The NY housing market can be unpredictable.
Increased interest rates coupled with the temperamental nature of the city’s real estate market have left many home sellers wondering which way to turn.
Although homeowners often bristle at the slightest market change, experts maintain that New York continues to remain a popular locale for home buyers.
If you are selling your house in Brooklyn, consider the following tips to streamline your selling experience and maximize your revenue.
There are many ways to sell a house fast in New York. In this guide, you will find everything you need to know to take advantage of the seller’s market and enchant your prospective buyers.
Is It Hard to Sell a House in Brooklyn?
The New York housing market is a complicated landscape. Some experts refer to unpredictable real estate markets as “tornado markets” because there is variability across home prices and time on the market.
Home values differ depending on the neighborhood, condition, market health, and other variables that are often difficult to track.
The average Brooklyn home spends between 90 and 152 days on the market. While Brooklyn homes typically sell for the listing price, the slow-selling process can be prohibitive for those seeking to move quickly.
There are several ways to get around a slow sale. You can contact cash home buyers in Brooklyn or follow the tips in this guide to improve your selling experience.
Why It Can Be Hard to Sell Your House Sometimes
According to realtors, there are several possible reasons your home isn’t selling.
First, your local market may not be favorable to sellers. A seller’s market is one in which competition is low, and buyers compete for housing.
Second, your home sale may stagnate due to location or asking price; Brooklyn neighborhoods are incredibly diverse and vary significantly from one to the next.
Use a Brooklyn neighborhood map to assess the quality of your neighborhood and average asking prices and make an informed comparison.
The state of your home also matters greatly when it comes to making a successful sale. You may need to upgrade, enhance your curb appeal, or declutter.
Lastly, there may be issues with your listing or real estate agent’s strategies. Consider upgrading your listing pictures, improving your open houses, or identifying different markets to target for your home sale.
Keep reading to identify your particular problem and make some quick fixes.
Asking Price is Too High.
If your asking price is unrealistic, buyers may ignore your listing.
If you ask for a higher price than other sellers, prospective buyers will forego your offer for another.
There are several reasons your price may be too high.
For example, you may have neglected to acknowledge certain critical features of your neighborhood, including local schools, crime, desirability, and existing home values.
Work closely with a realtor to examine these metrics to set a reasonable asking price. A skilled expert should provide you with enough information to establish a listing price that maximizes your profits without deterring potential buyers.
Use the following tips to set your asking price:
- Consider your location. Realtors consider Brooklyn as one of the most variable housing markets.
- Examine average home values in your area
- Account for your home’s condition. Consider damages, liabilities, legal obstructions, and renovations and repairs.
- Assess your competitors’ asking prices
Your Photos Aren’t Good Enough
Quality photographs are essential to making a quick and efficient home sale.
If your photos do not portray your home well, you may not make the positive first impression you need to execute the sale. On the other hand, a high-quality picture can make your property look like a brand-new house.
To optimize your property pictures, consider the following:
- Hire a professional photographer: While this option is not available to everyone, hiring an expert takes responsibility off your hands and ensures a professional outcome.
- Check out other listings: Look for other listings on real estate platforms like Zillow or the multiple listing service (MLS) to determine any crucial differences.
- Enhance curb appeal: The exterior of your house and property will determine your buyers’ first impression. Ensure that it meets your standard of excellence by landscaping or clearing clutter from your yard.
While marketing your home can be a hassle, it can determine the time your home remains on the market.
The House Looks Cluttered
According to research, clean and clutter-free homes sell the fastest.
To that end, it is essential that you extensively declutter and depersonalize your home to prepare it for sale.
Consider packing ahead of time, tossing outdated items, and removing furniture and art.
Additionally, you can use several helpful hacks to make your home look cleaner.
- Remove personal items: Depersonalizing your home is an essential factor in making a sale. Ensure you have removed all family photographs, knick-knacks, and individual objects (like clothing, shoes, and hobby supplies) from your home.
- Throw things away: Tossing as much as possible is a great way to declutter—and it will make your eventually moving process much smoother.
- Deep clean: Clean profoundly and frequently. A clean home will appear decluttered—even when it may not be.
- Swap colors for neutral tones: Wherever you can, switch our colorful fabrics or furniture for more neutral tones. This allows your prospective buyers to picture themselves in your home.
Viewings Aren’t Going Well
Maybe you aren’t exactly sure why your home isn’t selling.
One possibility is that your viewings are not going as planned. Your buyers may be disappointed at discrepancies between your pictures and your property.
Alternatively, you may have neglected to make several quick fixes to improve the buyer’s overall experience inside your home.
Use the tips below to ensure smooth and effective viewings.
- Ensure your listing matches your property: Viewings don’t go well because buyer expectations do not match reality. If your home has undisclosed issues or a death in its history, you may have a hard time selling it. Ensure that you have disclosed any damages or liabilities relative to your property. Hire a home inspector to identify any unknown issues.
- Set up an open house: Open houses are an effective way to entice buyers. Consider using a realty professional to help you with home staging.
- Nix bad smells: Lingering smells can be a turn-off for buyers. Even food-related smells or neutral smells can have a negative impact. Thoroughly clean all fabrics and neutralize smells by using dehumidifiers, scented plug-ins, and, the eternal favorite, a lemon in the garbage disposal.
- Introduce natural lighting: Natural lighting can revolutionize the appearance of your house. Consider swapping blackout curtains or blinds for gauzy, neutral panels.
The House Needs a Lick of Paint
Many buyers seek older homes—provided they are equipped with modern features.
The easiest and most efficient way to improve your home’s appearance is to repaint it. If your paint job is shoddy, outdated, or too bright and quirky, buyers may not bite.
Consider repainting the interior and exterior of your home in neutral colors to appeal to potential buyers better.
Take the following considerations into account.
- Do your photos reflect the current quality of the paint job? If your pictures are more than several months old, buyers may notice nicks or stains on the walls and neglect to show interest.
- Is your home painted in bright colors? Bright colors can have the same effect as personal items: they prevent buyers from picturing themselves in the house.
- Has your home been painted recently? If not, it’s best to repaint. Buyers want a house that looks new—even if it isn’t—and will pay top dollar for a stellar paint job.
You’re Targeting the Wrong Buyers
Marketing matters in the world of real estate.
If your agent caters to the wrong crowd, you may not get any takers. You must identify your target market ahead of time and make marketing choices accordingly.
You may need to switch realtors or contact a marketing professional.
Use the tips below to find your prospective buyers.
- Conduct a comparative market analysis: Find out who lives in your area, what they are paying to live there, and what drove them to the neighborhood.
- Go to local open houses: Check in on your competitors to see who is attending their open houses—you might be surprised. Compare potential buyers to those attending open houses in your own home.
- Hire a real estate professional: If your realtor is marketing to the wrong audience, you may need to hire a local expert who understands your area.
How to Sell a House Quickly in Brooklyn
There’s no better way to sell your home quickly than selling your house as-is. You may not get the most amount possible from the market or the money you could get if you staged your house, cleaned every corner possible and fixed everything. However, if you need the money desperately or need to move out for any other reason, finding cash home buyers is your top option.
Conclusion
Ultimately, selling a Brooklyn home can be difficult.
The bottom line: it doesn’t have to be.
If the process is overwhelming, consider selling your property to cash buyers in your area. Doing so will save you money, eliminating closing costs and commission fees.
We buy houses in NYC and surrounding areas, and using a cash home buyer will expedite the process and remove the stress of accommodating picky buyers.
Selling a house in Brooklyn doesn’t have to be complicated—contact us today for an offer.