summer really well plus humidity and the wind is epic.

[kissme]

Jun 22, 2012 13:40:55 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

Yes, they took EVERYTHING out of the bathroom. So when H moved in (the day before I moved in from my dorm), he had to rush to get a rod and curtain for the shower. They left their shitty polyester curtains in the other rooms though! I found something that worked as a mirror for awhile before I found the one we have now.

I would have complained unless they specifically said in the contract they were taking the mirror. Even then Why?? I cant even imagine what they were thinking. Was it a shortsale/forclosure?

[kaylie]

Jun 22, 2012 13:04:20 GMT -5 kissme said:

here is an idea of what we are up against in this range www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68118/15938-Nottingham-Drive-73338259

www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68154/1618-N-150-Court-72413736

www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68118/15225-Locust-Street-75266860

www.cbshome.com/homes-for-sale/NE/Omaha/68116/2315-N-167th-Avenue-75603320 This one I consider direct competition but everything is really tight in this plan and the neighborhood is mostly tiny multi levels, and splits. The plan when you get into it is like a very scaled down version of a large home. But it is comparable I think if I were in the market in this price range

I wouldn't consider the first two to be comps - they're in a higher-rated school district and there is a definite premium for that.

I agree that the last one is probably your biggest competition. Do you have a finished basement? If so, I'd include that since that's a huge feature. Your pictures are probably the best ones in that group and your house looks like it has much better natural light than the others.

[emoflamingo]

Jun 22, 2012 13:44:40 GMT -5 kissme said:

Jun 22, 2012 13:40:55 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

Yes, they took EVERYTHING out of the bathroom. So when H moved in (the day before I moved in from my dorm), he had to rush to get a rod and curtain for the shower. They left their shitty polyester curtains in the other rooms though! I found something that worked as a mirror for awhile before I found the one we have now.

I would have complained unless they specifically said in the contract they were taking the mirror. Even then Why?? I cant even imagine what they were thinking. Was it a shortsale/forclosure?

Nope! I can't remember what the mirror looked like but I probably would have replaced it anyways. They had awful taste. I'll be leaving everything out our place too. I'm sad about my bedroom curtain rods because I love them, but I don't want to replace them with something else in case they can't get used in our next house. I can always replace them!

[adhdfashion]

Jun 22, 2012 13:33:27 GMT -5 craftyesq1 said:

The thing that really jumped out at me is that the siding in the first picture looks messed up. It looks messy and warped in a lot of places. I would ask the agent to take some pics in the evening when the sun isn't directly hitting the house.
I kind of loathe that type of siding though so maybe I am just overly finicky.

That's the first thing I noticed. There appears to be some kinda bump in the siding on the front of the house, above the garage door between the two windows. Also the siding looks a bit dirty, maybe give it a good scrub. Also the garage door appears damaged in the pic as well.
Siding being messed up would be huge red flags for me as a buyer. Water damage is the pits to repair.

[emoflamingo]

Re: the picture of the front of the house. Did she process that picture in photoshop? Tell her to back away from the actions and just boost the color a little IF NECESSARY and call it a day. The picture of the front of our house annoys the crap out of me because the "professional photographer with 20 years experience" boosted the color and contrast so much it makes the house look dirty. (For the record, I'm going to talk to my realtor about it if our open house next weekend doesn't produce a lot of results. People may not even bother looking at it because the house front looks dirty and damaged in the picture.)

[kissme]

I agree with most of you which is why I wanted opinions. Please note I am not pretending it is the best home in the neighborhood. As I said before it is the cheapest and smallest. What is nice about it is that it doesnt live in a sea of small homes or splits. This is not a custom home nor what I would consider a large family home. It is a really nice starter or small family home. The siding was pressure washed so it isnt dirty. Maybe shadows in the picture? Its hard to find comparable homes for this one because the last time a split sold in this neighborhood was 5 years ago. People just dont sell them. When I first went shopping for a house my father said to buy the cheapest house in a well located neighborhood. That the one thing you cant change is the location. Anyway I thank you all again. I hadnt thought about the outside looking looking dirty or the garage door looking damaged. It was 98 degrees that day so I am wondering if it was warping from the heat. There is no water damage for sure I am curious now as I read all this what you expect in a house in this price range? I did a radius search on the mls to find comps that were within 2 miles. Ones that were priced close with 3 beds 2 baths and splits. Even though the last one I personally consider competition because it is about the same age, sqf, extra half bath, and in the neighborhood over. Personally I couldnt live in it because you are so squashed in three levels of "mini" space. This is great thank you all for taking the time.

[kissme]

Jun 22, 2012 14:11:49 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

Re: the picture of the front of the house. Did she process that picture in photoshop? Tell her to back away from the actions and just boost the color a little IF NECESSARY and call it a day. The picture of the front of our house annoys the crap out of me because the "professional photographer with 20 years experience" boosted the color and contrast so much it makes the house look dirty. (For the record, I'm going to talk to my realtor about it if our open house next weekend doesn't produce a lot of results. People may not even bother looking at it because the house front looks dirty and damaged in the picture.)

Would you be willing to post the picture you are talking about on your home so I can see? Honestly I dont know how they did the pictures. The photographer like yours is a pro and been "doing this forever".

[ssmjlm]

Was there originally an over the stove microwave? The fact that it's plugged in at counter level so you see the cord would concern me as a buyer.

[emoflamingo]

Jun 22, 2012 15:30:09 GMT -5 kissme said:

Jun 22, 2012 14:11:49 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

Re: the picture of the front of the house. Did she process that picture in photoshop? Tell her to back away from the actions and just boost the color a little IF NECESSARY and call it a day. The picture of the front of our house annoys the crap out of me because the "professional photographer with 20 years experience" boosted the color and contrast so much it makes the house look dirty. (For the record, I'm going to talk to my realtor about it if our open house next weekend doesn't produce a lot of results. People may not even bother looking at it because the house front looks dirty and damaged in the picture.)

Would you be willing to post the picture you are talking about on your home so I can see? Honestly I dont know how they did the pictures. The photographer like yours is a pro and been "doing this forever".

Here is what I took with my DLSR (no post processing, auto and no flash):


Here's what the photographer did:


ETA: These were taken within 20 minutes of each other? I finished prepping the house for pictures and he was there less than a half hour later, after I had taken the pictures, put the card in my H's laptop and started uploading them all to photobucket (which is where I sized down from the 44x66" picture it takes and added the watermark -- my computer with PS was packed up).

[kissme]

We have our first showing sceduled this weekend..I am breathing again Its been on the market 3 days so hopefully this is good.

[kissme]

Jun 22, 2012 15:48:40 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

Was there originally an over the stove microwave? The fact that it's plugged in at counter level so you see the cord would concern me as a buyer.

No we had it added. It was a simple hood vent before

[kissme]

Jun 22, 2012 15:55:03 GMT -5 emoflamingo said:

Jun 22, 2012 15:30:09 GMT -5 kissme said:

Would you be willing to post the picture you are talking about on your home so I can see? Honestly I dont know how they did the pictures. The photographer like yours is a pro and been "doing this forever".

Here is what I took with my DLSR (no post processing, auto and no flash):


Here's what the photographer did:


ETA: These were taken within 20 minutes of each other? I finished prepping the house for pictures and he was there less than a half hour later, after I had taken the pictures, put the card in my H's laptop and started uploading them all to photobucket (which is where I sized down from the 44x66" picture it takes and added the watermark -- my computer with PS was packed up).

I dont think it looks dirty or damaged? It looks like it was a cloudy day and reflected shadows but that would just be my thought But it is crazy that yours turned out so much better! I would be upset too

[ssmjlm]

Jun 22, 2012 16:21:40 GMT -5 kissme said:

Jun 22, 2012 15:48:40 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

Was there originally an over the stove microwave? The fact that it's plugged in at counter level so you see the cord would concern me as a buyer.

No we had it added. It was a simple hood vent before

That could be a problem, esp since the cord is there and with no backsplash it really sticks out.

[kissme]

Jun 22, 2012 16:42:40 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

Jun 22, 2012 16:21:40 GMT -5 kissme said:

No we had it added. It was a simple hood vent before

That could be a problem, esp since the cord is there and with no backsplash it really sticks out.

But do you think it is a deal breaker? I was going to have a backsplash put in but I realized it wouldnt look right after I had already had the extra "backsplash" panels put in with the granite. It looks cluttered and busy to do both imo