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In the fourth quarter of 2018, the average New York City apartment on the market took 152 days to go into contract. For those antsy to sell, that can feel like a long time. However, if your home is well past 200 days on the market, it can be frustrating and leave you thinking, “Why can’t I sell my apartment?” We have some tips, tricks, and alternative solutions if you’re struggling to sell your apartment.
Prepare your apartment to be viewed at all times.Prepare your apartment to be viewed at all times.
Before changing anything in your apartment, ask yourself if every time your real estate agent called you saying someone wants to view your apartment if you said yes. As a seller, turning down viewing appointments — regardless of how inconvenient they may seem at the time — is a missed opportunity to sell your apartment. It could be hindering you.
Become a “yes” man or woman if you’re guilty of this. Change your perspective to being more inconvenient that your apartment isn’t selling, rather than being inconvenient to clean and leave your residence when it is being shown to buyers.
Consider scheduling clean-up times every other day to help you say yes to viewings. Also, scope out a local, affordable coffee shop where you can hang out or work while the potential buyer views your apartment.
Next, take a look at your open house schedule. For example, did you have an open house every Sunday? If not, plan a more aggressive open house schedule with your agent to increase the chances of potential buyer visits.
Evaluate your priceEvaluate your price
As a seller, you have a price in mind that you think is fair for your apartment. But given the current state of the market with a 6 percent increase in inventory, you’ll want to reevaluate your price to see if at market value.
To evaluate correctly, ask your co-op or condo board for the sale records of other units in your building. It will help you understand what similar apartments in your building are selling. Then, rely on your agent to find comparable selling prices in your neighborhood and advise you if the price is right.
Declutter furtherDeclutter further
Clearing your space of knick-knacks and clutter is crucial to helping your apartment attract a buyer. When potential buyers walk in the front door, they want to see a clean space so they can envision their life in the apartment.
If you’re struggling to declutter, consider renting a storage unit with a monthly contract to store some of your things. It will be worth the upfront cost to help sell your apartment.
Take decluttering a step further and remove any family photos from the walls or shelves. It May seem trivial, but your wedding photos might be hindering a single older man from buying your apartment because he sees your life, not his.
A fresh coat of paintA fresh coat of paint
Your open houses have heavy traffic, but no one is making an offer. It might mean that your listing photos look great, but do the walls look dinghy when people enter the apartment? Are there scuff marks all over the walls?
Dinged-up walls could distract potential buyers looking for a move-in-ready apartment.
Painting is a low-cost way to spruce up your apartment and make it shine when people walk in. When choosing paint colors, select neutral colors that can appease the masses.
Change your agentChange your agent
For sellers, it can be frustrating to keep your apartment clean for more than 200 days, have open houses each weekend, and have no one come and view your apartment.
Consider finding a new agent if traffic is down for your open houses or you find the marketing of your home less than stellar. A new agent may have different potential clients, a further reach, and a fresh perspective on how to market your apartment.
Look for an agent with a history of selling apartments quickly and someone who knows your building and has sold there in the past.
Consider a renovationConsider a renovation
If you’re struggling to sell your apartment, go to the bathroom. We’re not trying to be gross, but two rooms will sell your condo or co-op apartment: the bathroom and the kitchen.
If your apartment isn’t selling, it’s likely one of those two rooms. However, if you have the funds, channeling them to a kitchen or bathroom renovation will help you get the most significant return on your investment and likely speed up the selling process when your apartment is back on the market.
For sellers who don’t have the funds to start a renovation, consider more minor fixes such as painting the kitchen cabinets white or replacing the cabinet hardware to spruce up the room.
For the bathroom, add an extra mirror to make the room feel bigger and hang large white towels to give the restroom a spa-like feeling.
Consider subletting your apartment.Consider subletting your apartment.
Perhaps you need to move as soon as possible because of a new job or a growing family, but your apartment is not selling.
Consider taking a break from having your apartment on the market and sublet it. First, look at your co-op or condo’s subletting rules and then list your apartment to rent instead of for sale.
Subletting can help generate extra income to pay your mortgage on your current apartment while moving into your new home.
When the lease is up, you can relist the apartment, and the listing will look brand new, generating new buzz for your New York City home.