Now that we've looked at all ten of the common home showing mistakes highlighted in REALTOR Mag's article, what can we conclude? Let's briefly review the mistakes.
The first type of mistake is having the owners lingering in the home during a showing. Mistake number two is related, but this time it's the pets who need to relocate during showings. Bad smells in a home are the third kind of mistake, and they might come from pets or from people. The fourth type of mistake is wild critters on the property, and the fifth is oddities, from unusual room arrangements to partially successful remodels, that don't show your home to its best advantage. Dirt and clutter are mistake number six: remember that showing your home off means making it shine, literally! The seventh kind of mistake is leaving out personal information like bank statements. A home needs to be reasonably well-lit to be viewed by prospective buyers, which is why the eighth mistake is poor lighting. Number nine is straightforward: your realtor needs to have a key to access your home for showings. And the tenth mistake is leaving revealing or even nude photos and portraits on display - remember to take those down and temporarily hang landscapes or something else neutral in their place during showings.
A showing is an opportunity for a buyer to imagine your home becoming their home, which is exactly what happens after a completed sales process. The theme that runs through all these mistakes is that they disrupt this imagination and distract buyers from seeing all the appealing things about your home. It can be challenging to make your presence fade into the background in a place that's still your home, but remember that you are trying to help it become someone else's home. Disappear when you need to, and make sure you've put away the most obvious signs of your presence before you do. You'll be glad when all your work pays off and your home successfully changes owners!
