Home listing gone stale? Refresh it!

As the person who is usually called in to stage a home that has been lingering on the market, refreshing the listing is important. There have been a few incidences when after the homes were staged, new photos were not taken, or new photos were taken but the listing was not refreshed. Refreshing means taking the old listing down and relisting it as new.

Realtor’s advice

Kenyatta Jones-Arietta, NY/NJ licensed broker/owner of R2M Realty, Inc., shares the following advice:

“In my experience, when you have a listing that has grown stale, it is advantageous to do something to freshen it up. Whether it is staging or new photos, when you do something new, you have to do something to make it come up on the hot-sheets so that other agents are aware of the changes. It is not always necessary to adjust the price. Taking the listing down for a week or two and putting it back on the market fresh can cause buyers who had seen it previously to take a closer look when it comes back on.

“Sometimes I find it’s better to change the listing altogether. All listings in multiple listing services have numbers associated with them (MLS numbers). When working as a buyer’s agent, I look at the higher MLS numbers first to decide on what to show my buyers. The higher the MLS number, the newer the listing is. Therefore, resubmitting the listing, in addition to any changes makes it “pop” all the way round.

“Last year I had a buyer looking at a house. It had gone temporarily off the market due to ice build-up that needed to be removed. When it came back on, I called the agent, as my client wanted to see it again. The agent shared with me that she had four scheduled showings after it had been quiet for months. It sold that week.”

What’s wrong with this picture?

This is also a hot topic that comes up in my staging tips classes. One recent attendee shared with the class how when looking to buy a home, the older the listing, the less interest they had in viewing the property. It has the potential buyer wondering what is wrong with the house since it is on the market for so long.

Of course presenting the home the best possible way should take top priority, as you only have one chance to make that first impression. That is not always the case in real estate. Even in occupied homes with a tight budget, staging the house with existing furnishings but lightening up each room can make a big difference. Cost-effective updates, fresh paint and cleaning have a huge impact not only in person,but also in the online photos.

Keep in mind, the first walk-through is online, so those photos can either make or break a potential buyer stepping foot in the house. Good real estate photography can make a house come to life.