You might want to evaluate what she's doing to market your house vs. what another realtor will do. Put it on any home cable shows? Realtor.com? Also, some people (so applies to realtors) are heavy networks and will ask other realtors to help or for advice, or will reach out to any and all brokers, other people won't do that sort of thing. So for some of those reasons it may be a good idea to switch up.
Sometimes someone whose both a real people person AND has a huge family that's been in the area for centuries (obviously an exaggeration but you know what I mean) can make a difference. Otherwise the MLS is the MLS and I would think that any agent on the MLS, or person looking, would have seen it.
I would talk to her about the possibility now, a month out and discuss options. After that, it should be all business. She didn't sell, contract over. Maybe a nice bottle of wine?

I agree with what I believe Mary's trying to say...if the job was to sell your house then your current Realtor's not done the "great" job you suggest; otherwise, the house would be sold. Maybe, part of that job was to reevaluate your price point. If you've had "a lot" of showings but not a single offer then I would seriously be considering that the market is saying this particular home, in this particular market, at this particular time is overpriced. The only way you can compete with new construction is on price. They have the highest hand in that a builder is in a position to offer incentives difficult for you to match. For example, color choices, surface materials, special financing, etc. If you're priced too high then any Rrealtor you chose will have trouble successfully selling your property. Will a new Realtor bring in more or different people? Maybe. But, it sounds like showings have not been your problem. People have looked...they just have found your home not competitive. If you like your current Realtor & she's telling you to lower your price...follow her advice for the remainder of her contract time. If it's still not sold, then change Realtors.

If you do change Realtors, a small gift is appropriate like the bottle of wine already suggested. I also agree that it's good business to provide your current Realtor will advance notice that you're going to make a change.

Tricia

We have never had a contract longer then 90 days with any realtor we have hired. We were also up front with them in the beginning, before we signed a contract. We told them if the house hasn't sold in the contracted time we would be changing realtors. None of them had a problem with that. I would let your agent know now. Don't wait till the last minute. NancyLouise

Obviously your agent has done a good job getting many prospective buyers to look at your home. The buyers, for whatever reason decided to buy another house, why?
Your agent seems to think it's price, was that the feedback?
(price can be associated with "small rooms", "small yard", "backs to road" etc., all things that can only be overcome with price).
The buyer pool comes from the MLS and the company with the most agents generally has the most buyers. By switching companies/agents, the buyer pool will not change, because it will be listed in the same MLS.
Based on the traffic you've had and the agents honest assessment, I'd stick with the agent.

All very interesting comments and I really appreciate your opinions. Berniek, we have gotten feedback each time. Some just haven't made up their minds. One bought the model at the new subdivision and another decided to build there after looking three times at our house. (Our house is priced lower than the new builders price on the same house even tho we added $30K in upgrades) I think they don't realize how much all the extras will cost above the base price. I am thinking of asking our realtor to list some of the things we HAD to pay for (not all the wants) like grass - $6K, extra brick to grade - $2K etc. There were two other houses in our subdivision that went for sale at the same time and they sold already. There were a little bigger and asked more. They both had to do a lot of $$ assistance to the buyers. Our house has some things that theirs didn't and theirs had some things ours doesn't. There was no feedback about it being priced too high. A lot of people who looked at all three said they liked ours best. So, it is like a game to figure it all out. Berniek, almost all lookers were from the listing company. Dont' you think if we went with another large company , there would be a lot from that co. ? I know it is seen in the mls by all, but why haven't any of them been here when obviously it is a likeable house and at or near the right price? We have had appoximately thirteen people look and all but one was from the listing company.

Well, it could be that it is your agent who has worked hard to get her co-agents to look at the house, even if they didn't think their clients would buy it. If you haven't any other companies coming through and the house is on the MLS, then maybe the price is not right. Have you actually looked at all of your competition, not just in your subdivision? What else can people buy in your city or town at your price or even less? That is also your competition. In my market there are houses sitting on the market because the sellers refuse to acknowledge that buyers can get more house for less just a few blocks away.

I also don't think buyers care what "extras" you paid for. They are just looking at your house as it is and comparing it to other houses they have seen. I bet all or most of the other houses you are up against have grass, so that isn't a selling point. If you didn't have grass that would be liability, but having it doesn't add extra. The same for the other "extras" you paid for. They are now features of your house and so far no one wants to pay your price.

Yes we have looked at all that. There are similar houses for more and of course there are houses for less. I was pointing out that our competition is the new housing area our builder (best in the area) is building not far from here. He doesn't do grass. And, what I was pointing out was that when someone looks at our same house plan in the new subdivison, there are a lot of costs beyond the base price that they may not consider that are already done at our house. And, in general I think people don't care to know about all the upgrades and are just looking and comparing as you say, but some things do matter. I heard comments that men liked the added feet to the garage and the extra subpanel for finishing the basement etc etc.

Eventually, you will find someone that realizes your house for what it is, a better value for the money they are spending, while others just don't care because they would rather pick their own colors.

You could ask your realtor if she can include stuff like that, something witty in the description about not having to pay extra for grass or what ever else. If all I could afford was what you were asking, then I would go for it, if I could swing a little more, I'd go new.

Can you post the link to your realtor.com page? Do you have any links for the new houses? It may help everyone here give you better input.

Thanks for your ideas and for wanting to see my house. I am open to your thoughts and criticisms. If I do this right you will see the link. If not, it is mls 663945

Here is a link that might be useful: my house

It sounds as if your major competition is new construction and that can be very tough. More and more people are interested in only new homes.
I would consider doing an extra flyer to leave on the kitchen counter, 1 page "A few extra facts about address X" If your builder is best in area and you can find a quote from some article include it.
I'm not sure if listing base price for the house and then all the upgrades right on it would be considered tactically advantageous or not depending on what your asking vs. what that comes too but I would think about it. Or list the base price of a new house and what you get vs. what you have.
Some people put in a list of additional facts that would be helpful to a future owner - what the trees are (if you have planted an any, type of grass - sort of another way of pointing out what you have done to the place. Also any addition little facts, say if your street is quieter or has less traffic, bigger lots (than where the new construction is going up without maybe actually saying so)

Competing against new, and identical or similar, construction is always difficult. In terms of the price point--is this a move-up house, starter, upper end for the area? In my experience the higher up that ladder you go, the more difficult it is to compete against new construction. First time buyers, being more budget conscious, are more likely to see the benefit of the grass, the blinds, etc. than people buying their third or fourth home. I think as people move up in price point they are less likely to "settle" for less than perfect. This is just my opinion on human nature though.

Has your agent held open houses on the same day any new construction models might be open? I know people on the board have widely varying opinions on the value of open houses, but this is one instance where I would take advantage of the flocks of people at the new construction. Are directional signs permitted in your area? Your agent should have those placed in such a way to direct people viewing the new construction to your house.

Buyers also have very funny ideas of what things cost. For example, they may think that your blue bedroom will cost a lot to repaint, but at the same time think that the landscaping is free! You definitely need to have a list of upgrades and the cost of each available to buyers viewing your home. Promote the heck out of the great value!

Also paint the blue bedroom and any other rooms that are not builders white. Those new construction homes are completely neutral and a clean palatte. Your home should be too. Buyers will pay more for a clean palatte sometimes. Just wondering, have you had the carpets professionally cleaned? Do they look brand new? They should since that is what your competiton has.

In this instance I really don't think it's your agent. I think it's the tough competition you face from the new construction.

Ultimately, it's going to come down to price. With the exception of, maybe 1999-2005, it was considered the norm that if you had to sell a property within 5 years of purchase you would likely lose money after allowing for sales costs. Your home is only two years old. In spite of the upgrades you've done it's going to be difficult to recapture your full investment.

You can't change the bedroom or foyer size. And, I doubt that's the problem anyway. Most likely, it's just something quick & easy for a potential buyer to say when asked why they didn't choose your home. New construction is alluring when there's not a distinguishable price difference. You need to create a clear reason to chose your home & grass won't normally do it. People expect a resale home to have grass...in fact, most people looking at resales expect more than grass. They want to see trees, shrubs, & perennial gardens. You've not had the time to get those established yet. So, I don't see the grass as a major reason to buy your house.

Do you have to sell now? If you could hold the house another 2-3 years my guess is that you'd do much better. The new construction combined with the depressed market conditions are a double whammy against you this year.

Tricia

I recently had a similar experience. I had the same realtor for four months. She brought in tons of lookers, hosted several open houses, but did not get me a single offer. We even dropped the price once. I changed realtors, and that person dropped the price again and sold within three weeks of having the listing. I think a new realtor can bring a fresh perspective, as well as a whole new set of buyers. I'm not entirely sure what worked for us--the new realtor or the new price. I think it was a combination of both. Plus, the second realtor worked for a nationally known realty company, giving our house more exposure via media (TV, newspaper ads), and other agents within her office, whereas the first agent worked for a much smaller locally owned agency. I did feel bad changing agents, as the first one had been the one who represented me when I bought the house and we had become "friendly." But, business is business, and she understood that. Reverse the situation, and ask yourself if your agent would have any qualms about dropping you. I would say if you feel your realtor has done a great job, then maybe all you need to do is drop your price.

How about interviewing some other realtors to learn what they would do over and above what your current realtor has done. How would they price your house? I would not say a word about the current realtor or her performance -- just listen.

Even if your house was priced right 90 days ago, if conditions have soured in your market, you need to drop your price to sell now. If a lower price is named by realtors you interview, I'd stick with the original lady and lower the price.

It wouldn't hurt to make a list of the upgrades in your house and their costs. Leave copies on your kitchen table.
(BTW, the only photo I didn't like was the table and chairs on that too-small rug. Lose the rug; it makes the area look small.)

I changed realtors, and that person dropped the price again and sold within three weeks of having the listing. I think a new realtor can bring a fresh perspective, as well as a whole new set of buyers.

I'm not sure where the whole new set of buyers comes from if you are listed on the same MLS with both agents. I think that the price drop was probably the key.

Terriks--When we dropped our price the second time with the new realtor, we fell under a different price cut-off (we were previously at $100K and dropped to $95k), so we picked up some new buyers who didn't want to go over $95k previously. That's where the whole new set of buyers came from. Yes, the price drop was the key, so was our willingness to pay the buyer's closing costs.

So, basically, it wasn't the agent that brought the new buyers, it was the price drop.

Right now there should be a lot of realtors camping on the doorsteps of overpriced houses, waiting for the original contract to expire. They'll snap up a listing at the same price, but with a mention of a price decrease. When the property still doesn't sell, they'll get a lower price out of the seller and....wham! It's sold.

It's almost ALWAYS about price.

Of the 18 homes listed on Realtor.com in your zip code priced between $300K and $400K, yours is the most expensive 4 bedroom 2.5 bath, except for one. 21 other homes are priced at your price or lower, (mostly lower) The homes that were listed as more expensive either have additional bedroom, additional baths, or some other feature that makes that extra $$ readily apparent. There are several homes with more features/more square footage for less $$ than you are listed for. Your upgrades may make it easier to sell your home (at the right price) but they don't really make the home worth that much more money. It doesn't work to spend 50K in upgrades on a 300K house and then sell it for 350K. More like sell it for 310K but faster.

I think you are overpriced for your market.

Here is a link that might be useful: 5/3 on 1 acre for LESS

In addition, there are 32 4/2.5 or above homes in the 200K to 300K. Many of those also look as nice as yours. If I were moving to the area and it appeared that I could buy just as much house for 250K as I could for 350K in the same zip code, you can guess which price point I'd be checking out first. Even so, you've had traffic. Ask your RE about recent sales in the 250-325K range. I'd bet if anything comparable were selling, it'd be in that price range. If I could buy new for the $350K and not have to deal with the hassles of a previously owned home, I wouldn't think about buying even a couple of year old home.

Live Wire, I really appreciate you taking the time to look and do that research. You could be right about the pricing and certainly gave me something to think about. I will try to explain, though. It really does come down to location, location, location. A lot of the houses listed that look as nice are further our in the country not convenient to shopping and not in as good a school district. When you pointed out that our house was the highest in the $300- $400 range for 4/2 except for one, that one was one of two houses for sale in our subdivision that just sold. The other one for sale that just sold was also listed there ...tho it had a pool. It was listed at $279 and sold. A lot of the other houses you say are cheaper and look as nice are older, have integral garages (steps/small basement), or are not in a great location. Our buiders homes are desirable as are his neighborhoods...they don't compare to most others. He is well known. We didn't add $50K in upgrades to a $300 house and expect to sell it at $350...that is a little off. Some of the houses you are seeing are nice houses but are the kind of thng where a builder buys one lot in a not so great location and builds a nice house. Or he buys 10 lots in a poor location. Nice houses but if you saw the location you would understand. We interviewed three good realors. One said $10K less than the middle one (we went with) and the other thought about $30K more. So, looking at it on line = I understand your thinking but I am pretty sure we are in line price wise. Even so you have definetly given me some things to think about. By the way, the house you linked to is TWENTY FIVE years old. Ours is 2. And, it is way out away from where anyone wants to be.

The house with the pool in our neighborhood was listed for $379, not $279. And, yes, Tricia, we do have to sell now, but this western Pa. market is not as up and down as a lot of places. Slow but steady. We'll see.

mar_cia -- I was going to make the same point as you just did about location (particularly school district). I don't think it's possible for any of us to do a search just looking at number of bedrooms/baths. Location, and school district in particular, definitely has a direct correlation to price. I know that in the area we're looking, houses in the 'better' school district are considerably more expensive for less house (and that's where we will buy, despite being able to get a nicer house for less money in a less desirable school district).

I think your house is very nice. I would second the opinion that removing the rug from under the dining room table would open up that space. Other things might be painting the blue neutral and removing the dark window coverings, but really I think you will sell even without doing that. Certainly not a deal breaker for most people. (If I were buying, though, I would go into the deal knowing I'd have to paint the master, as I don't like blue for some reason). Good luck, you will sell!

Your photos show a house that is fresh and clean. I wouldn't worry about the rug, blue paint or the window coverings. However, I would change the listing description. Right now there are lots of words just taking up space, and not enough descriptive words to draw me in:

SO MANY UPGRADES...MAPLE CABINETS W/ ROLL-OUT APPLIANCE PANTRY, OVERHEAD AND UNDER CABINET LIGHTING, SILESTONE ISLAND, FIRST FLOOR STUDY, GLEAMING HARDWOODS IN FOYER, KITCHEN AND DINING ROOM... WALK-OUT BASEMENT AND SO MUCH MORE...CALL FOR MORE DETAILS....LUANN @ 412-841-3619

Phrases like "so many upgrades" and "so much more" and "call for more details" and the agent's name and number add nothing. This paragraph should be devoted to three things in my opinion: a descriptive adjective [elegant, light-filled]; a general description of the house [custom built two story home, four bedroom, 2.5 bath with first floor study and walk-out basement]; and then getting in as much info about the upgrades as possible.

I think someone with some good writing skills and knowledge of your house could make it seem much more appealing than what appears on your listing.

Thanks, all. We asked our realtor in the beginnng about repainting the blue and she said no need, but just last night I told dh that I think it might be a good idea. The rug is funny, I know. It was a piece of carpet leftover from the room next to the kitchen and...so matches, but is small. I thought it looked better than just an expanse of floor, but I trust you guys about how it looks so it is gone !! And, Graywings, I was trying to rewrite that last night to see if the realtor would change and lengthen that writing. If pics/writing change, I will post again and ask your opinions. You all are great to help me.

Do put felt pads on your chair legs now that the rug is gone -- don't want to scratch the floor.

If you are going to re-do the photos and description...Can you show a floorplan? Photo of LR, DR? Master Bath?

I'd head the lising: "Better Than New Two Year Old Home in Top Location".

Terriks--I really believe it was a combination of both--new reatlor and price drop. I think the new realtor had more networks with other agents than the first agent due to the fact she worked for a much larger company. The more agents you know, the more potential buyers you have.

"The more agents you know, the more potential buyers you have."
Sorry, but I have to disagree. Knowing more agents does not produce more buyers.

Berniek...So if Agent A does very little networking with other agents, she could produce just as many potential buyers as Agent B who heavily networks with other agents? I think you are missing my point.

Chisue, thanks for your thoughtfulness about the pads on the chairs. They are already on the bottom of everything. Yes, - about the pics. We can just have 6 I guess, but somehow they changed. Before, our master bath, which is awesome, was on there along with the dining room. For some reason she changed the pics. I will get them changed back. I am not sure about a house plan, although I have thought of that , too. The fiew I have seen on realtor.com are so small you can't make out anything, but I will ask. Thanks again.

"Berniek...So if Agent A does very little networking with other agents, she could produce just as many potential buyers as Agent B who heavily networks with other agents? I think you are missing my point."
Networking with other agents does not produce more buyers.
Networking with other agents who have buyers, to let them know you have a listing, might produce more showings and a sale.
However, that's why we have the MLS, to let other agents know what is for sale. There isn't much networking that can be done when you have over 3,000 agents in town. Bulk e-mailing is generally frowned upon and considered spam and most likely ignored.

mar_cia - you said your market is steady, but what is the average days on the market in your area? If it is longer than 90 days I don't think it is necessarily the agent especially since you have lookers.

I also don't buy the switching agent will bring in new buyers since it would still be on the same MLS. A price drop or switching to another price range for buyers will likely produce more. You have a nice house that looks like it would sell itself.

Looks like you have an agent that gives you the enhanced listing on realtor.com so if you do switch make sure you get the same service.

The reason a house sells with the 2nd realtor is that you are ready to listen to another voice that is saying "drop the price".
There will always be people that will prefer a brand new house. Thats especially true when the market slows--a builder is looking at inventory they must move. A builder must lower the price quickly to sell because they don't live there, and are making payments. Sometimes they throw in incentives--upgrade refrig., your choice of carpet, etc. If the house is already finished, they can offer a cable tv package or credit towards closing costs, or a gift card to a furniture store.
You need to think more like a builder--instead of hoping the next buyer will appreciate your upgrades. This market is not going to get better during the heat of late summer.

Marge, the builder who built our house is so good at what he does, he doen't deal with realtors at all...no payments to them. He doesn't ever lower his price. No incentives whatsoever...he doens't build spec houses. IN a very slow generally depressed area (Pittsburgh suburbs) he sells his houses as fast as he can build them. Also, no construction loans, so he owns the house till the day you close (he has never missed a closing and the house takes about 4-5 mo ) and if you change your mind, he will sell it to someone else. Get the picture? And, again, I am not just hoping a buyer will "appreciate our upgrades" - just making the point that a realtor friend told me...that somehow I might need to let them know there are a lot of costs above the base building price that they might not think about. My realtor friend said that when some of her clients see that reality, they often decide to buy a couple of years older instead of new construction.

I tried to look your house up on zillow.com and got "could not find the home you requested" you may want to see what you can do there.

I went to the realtor.com page and tried clicking on the agents link (where it says Visit Website) got a 404 page not found. Have the agent fix that. I did get to her web site after pasting the link in notepad and taking out everything but the main website - house is here you have 8 photos on there.

I like the blue, but it wouldn't match my current bedroom set, so I would have to paint or buy new bedding. I would think about painting it. I'm normally not a brick house person but think the color brick that was used is beautiful. I wouldn't mind owning the house. In one of the pics on the realtors site there is a room with red under the chair rail, you might think to paint that also.

From what I see on the realtors site, the house is called "The Sarah" you should be able to find plans for it online.

ur realtor has done a great job and in two months we have had a lot of lookers but no offers. I really don't think it is over priced but she is talking about lowering the price. Our competition is new construction and some have gone to that. The two things people don't like so much are the smaller 3 bedrooms and a smallish entry which we cannot change.It would bring a new set of lookers. Almost all of the lookers we have had were from her realty co...tho not all from her office. So if we were to go with another large co. does it stand to reason there would be another whole set of lookers?

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I love this site because it gives me a window into the minds of sellers. Mar-cia, WOW!

You have read on here the nightmare stories that sellers have with their agents. For the most part, the people that post here are unhappy with them. Their pictures, their advertising, the lack of activity, they arent doing enough etc. YOU have an agent who you are happy with, she does alot, she advertises, she gets people to look at your house, you yourself said she has done a great job but you want to change realtors because she hasnt brought an offer? NO ONE, can make someone buy your house. All she can do is market it to the right audience. It sounds as if she's getting them there and they are choosing new construction. That in itself means your price is too high. If they can get new construction the way they want it, the colors they want, the cabinets they want, the room sizes they want, for the same price as yours, they are going to go for it. Your buyer pool has just been limited to someone who wants something "newer" but can't wait for new construction.

The next "new" agent that you sign with will most likely want to lower the price too because it didnt sell. If you are in the MLS system, you are already reaching the other offices.

Just my opinion, but your house looks on the cold side to me. I would warm it up with some warmer neutral tones and reduce the price like your realtor advises. The longer you are on the market, the lower the price goes. You could reduce now and sell for higher than if you sat at your price for another 2 months.

In another thread about what makes a good realtor a good realtor people mentioned things like communication, closing the deal, negotiating skills. I'm not saying its not your price - I don't know your market (and neither does anyone else here really) but taking what Linda said in mind which certainly seems true you also have to add to that the question - if she gets them here - is there a lack of communication, negotiating skills on his/her part that is letting them get away? I'm not sure how this could work since typically the communication is realtor to realtor and how do you affect the buyer's realtor?
how do you plant the seed in the buyer's realtors mind to mention to their client that new homes often end up more costly because of upgrades, extra costs that you didn't think about initially?
Perhaps you can discuss this with him/her?

The idea of just laying down and dieing on the price because of new construction is disturbing. We all might as well just give up on not buying houses and rent if we're all going to lose money to new construction because overdevelopment is everywhere!

I would paint the blue. Also I think the first photo of your family room looks crowded to me, the one from the kitchen area looks much larger. Do you also have a living room? I like the dining room picture since it tells me you have one, otherwise I would not have known. I think it is not the kitchen rug but the table cloth that throws people off.

I would have commented that Live Wires house was not the same quality as yours. It looks 25 years old.

In my area the same zip code can have the same size houses selling for 500 and 800, it really matters what block, what school and what type of house. We are not new construction though

Is the Sarah still a current model being built? You may want to hightlight that. There is nothing tacky or wrong with saying that you are saving them X by having upgrades. This builder is not your friend or relative, you do not owe him anything

You may want to consider some shrubs and flowers, your house looks naked. Even flowers in pots

Are you sure the buyers she is bringing into the house are qualified and looking in your range? They may just be sightseeing. I noticed locally when there was a lot for sale the brokers took me to their agency listings first, why split the commission when they had so much for sale

I want to add a thanks to those that mentioned changing the blue. We have a living room similar to the bedroom here; I was unsure about painting it since the paint is decent... After the input, I decided I will take on the last room in the house that didn't get paint, it will go a much lighter color, in the cream family.