1. Inadequate price
Overvaluing a property and putting it up for sale above the market price is one of the most common mistakes owners make. In this sense, Patricia León, RE / MAX Abad (Huelva) associate agent, explains that sellers, who are not familiar with real prices, “tend to have a fairly subjective price for their property”, which varies depending on aspects that they consider “important”. In his opinion, these elements must be included when determining the final amount of the sale, although it is a price that “does not usually reflect the reality of the market price”, so the owners end up modifying it.
The same opinion is shown by Emiliano Bermúdez, deputy general manager of donpiso, for whom given “the current good market situation”, more often than it should be, a bad price becomes “the main reason why sell a property within a reasonable period of time ”. “Any seller who intends to complete a transaction in a tight period should be advised by the professionals and not try to speculate on the value of his home,” he advises.
2. Location
Populations with little demand, housing in small municipalities or without services, infrastructure and communication. The place where a property is located always plays an important role in the demand for a specific apartment or house. In this regard, Bermúdez clarifies that “while in some areas assets take a few weeks to be sold, in others the sale can take several months.” Despite this, from his point of view a property should not be marked as “unsaleable” for this reason alone, since he considers that “not all home buyers seek the same characteristics for their home.”
For her part, Asun Tello, interior designer, home stager and real estate consultant, advises owners to “set a sale price according to the location”, a decision that will not delay their desire to carry out the sale and purchase transaction. In parallel, it ensures that “there is demand for each location”, so it recommends that sellers be “realistic” and do not try to value “a property located in Tetuán at the price of another located in Chueca”, since in this way “yes it will be unsaleable ”.
3. Special features
Special buildings, such as excessively large or small-sized homes, poorly laid out flats or those lacking some element, such as the kitchen; they tend to generate more delays in the buying and selling process. Hence, from donpiso they consider that the owners should be “aware” of the type of real estate asset they are trying to get rid of, as well as “the approximate time that this process may take”, generally more extensive than when it comes to a home. kind.
4. State of conservation
The state of conservation of the property to be sold always influences the completion of the operation. To the point, in the case of those that require reforms and rehabilitation “of not selling them or having to lower their price below their value,” says Tello. That is why this expert recommends that owners “do their homework on time” and improve the condition of the home before putting it up for sale. “Losing the opportunity to sell a good at the best possible price seems to me to be a waste of money,” she says.
Between reforming or rehabilitating, Tello favors the second option, because although it involves a greater investment for the owner, “he spends less than the reduction he would have to make” if he sold the property in poor condition. In this sense, she encourages sellers to invest in rehabilitation, since “there are more buyers fleeing the works than those who want to reform.” In addition, she anticipates that only 10% of buyers want to buy and reform and then invest “making a profit with it, so they will negotiate at the maximum.”
5. Decor
The aesthetics that a property presents to potential buyers is a fundamental element to lighten its sale. For this to occur, RE / MAX recommends depersonalising it, “and that the client, when he arrives, feels that it can be his home”. Specifically, in this company they look for an appearance “simple, linear, with light and pleasant tones, that envelops the house in warmth”. Despite this, he acknowledges that the owners find it difficult to carry out these changes, since “it is not pleasant for anyone to sell their memories and experiences.”
Another aspect that arises when assessing the “non-closure” of the operation is to what extent the existence or not of furniture in the property influences the client’s decision and what it is like. In this regard, from they advise analysing the client’s profile. Thus, Raj affirms that if it is the buyer’s first home, and he does not have much budget to redecorate, “perhaps he is interested in it coming furnished.” However, they remember that a large part of the current domestic demand is for replacement, which is why the buyer already has a series of furniture “that he possibly will use in the new one.” Hence, in these cases, the most preferable thing for sellers is to show the empty property.
6. Loads on the property
If a home presents charges, whether they are of a mortgage, historical or hereditary nature, it can become an unsaleable property for its owners. In this sense, from donpiso they emphasize that the incidence of the charges is more relevant “the higher they are”, although they defend that the parties involved in the operation “can reach agreements on the final amount, including them”. “One possibility would be that either the seller makes the payments before selling it or includes the charges in the total sale price, lowering it,” says Bermúdez.
In this regard, Tello insists having seen “how practically closed sale operations have fallen due to this issue”, since “nobody wants to take care of debts or problems.” As a solution, he advises not to put a property up for sale “until everything is solved and up to date in the Property Registry”, since only through this means it “facilitates and saves time for those involved”.
7. Wrong media
The media used to sell a property can also work against the closing the operation and delay it. In this sense, explains that “any media in which potential home buyers are not present will be inappropriate.” On the contrary, he defends that real estate portals, social networks and platforms enabled by real estate brokerage companies “are the ones with the greatest visibility and effectiveness” for the sale of a home.
