What do you do when you have a North Carolina real estate listing that just hasn’t sold? If you have a tough listing that keeps acquiring more and more days on market, it can be frustrating for both you and your seller clients. To help you out, we sat down with national real estate coach Sherri Johnson to get her advice on how to get a difficult listing sold. She recommends the following three strategies.
1. Mentally re-list the property
Sometimes you have to “mentally re-list” a difficult real estate listing, Johnson says. After time has gone by and the property has had its peak of showings, it can be helpful to “act like you just got the listing again,” Sherri advises. Think about what you can do to help your sellers realize they need to either make some updates to the home or lower the price.
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2. Manage the process carefully
It’s important to manage the process for sellers from the beginning, making sure that they have realistic expectations. If they want to sell their home as-is without making any updates, they may have to lower the price after 30 days on market. Or, if they want to be able to sell quickly or at a certain price point, they may have to invest in some home improvements.
Additionally, it’s a good idea to avoid using certain language. Instead of talking about getting the “highest price,” Sherri recommends using the term “fair market value.” Furthermore, she suggests saying things like, “This is the initial list price,” and, “We have an ambitious list price.” That way your sellers are mentally prepared to bring the price down, if needed, after a certain time period.
3. Don’t give up on a difficult listing
Once you’ve convinced your sellers to either make upgrades or change the list price, put the property through your marketing cycle again. “You may need to present a 60-day marketing plan or a 30-day marketing plan during the listing to keep it,” Sherri says.
“Don’t give up” on a difficult listing, she urges. “Know that you can manage the process for a seller to get their home sold successfully and get them to where they want to be.”
