6 Bad Habits Real Estate Agents Think All Sellers Should Avoid

Selling a house can be a very exciting time for both owners and real estate agents. But while making a quick and painless sale is the ultimate goal, some sellers get so caught up in the process that they actually end up getting in their own way. After all, most people don’t have a ton of experience selling properties, and it’s not something that they’ll do very often. With that being said; however, that makes it even more important to let the people who know what they’re doing get their jobs done. While most real estate agents are more than happy to help people through the process, they do need a little bit of room to work, and sometimes sellers unknowingly make things worse. Here are 6 bad habits that real estate agents think all sellers should avoid.

Getting in the way during showings

When you’re selling your home, it may be natural to feel like you should stick around for the showing. However, this isn’t necessary, and quite frankly, it can be a little annoying. Peter Boscas, an agent in Washington D.C. says, “Buyers already have apprehension about touring a stranger’s property. That anxiety is ratcheted up when the sellers are home during the tour. [Buyers] feel like they’re intruding.” If there’s anything awesome that you feel like potential buyers just have to know, you may want to ask the agent to pass that information along.

Making upgrades seem better than they are

So you’ve done some work on the house, and you’re really proud. Cool. However, your idea of a really cool upgrade may not be cool to everyone. Although you may think the things you’re bragging about are incredible selling points, buyers may not feel the same way.

Breaking promises about repairs

This one should be a no brainer since breaking promises is never a good thing. Unfortunately; however, a lot of sellers do this. Many real estate agents suggest that if you’re going to make a repair to your home, you need to do so before putting it on the market. Some buyers promise sellers that they’ll make repairs to the home, and as you can imagine, the sellers are beyond disappointed when it doesn’t happen.

Stepping on the agent’s toes

Of course you’re going to want to be a part of the process when you decide to sell your home. However, as with many other things in life, patience is key, and it’s important to relax and let the agent do their job. Although you may be selling just one property, most agents are dealing with several properties at a time, and bugging them throughout the entire process probably won’t make things move any quicker.

Being messy

Nobody is going to want a house that doesn’t look good. Although messes can be cleaned up, people who tour a messy house are likely to be turned off. Many agents have shared that leaving a dirty house is one of their biggest pet peeves, and it may even result in your home staying on the market for longer.

Being too greedy

Everybody who’s selling a house is looking to get top dollar for it. However, some people tend to get a little greedy once the dollar signs start coming through, and this could cause some issues. According to Jennifer Sandlin, a real estate agent in Boston, “If I list a home and just days later we have a really good offer on the table, if doesn’t mean we should hold out for more offers. It means we priced the property correctly. “I typically try to tell sellers they should expect offers to come in around a range of pricing.” Agents also warn buyers not to boost up the asking price just because they see other homes in their area may be getting listed for more.

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