Many homes are put on sale in Nigeria every year; while a few of them remain on the market for many years without attracting any single buyer, some others don’t stay long in the market before they are acquired. I can tell you for a fact and from experience that the difference between a house that stays long in the market and the one that is quickly swept off the market is simply the attitude of the own or the seller of the house.

In this article, I put together a list of common mistakes that owners/sellers of homes make while seeking to sell a house. Avoiding these mistakes will help you sell your house in real time, and for the best price. Let’s get started.

NOT HIRING REAL ESTATES AGENT.

One of the first mistakes that you should avoid while planning to sell a property is trying to sell it yourself (except you have the experience), it is better you employ the service of real estate agents. Most people avoid hiring s real estate agents because most of them (especially in Lagos) charge as high as 10% of the sale price of the house.

However their importance cannot be overlooked. Employing the service of an agent will take most of the stress of finding buyers off you.

Furthermore an agent has the professional experience to locate customers quickly, as well as negotiate the right price for the house.

Most real estate agent are familiar with all the paper works involved in selling a property and will help you avoid making costly mistakes. I compiled the list of reputable companies here to get started with.



SETTING AN UNREALISTIC PRICE.



Fixing the right price for your property will go a long way to determining if you’ll make a quick sale or not. Most people put an unreasonably high price on their properties hence scaring potential buyers away. Before setting a price on your house, ask yourself, would I buy this property at this price? Giving a sincere answer to this question would help you determine the right price.

Keep in mind that most buyers ask for prices of different houses while shopping for a house to buy, so do a market research on the environment where you have the property, find out how much most houses in that area are sold, and fix your price appropriately. However, the price you set should depend largely on the quality of the property.

NOT ADVERTISING ONLINE.

Due to the tight schedule of most Lagosians, majority of them prefer to buy goods online; and housing properties are not excluded. To enlarge the exposure of your property to the market, it will benefit you a lot if you have the picture of the house you intend to sale online.

Take pictures of different views and angles of the property (including interior and exterior), and post them online. Also, create an avenue for interested buyers to contact you. Too many people make the mistake of not advertising online, hence limiting the exposure of the property. Studies have shown that houses that are advertised online sale faster than those that are not.

COVERING UP PROBLEMS.

Before you put your house on the market, you should ensure that the property is in good shape. Fix all broken doors, repair all licking pipes, re-paint any area that requires painting, etc. Trying to cover up these problems is a big mistake that might cost your prospective buyers, so fix all problems that might turn people away. It is necessary to keep in mind that most people will conduct a thorough inspection of the property they intend to buy, and if a fault is found, they will either price it below market value or simply avoid buying it completely.

However fixing the problem in advance will guaranty you sell your property for the right price.

LASTLY :

Avoiding these mistakes will help you sell your property faster than you expect, so take note of them. However, you should prepare yourself for the possibility of the property staying market for too long; this might be because of economic situations or other factors.

In the case of this eventuality, I will advise that you consider putting the house on rent before you get a buyer.

READ MORE TIPS : http://realestateko.com/recommended-real-estate-tips-for-buyers-in-lagos/

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