You have two homes for sale in the same neighborhood just ten doors down from each other. The homes are identical – same square footage, age, beds, baths, garage and lot size. The homes are priced $15,000 apart.
Which home would a buyer choose? “The cheaper one” most would say. Not so fast. In reality, the average buyer will choose the home that is presented the best, though not necessarily priced the best.
123 Maple St $345,000 The buyer arrives for a scheduled showing with their agent. The homeowner is not home for the showing, which allows the buyer to relax, enjoy and spend as much time as they like to explore the home and ask their agent questions.
From the entry foyer, the buyer sees a home filled with natural light and simply arranged furniture allowing for easy flow throughout the home. From the starting gate, the buyer sees many attractive areas to explore as they eagerly soak in the view…where to start?! The buyer can’t wait to see more…
Entering the open door to the master suite, the buyer is greeted with a gorgeous, classic master suite. The window treatments are wide open to allow natural light to soak in. The bedroom furniture is just perfectly sized for the space and is simply arranged to allow for plenty of free movement. Art and décor is lovingly placed just right. The master bath is sparkling clean, light and bright. The walk-in master closet is organized with easy access to everything inside and is easy to move around in. “Wow, this bedroom would be perfect for us, honey…”
Entering the living room, the buyer finds a contemporary living room set in a pleasing arrangement allowing for good flow, good conversation and good movie watching. Another light-filled, spacious room to enjoy, the buyer takes a seat – him on the loveseat, her on the club chair. The couple stays several minutes just chatting and looking wide-eyed around the room. She loves the easy, spacious movement throughout the living room and the natural light pouring in from the French doors.
The couple steps in to the modern, contemporary kitchen. Like the master bath, the kitchen is sparkling clean, light and bright. There is little to nothing on the kitchen counters, which makes it easy for the couple to envision preparing meals for their family in the home. The stainless steel appliances look like new they are so clean. She peeks inside the cabinets and fridge out of curiosity and finds them to be organized and clean as a whistle.
Entering the open doors to the secondary bedrooms, the couple finds a child’s bedroom and an office. Both spaces are filled with natural light and have easy flow in and around the room. Classic décor accents both rooms. He wants to recreate the look and spaciousness of the office; she thinks the child’s bedroom would be ideal for their new baby on the way.
456 Maple St $330,000 The buyer arrives for a scheduled showing with their agent. The homeowner is in the driveway washing his boat, the in-laws are inside watching a movie and the homeowner’s small child just went down for a nap.
From the entry foyer, the buyer is greeted with the in-laws watching an action flick on an enormous flat screen tv. A German Shepard leaps off the couch and bounds to the front door. The buyer stumbles over the dog, shoes, bags and clothing strewn about the entry foyer. There is a card table near the front door teetering under piles of bills, junk mail and dog toys. “Oh, hi there, folks…ah, sorry to bother you – we just want to take a quick look…”
The door to the master suite is shut…“Emily just went down for her nap” says the in-laws…“We’ll bring you in, but be very quiet”. The buyer steps in with the in-laws for just a moment to take a quick glance at the room. The master bedroom is completely dark; every window treatment is pulled tightly shut for the napping child. There is a mattress lying on the floor in front of the French doors covered in tousled sheets and blankets. The armoire is wide open, spilling with clothes and DVDs. There is a desk with an old computer shoved next to the window. The owner has five paint samples painted on the wall because his wife is deciding what looks best. The master bath looks like a public restroom in cleanliness; the buyer doesn’t step a foot inside. The walk-in master closest is inaccessible, overflowing with clothing, linen and piles of laundry.
Entering the darkened living room, the buyer finds six in-laws sprawled out over the furniture enjoying pizza and pop while engrossed in their action flick. The buyer immediately continues on to kitchen without stopping.
The couple steps in to the kitchen. Like the master bath, the kitchen is a dump. The house is only five years old, but the kitchen looks like a war zone. Every inch of counter space is covered in clutter, laundry, dirty dishes and piles of mail. The kitchen sink is chocked full of dirty dishes. The stainless steel appliances look well beyond their actual five years thanks to grime, stickers and magnets. The couple exits the kitchen as quickly as they arrived.
The couple ends their showing after just a few minutes in the home without seeing the entire home. “Honey, I’ve seen enough…do these people really want to sell?”
The Results The buyer scheduled a second showing of 123 Maple for during the week. By the next weekend, the buyer writes a full price offer of $345,000 and closes on the home in 40 days.
Five months and five showings later, 456 Maple drops their listing price from $330,000 to $310,000.
Moral of this story: how a seller presents their home is as critical as pricing right.
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