Difficulty Selling My Flip

Chris C. · 2017-08-30T14:33:26-07:00

This is my first try and after a stressful rehab, I've been on the market for 68 days. It is priced at $290k, $13k below Zillow estimate. I've had multiple agents go through the house and run CMA's and they are coming up with $300k as the price. The interior looks nice and is updated. The main drawback of the house that I can see is the lawn. It is rototilled and shows just some dirt with grass seeds on it. But it doesn't look dirty - just not a full green lawn. It is going to take some time to grow.We've had several open houses, many private showings, but not a single offer has come through. At this point, I can drop price some more but then I'd be erasing any little profit I have left, and potentially losing money. Another option is to convert it into a rental (BRRRR) which would just cover all the expenses including property management.I've hired an agent to list the house (can't say he's been good). I have my own license but no experience as an agent. I do think I could do a better job selling than my current agent. So I was thinking I could convert it into a rental for a year, slightly pay down the principal with the rent money, hope the market stays on track where it is or even increases, and list it myself. With this strategy, I can also refinance and pull out about $30k cash and still cover all the expenses. With all that and eliminating the agent, I could walk away with a little bigger profit from the sale in a year's time.What would the experienced investors here do?

Karen Young

Real Estate Agent · Seminole, FL · Member since 2016 · 5 posts · 2 votes

9y

OFFER LEASE PURCHASE,lease option_financing options-you can offer the IDEA and YOU DECIDE IF it's a good fit

1 Reply

Marcus Fleckenstein

Real Estate Agent · Crofton, MD · Member since 2017 · 3 posts · 3 votes

9y

Staging works because most buyers have a horrible sense of projecting their belongings onto where they could live. By staging, you eliminate the "what could go here?" obstacle that most buyers face when walking into an empty room.

Also, curb appeal needs work. My guess is that if you painted the exterior with some lively color, you would get people to at least want to come out and see it.

Best of luck!

1 Reply

Brian Pulaski

Flipper/Rehabber · Montgomery, NY · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes

9y

@Matthew Olszak I have seen the virtual staging and it looks good. I think it is a good option, however... I think virtually adding green grass, plants and curb appeal is almost bait and switch. Furniture and wall art is one thing, nd usually assumed to not be part of the sale, but fabricating fake plants, grass, trees and exterior features that is assumed to be part of the sale/house sounds like a bad decision at best. Honestly, if he does that, I'm not sure people will even recognize the house once they get on the street.

@Chris C. I think you need to drop the listing, spruce up the yard, and then relist it again. Your curb appeal looks PREflip to me, not a completed and redone house. I say give that a try. Other than sod (I am unsure what it goes for in your area) you could probably have some plants, shrubs, and mulch added for fairly cheap, maybe some shutters, and a pop of color and the house will look completely different.

1 Reply

Matthew Olszak

Real Estate Broker · Chicago, IL · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes

9y

@Brian Pulaski You're absolutely right. In the case of grass and landscape, it'd still be a good idea to have the photo edited, but more-so as a supplement for agents to use to give the potential buyers some vision on how beautiful the house could be with a little extra $ invested into the yard.

0 Reply

Brian Pulaski

Flipper/Rehabber · Montgomery, NY · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes

9y

@Matthew Olszak that would make more sense, show it as a "potential" photo. Hopefully that would be a plus for buyers, more than a minus.

0 Reply

Ned J.Pro Member

Investor · Manteca, CA · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes

9y

Take off list....lawn and outside paint...and relist....curb appeal is killing you.

0 Reply

Owen B.

Broomfield, CO · Member since 2014 · 5 posts · 1 vote

9y

The lack of curb appeal is doom. In my experience when selling someone on a house no matter what it looks like inside if they are not happy pulling up to it everyday then they are not going to buy (and likely borrow a significant amount of money to buy). They need to be excited to pull up to it and show it off to their family and friends.

I would pull the listing and start over. Prior to re-launch I would: sod, plant a couple of trees from Home Depot (very much needed to breakup the monotony of the picture), buy some bricks and dirt from home depot and put a little green plant garden in front of the part that juts out on the right side of the picture, get a couple of flower pots from home depot with flowers for both side of the front door to add some color. Everything but the sod part is pretty cheap and done for probably $500 or much less and would just take a few hours to do and add a lot of life and color. I had a flip similar to this and without doing these things the place looks like a manufactured home.

Good Luck!

0 Reply

Wade Rustici

Investor · Lee's Summit, MO · Member since 2017 · 31 posts · 7 votes

9y

Holding usually work out pretty well, it is always easier to find a renter then to sale a home that is not selling right away. It puts some money in your pocket, while your trying to sell, usually gains some appreciation, and pay off some of the balance, its usually a win win.

0 Reply

Wade Rustici

Investor · Lee's Summit, MO · Member since 2017 · 31 posts · 7 votes

9y

Plus the experience you gain as a landlord doesn't hurt either.

1 Reply

Joe SplitrockPro Member

Moderator

Rental Property Investor · Sioux Falls, SD · Member since 2015 · 9k+ posts · 18k+ votes

9y

@Chris C. my impression is that it lacks curb appeal. Sod would help, but make sure you water it well. Dead sod would be worse than dirt. Also there is literally no bushes or plants or anything of interest. I also think corner houses have a more difficult time selling. More traffic and less privacy, so if you are only comparing price per square foot that could be the problem.

It also looks like you had the property on the market 60 days before dropping the price. I would drop the price every two weeks until it sells. If the days on market starts getting way past average, then people start to wonder what is wrong with the place.

We had a property that was on the market 30 days, we dropped it 5% and immediately got a full price offer. The people were on the fence but when the price dropped they moved quickly. Every home has a buyer, it is just a matter of at what price.

0 Reply

Joe Hines

Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2017 · 118 posts · 108 votes

9y

Hey @Chris C. You did a really nice job on the interior. Very impressive. I have to agree with others that sod and staging would get this baby moving. I understand that you definitely prefer the flipping side of the real estate business, but you'd do great if you rehabbed and converted to SFH rentals. Good luck!

0 Reply

Chris C.

OP

Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2016 · 11 posts · 15 votes

9y

I'm having two landscapers go out today and give me quotes. I'll probably take it off the market for a bit and come back strong with some wow factor. I'm also going to go with my original price, and then reduce price as needed until sold. Thanks for the feedback.

2 Reply

Kalyanii K.Pro Member

OR · Member since 2016 · 55 posts · 42 votes

9y

Hi there! Thought I'd chime in with my 2 cents : ). Good job on inside, outside needs work, as you already know. You might not have to repaint if you get some great landscaping with color to make the curb appeal more cheerful. Most people looking to buy a home will respond emotionally to the house. Make them smile when they pull up to the house! Not worry that if I buy this place I need to do work on the outside. I'm thinking sod with potted plants to reduce cost. Xeroscaping might be worth doing as well. Also, I would like to add increasing pics on listing to 31 as opposed to just 12, with backyard pictures and hopefully staged backyard furniture. You mentioned large yard but don't show it! Also better picture of the second bathroom. It was a weird angle and doesn't show what it really looks like. You did a good job inside and you are almost there! Other homes might not be doing staging, but it will benefit you, esp in the living room/kitchen area so people will get an idea of how to arrange their stuff. You should update BP with new pics of your flip when you get it updated!

1 Reply

Steven Mitchell

Investor · san antonio, TX · Member since 2016 · 133 posts · 43 votes

9y

if you decide to stage, make sure you lock it up in a storage unit and not in one of your current flips. Lost 3k that way.

Curb appeal

We hire a professional to take pictures for the ad

0 Reply

Anthony Dooley

Investor · Columbus, GA · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes

9y

Your price is obviously too high if you haven't gotten one offer by now. Sod the lawn, and reduce the price, and get your money back and move to another deal.

0 Reply

Patti RobertsonBusiness Member

Property Manager · Virginia Beach, VA · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes

9y

Gotta stage!!! Post a link to your ad so we can check it out.

757-472-2547

0 Reply

Scott Patterson

Flipper/Rehabber · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2016 · 112 posts · 66 votes

9y

First, you need to fire your realtor, the first clue is that you are coming here for advice on your listing and everyone is telling you the same thing, which the realtor should have been sounding the alarm on before he even listed it. Find the top selling volume realtor in the area and get their advice and have them list it. but yeah, you need to take if off the market, stage it and spend some money on curb appeal. Again, any realtor that let you list that house with that curb appeal deserves to be fired asap. Probably budget 3k for staging and 5k for curb appeal. Stop thinking about whether or not you will lose money and concentrate what you need to do to maximize the sale, your time for making money is for when you buy, not when you sell. Trying to protect yourself from losing money now will only make the loses greater.

2 Reply

Shelly Doris Milburn

Property Manager · De Soto, KS · Member since 2017 · 58 posts · 30 votes

9y

Thanks for sharing your listing details. I agree w/a lot of the comments already left. Love it up a bit. Sod and landscaping are a must. Exterior photos should be added to the listing. Even small changes to the interior may help. It is very stark. Dish towels, shower rod and curtain, blinds on the windows. The feng shui need some work. Your efforts are great. Remember, buying a home is an emotional purchase. Buyers need to feel a connection. Work to warm up the space and vibe.

1 Reply

Jeff Schulman

Wholesaler · Highland, IN · Member since 2017 · 18 posts · 2 votes

9y

I know the feeling. I have a home that is in a good neighborhood but a suspect town. My home is refurbished and will rent for $850 - $900 easy. It is only $57,900.00. But for some reason investors would rather spend more in the surrounding towns and have less of a profit margin on the ratio of rent. vs investment. Go figure.

0 Reply

Jackson Wu

Investor · Monrovia, CA · Member since 2015 · 48 posts · 33 votes

9y

Everyone is saying to sod it and they are right. Whether you hold onto it for a year or you sell it, you're going to have to sod it. So just bite the bullet and do it now.

0 Reply

Sara Anne Pace

Middletown, CT · Member since 2017 · 18 posts · 16 votes

9y

Since you already have a real estate license, take a dive and try to sell the house yourself. You already have an opinion about your agent...your hunch is probably right. You will be saving thousands of dollars and get some control of how the house is being marketed.

If you stage the house yourself, you only need to rent living room furniture, which should be about $300 per month. Then go to places like Marshalls and get home decorations and flowers and towels for the bathroom. Get light colored items...no brown or gray. That should cost you less than a couple of hundred dollars. Look up other houses in the area that were staged and sold for inspiration.

Then invest in a nice camera and take the pictures yourself. I only saw the exterior picture. Exterior pictures of the house looks best when angled and needs to be LIGHTENED. Dark pictures are not appealing to the public. Since it is your house, you will be invested in improving the listing as you learn. You should have about 30-40 pictures of your listing. Need at least 5 pictures of the kitchen alone.

If you can rehab the house, you can sell the house. It does not take much to learn to put the listing in the MLS. Look at all the agents around you who are doing it lol. Good luck to you!

1 Reply

David Song

Real Estate Broker · Redwood City, CA · Member since 2014 · 679 posts · 888 votes

9y

Chris C. The house looks nice to me. Good job. If you can not sell it, just rent it and refinanced it out. You will probably make more $.

1 Reply

Jeff Schulman

Wholesaler · Highland, IN · Member since 2017 · 18 posts · 2 votes

9y

I have a property that is only $57,900. It is refurbished and updated. It has 3 bedrooms and 1 Bath. Almost 1200 sq. ft. The home is in a good part of a suspect town. Well kept homes in area and a Police officer lives next door. The home will rent for $850.00 -$900.00 easy. The previous renter paid $850.00 when it was in rough shape. MLS is not effective. My realtor has not brought anyone to the home. My Bandit signs have been attracting some attention. One of my questions is; Why would investors spend so much more money to rent a home for only a few hundred dollars more. Any suggestions on how the market the home in a more effective way?

1 Reply

David Carte

El Segundo, CA · Member since 2017 · 43 posts · 48 votes

9y

Yeah, house kinda looks like garbage from the outside. First impression people get is it's an unfinished house they would be buying into... Then you're relying on the interior to overcome their negative impression of the place to begin with. If you're confident you can rent, I'd do the renting route short term while you fix up the exterior with decent landscaping, then put it back on the market.

0 Reply

Sandra B.

Orange County, CA · Member since 2017 · 36 posts · 24 votes

9y

@Chris C. Nice job on first flip! Just a quick look at the properties available, lots of inventory for sale and not much for rent, so agree that is probably your best strategy. I would pull the trigger on that quickly. Once you get into mid-October, people are in holiday mode and filling a rental could be tough until February. Agree with others about curb appeal and partial staging. A few additional thoughts about selling this property. If you think about the buyer in San Bernadino at this price point, most likely a family and, as others have pointed out, FHA (read cash strapped). I know you don't want to spend another dime on the property, but including refrigerator, washer, dryer could go a long way. When FHA buyers are looking at a house, they are doing the mental math of immediate out of pocket costs. Also putting in low cost window blinds would be one less thing going to a buyer's mental tally. I think I saw a covered patio off the master. San bernadino is hot. Covered outdoor space is a value add. Point that out. Mention central AC and any improvements you made that are not cosmetic (electrical panel, hvac, roof, etc). Is there indoor laundry? If so, mention it. If not, I would consider that in your next flip. That is a modern amenity that people look for in a renovated property. Nice work and good luck!

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Difficulty Selling My Flip

Difficulty Selling My Flip

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