Entice Homebuyers By Doing These Things To Sell Your Home Faster

Are you unknowingly doing these things to turn homebuyers off? 

Oftentimes, others see us more clearly than we see ourselves.

Our self-perception of how we are coming off to others may be different to how we are actually perceived. The same can be said for the things that we own. Take your home as an example. You love your home, or else you wouldn’t be living there. You’ve chosen this property with careful consideration to suit your lifestyle, invested both time and money in its furnishing and decor, and most importantly, you’ve created lasting memories there. The home in your eyes is as close to perfect as it can get. Maybe you don’t agree. Maybe you don’t like where you are living at the moment and feel that there’s room for an upgrade. The point we are trying to make here is that the majority of homeowners do feel that way. They have invested so much into their home that emotional attachments build up subconsciously, even when they are ready to let it go and put the home up for sale. Yet, when the home is listed and it sits on the market for weeks, sometimes months, with no one seemingly interested, it begs you to question how accurate your perception of perfection is. What is it about your home that is turning buyers off? You just can’t figure it out, and most home-sellers are in the same boat. It’s tormenting. 

If you find yourself stuck in this all too common scenario, you are faced with two choices. You can either complain and dwell on the fact that your home is not selling, or you can take a long hard objective look at it and figure out all the factors as to why it’s not selling. No property is perfect. There’s the good, the acceptable, and the bad qualities that come with every home. When you are able to accept this fact, you can then start making changes and improvements to sell your home faster. Instead of moping around, the best thing to do is to take action. Leave your emotions aside and evaluate all the possible reasons that could be impeding you from selling your home. Often, we cannot see the things that we are doing wrong and it takes other people telling us to give us a reality check. A wake-up call, if you will. So start by doing that. If you find yourself at this crossroad, start by asking the people who have viewed your home what they thought about it. What did they think were the best attributes of the home, and what do they think were the lesser qualities? Gather as much feedback as you can from everyone who views your home, and be thick-skinned enough to accept the feedback without getting defensive. 

Here’s the thing, your end goal is to sell the home and make your returns. Even if you don’t agree with the comments that potential buyers have to say about your home, that’s OK. You don’t need to agree with their opinions, you are simply doing market research to gauge consumer experience. It’s important to keep an open mind. If multiple potential buyers are saying the same things about your home, you should thank them. That’s wonderful because now you know the problem. The number one step is figuring out what the problem is, because only then can you strategize on the solution to fix the problem. The biggest mistake that sellers make is being too close-minded. They don’t want to hear all the things that are wrong with their home. They blindly protect their listed home like it's their baby. You cannot do that if your motivation is to sell the home fast. There’s no room for emotions in a business transaction. Selling property is a business transaction, and when it comes to selling — the customer is usually right. 

Think of it as data collection. Big brands do this, companies do this, and even schools do this. Brands send out customer surveys to figure out what is attracting customers — which are the top-selling products? Which are the worst? And why? Companies across industries collect data to fine-tune the business strategies. Schools even hand out surveys and feedback forms to understand their students’ needs - Which courses are the most attended? Which professors are the most popular? What courses need to be dropped due to lack of sign-ups? What are the students’ favourite things about a specific course? What are their least favourite things? It is through constant feedback and interactive engagement that we are able to make improvements as time progresses. This is a great practice to get used to if you are selling homes. You’ll want to collect specific feedback on your listed property so that you can make adjustments to change the things that are turning potential buyers off. Obviously, the factors that could be turning buyers off is very case-by-case, but there are a few common universal factors that are generally total turnoffs for homebuyers across the board.

In this article, we are going to talk about some of the most common turn-offs that are keeping you from selling your home as quickly as you would like. You probably are not even aware of these things, but hopefully reading this article will give you the tools to make the proper changes to your selling strategy. Homebuyers are looking for a transformative experience when they visit a home. They want to use all of their senses to determine whether this home is a good fit for them. How do they feel when they first walk in? Does it feel nice or uncomfortable? Does the home smell nice? Is it a pleasant space to be in? Can I envision myself living here? Of course, luxury mansions for sale are enticing, but will it be a good fit for you? 

Your goal is to give homebuyers a great experience from when they walk through your door to after they leave. What are things you can do to step up your game and make it the best home-viewing experience for potential buyers? Read on to find out. 

Easy Changes You Can Make To Selling Your Home Faster

Keep A Clean And Tidy Home

Cannot stress this point enough! If you want your home to interest buyers, you need to present it to them in its best possible condition. There is absolutely nothing appealing about a dirty, cluttered home that looks and smells like it hasn’t been cleaned for weeks. Dust collecting on the windowsills, oil on the kitchen counters, mountains of dirty dishes in the sink, toys scattered all over the floor, piles of dirty laundry thrown on the bed, mail and receipts sprawled out on the desk, mouldy toilets, stained bathtubs — all of these things are a huge negative and spells massive disaster. All of these things will give homebuyers the impression that you just don’t care. Either you don’t care to sell it, to maintain it in good condition or a combination of both. Clutter is distracting and unattractive. It will also make homebuyers question if you don’t have sufficient storage spaces to home all of your items. 

Before you show your home out to potential buyers, do a big decluttering day. Clean, wipe, sweep, mop, and tidy up everything. The home should look presentable at a showing and there is no better way to have homebuyers running out the door than to leave the home a big fat mess. Declutter strategically and systematically, starting with those areas that will interest most buyers when they inspect your home and put extra focus on the areas that they will do most of their living in. There is simply no good justification for an untidy home. If you don’t have time to do it yourself, hire a cleaner to help you out. We understand how overwhelming the home-selling process is so it’s completely OK to outsource the work if need be. You can also consider hiring a professional organizer. Yes, there really are people out there who do this for a living. A professional organizer can come into your home, look at your clutter objectively and make quick decisive actions to remove the excess and store the rest out of sight. 

You can’t really overdo it when it comes to cleaning — so make sure you clean, clean clean. Properties that look acceptable might not be enough, especially if you want to command top dollar. It needs to look its best. Extra attention should be given to living areas, kitchen, bathrooms and toilets. These are the most utilized spaces in a home, and you’d be surprised how many people use the bathroom as an inspection during a home-viewing. Not only is it nasty and unhygienic to have a dirty toilet, but it’s also embarrassing. First impressions are so important during home-viewings for potential buyers and the selling agent. 

A home that’s untidy will also give off an unpleasant, foul smell. Did you know that playing up to a person’s olfactory senses can actually help sell your home? There are articles and studies done on how incorporating fresh aroma into a space can help people feel more at home. The sense of can literally sway a potential homebuyer into making a purchase offer. When preparing a home for sale, you need to first remove any sources of bad odour. Bad smells can deter buyers and in extreme cases, even drive them straight out of your home. Bad odour can come from sources like spoiled food, dirty home appliances, unwashed clothes and shoes, cigarette smoke and mould, dusty air vents, pets and so on. First, take care of the root cause of the smells rather than simply masking the smell. Once you get rid of the bad odour, you can then replace the home with more pleasant smelling fragrances. Popular methods include — scented candles, incense, freshly baked goods, or nice smelling food. A word of caution here — make sure that you use scents that are not too strong. Scents that are too overpowering could also backfire and send your homebuyers straight out the door. Have you ever walked into a shop and walked straight back out because the fragrance inside was too overpowering for you to bear? It’s the same idea as selling a home. Scents that are too strong are distracting for buyers and can sway their ability to make a decision. Aim for neutral, clean-smelling scents.

Clean Up After Your Pets 

Adding on to the problem of smells, the top of buyers’ biggest turn-offs are pet odours. Even the most affectionate animal lovers don’t want to smell the foul odour from a pet. Have you ever walked into a home-showing completely distracted by the overpowering smell of the home seller’s pets? Again, there is nothing appealing about bad-smelling pets even if they look insanely adorable. Pet odour is hard to mask, and it shows that you don’t clean up after your pet — another negative point in the homebuyer’s eyes.

Another bigger issue with letting pets roam around during a home viewing is that:

1. Not everyone likes animals. Some people have actual phobias and are terrified of being anywhere near them.
2. It could trigger allergic reactions with people who have pet allergies from animal fur

You will be surprised how accustomed you get to your own pet’s smell when you live in close quarters with them 24/7. Even if you don’t smell it, other people who are visiting your home for the first time might. To be safe, you should get your carpets and furniture professionally steam cleaned to remove any animal smells, stains and fur. Dust and vacuum the entire home, especially in places where pet fur can get trapped — on the couch, room corners, in between furniture, underneath area rugs, etc. Have someone take your pets outside for a walk during the time the homebuyers are visiting. This way you can focus on selling the home to your buyers instead of trying to discipline your pets to keep them off of the homebuyers. 

Remember to clean up after your pets. Keep all pets, pet accessories and toys out of sight during home viewings.

Update The Hardware And The Software

Got outdated décor in the home? Get rid of it. The majority of homebuyers are easily frightened off by décor that is old and dated. Certain decor elements are an immediate turnoff. Homebuyers aren’t interested in spending even more time and money to update their new home. Renovation and remodelling are time-consuming and expensive. Do a tour of your home and update any hardware and software into the modern era. You can’t go too wrong with minimalism for aesthetics either. After all, less is more. 

If you have old, rickety kitchen appliances, brass doorknobs, creaky floorboards, peeling wallpaper or any of such things in the home, get rid of it and replace it with something more updated. These small improvements can be very budget-friendly but make a massive difference in the way your home looks and feels to potential homebuyers. 

Create A Neutral Canvas For Buyers 

This is something that can make or break a homebuyer's decision to put in an offer. How well can the buyers envision themselves living in your home? You want to create a neutral space, a blank canvas where they can transport themselves to living there. But that’s hard to do if you have distractions all over the place. If you have personal arts and crafts laid out all over the home, noisy colours everywhere, with banging music playing from the speakers, it is difficult for potential buyers to imagine living there. 

Start by depersonalizing your home to create more of a blank canvas to appeal to the buyers’ imagination. This doesn’t mean that you need to empty your home, it just means that you should remove any distracting or questionable décor and personal belongings. A home that is ready for viewing should reflect a neutral, universal taste. We’re talking neutral, earthy colours, monotones and aesthetically comfortable decor. Your aim is to create a clean, and professional look. A blank canvas will appeal to a much broader audience. Even if you are not a fan of neutral tones, the point is not to satisfy your own tastes — it’s to appeal to the generally accepted tastes of your potential homebuyers. It’s easier for buyers to envision personalizing your home to their own desires if you give them a blank canvas to work with. It may be difficult to depersonalize your home and remove everything that’s you, but you have to remember that it’s no longer going to be your home. Once it is listed, you must be prepared to say goodbye to the old and welcome in the new.

Does the home feel good?

As we have mentioned earlier, buyers are looking for an overall experience during the home-viewing. If they can’t experience your home at its optimal comfort levels, they won’t be assured that they will enjoy living there. Attention to detail is so important here. 

Is the property comfortable to walk around in? Is the temperature too hot or too cold? These might be deal-breakers as it will invite questions like — is there something wrong with the heater? Does the air-cooling system not work as it should? Is it always so stuffy in here? Will this property be expensive to cool down or heat up?

These are all important factors to consider. Remember, if you want to get purchase offers on your home, you need to make it a pleasant and enjoyable experience for homebuyers. 

Why is there no price?!

Fewer things are more frustrating to potential homebuyers than looking at a listed property with no mention of price. Your listing is the first thing potential buyers will see, and if they cannot gather the necessary details at first glance, they will look elsewhere. Unless your home is something so spectacular and unique that they decide to dig further, but that’s generally not the case. The lack of a price tag will have potential buyers questioning whether the property is so expensive that it is not listed. It’s a huge turnoff! 

Most homebuyers will not take the time to call to find out the price of a property if it is not already listed. People desire convenience, and you need to make it obvious to them. There needs to be a call to action. Don’t make your listing overly complicated. Just keep it simple with concise details. It’s not necessary to make the price a big mystery. Nobody wins from this being done. 

Final notes…

Avoid these common mistakes so that you don’t sabotage your home sale before you even start. The best thing to do is to put yourself in the shoes of the buyer.  What are the things that would turn you off as a homebuyer? 

Chances are you wouldn’t give it a second thought if the home lacked sufficient information, looked messy, dirty, and unkempt, and looked like it is falling apart. If these things turn you off, you can bet that it will turn other homebuyers off too!

Do you have any other tips for getting your home ready to sell faster? We would love to hear your comments!