The home is gorgeous. Looks like something you see in a magazine. Love the landscaping! Agree with Linda on too much red, and that a home that size should have a master downstairs or an elevator. Also, it's pretty expensive for most folks who need 5 bedrooms. Those could be some of the reasons it hasn't sold. Just a little too much house for many families. Hope it sells soon! Good luck to you!

Honestly, it's a lot like this listing in a different price range. Way too much paint, not just the red.

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3086143/honest-opinion?n=40

Like sushipup1 says.

Your back yard with the pool is spectacular. The interior is fall colors, and a bit dated imo. I would ask your realtor what he or she thinks the issue is. If it is the paint, it might be worth having the entire interior done in a soft greige or beige. I might also get some more contemporary light fixtures etc. Maybe spend 2% of the asking price to get this up to a current look.

It takes money to make money.

I agree paint should be toned down, yes people can paint, but many can't see past it.

It appears looking at similar for sales and solds, you are overpriced, I'd reduce at least $100k, maybe more. I've know you've done upgardes but buyers won't pay for them. Price it right and they'll pick you house over others.

I don't live in New Jersey, but unless New Jersey is vastly different than here, I would tone down the gold. The gold around the top of the foyer columns, and then the gold room and then some more gold. Also, I don't love chandeliers in kid's rooms I would kill those personally for some nice ceiling fans.

What a beautiful home! However, a grand home such as this is, needs to maintain it's 'air' of class, and 'colorful' doesn't do it. Painting the entire home a warm medium tan(not too light!)would not only bring continuity to the home, but add a TON of class IMO.

With a home in this price range, prospective buyers have the expectation of move in ready.

Delete picture 6. In your listing play-up the back yard early in the description and put at least the best backyard pic in the first 5. Tone down the colors, especialy in the main rooms. Nice house and I would think you are priced appropriately. Your primary lookers are probably families, looking for a move up and it wouldn't surprise me if you don't see more activity by mid summer when some of those have sold their existing homes.

I know the Marlboro NJ area as I had friends that used to live there. A gorgeous area. Your home is beautiful but if you want to sell it, it needs some updating and toning down some of it. Don't be afraid to spend some money to update and make it more salable. It will sell more quickly and for closer to asking.

Here's what I'd do.

As other's have said, the paint colors need to be toned down to a pretty tan color. I would look at a color such as BM Monroe Bisque HC-26 for most of the house, especially the red and orange rooms!

1. What a stunning yard and backyard. Gorgeous. Add lots of annuals to add color and then retake the backyard and front yard pics. Add some pots of color also alongside the stairs in front. Have your garden center help you create some pretty pots.

2. I would get rid of the gold on the columns in the front entry and anywhere else there is gold paint. It's dated looking.

3. Your front entry has 3 tones of paint. I would paint it all with one color (BM Monroe Bisque?). Keep the chair rail in white along with the columns and around the windows, but those square moldings on either side of the front door below the chair molding and up on the walls above the entries to the other rooms screams 1990's. Paint those to match the wall color.

4. See above for the moldings below the stair in the hallway as well as in any other room.

5. Swags and valances date a room. In your living room I'd remove the swag and valance on the windows and let the drapes hang naturally. Actually I might consider removing the dark drape and leaving just the lighter sheer drape.

6. I would consider changing the hanging fixture to something a bit more simple in the living room.

7. Get rid of the gold shelf hanging next to the window.

8. In the dining room, again paint all one color except for the main moldings. Get rid of the swags. If you can remove all that gold and white furniture, and find something a bit more in keeping with what a young family would like, you would have better luck in my opinion.

9. In your gorgeous kitchen picture, you show a garbage can. Get rid of it before taking a picture. With a home of your price, people want to think the garbage is in a cabinet. Even if it's not, don't emphasize that it isn't.

10. Again, paint the walls in your kitchen one color. Faux finishes like you have in your kitchen again date the home as does the two tone in the breakfast nook.

11. Again, take down that gold decoration over the sliding doors.

12. In the office as well as painting, I'd put in something lighter on the windows. Maybe some nice bamboo roller shades?

13. In the master bedroom as well as painting the ceiling white, I'd switch out the bedspread and drapes to something lighter and less heavy looking.

14. In my opinion the children's bedrooms look fine.

15. In the blue bathroom, I probably would paint the walls a lighter color but if the rest of the home was painted this room could stay.

16. In the bathroom with the wallpaper and the frilly shower curtain that is ripped, I'd get rid of the curtain and put a simple solid color cloth curtain in.

Additionally, I would put some fresh flowers in vases throughout the home when it's being shown.

Lastly, I think having a stager come in might help in terms of rearranging some of the furniture to show off the house to its best.

When I sold my home on Long Island, I spent money to repaint, fix and stage. That was during the recession. My house was the only home in my neighborhood back in 2010 that actually sold and it sold for a good price then.

I agree a little staging and then new pics would help, some of the furniture (interior and exterior) looks lonely and out of place.

Thank you *all* so much for the opinions and great advice! Cpartist fantastic detailed suggestions! We are already painting over the 'faux' paint on the kitchen wall and agree and are going to some of your other suggestions, while looking into a stager as several mentioned. The foyer and master appear much more gold in the photos than in actuality, more like a caramel color - but agreed not quite universal appeal. Was thinking to tone it down a bit by painting the shadow boxes underneath all white in the foyer. Considering repainting the office and downstairs bath a soft neutral beige. Will change out the master bedding - it's seen better days anyway. Upstairs kids bath is dark for a reason (several children, light colors didn't work.) Also like the idea of painting under the chair rail same color vs contrast. Will lighten up and be easier on the eye. Will keep you posted - thanks a million!!

I live very close to you, as a matter of fact I just went past your development this afternoon. Aside from the too bright colors of the rooms, the one downside I see is the location right off 18. We do have many highways criss-crossing our area, and many properties back up to these highways, but when I was looking for a home in the area, or when my kids were looking at homes, we avoided all those near 18 and 9, as well as some major cross streets. Buyers will usually look for quieter locations as a first choice. Your property is lovely, but I do think the price needs to be lowered to make it more appetizing.

Happy to help and good luck on the sale. If you are close to the busy roads, it will be a more difficult sale but if you are priced well, even that should sell quickly.

I just have on question. Lately I see a lot of people talking about X dollars per square foot. That has always been the price of the dwelling only and that wouldn't change no matter where it is. But now we're including the land too?

Why the sudden interest in that factoid?

Yes, people look at price per sq ft, of course a one acre lot vs a ten acre lot changes that. I compare like kind, also usable land, here we have lots with unbuildable land so it doesn't increase much for larger lots. In my city one can't build/hardscape more than 40%, if the lot is hilly, buildable land can be very small.

It can be useful...or not.

The house I just sold was in a development that was built up over a 6 or 7 year period by around 5 different builders. So the homes were quite similarly finished, and the lots were similar size. So price per square foot had some meaning. People who put a lot of extra into their homes did not see much value when it came time to sell. I watched the sales over a 3 year period prior to selling my house and homes on the low end of the price per square foot spectrum sold quick, regardless of style of the home. And those priced 15% or more above the average never sold. Even though they might have had extensive landscaping, a pool, or fancy finishes. True story.

In my new area the metric is basically meaningless.

Agree with all the detailed suggestions in cpartist's post.

Unfortunately, the back landscaping is a quantum degree better than the front. Perhaps your listing could showcase the back yard instead of the front of the house?

The lighting is very heavy and ornate looking, with ochre colored globes. At the very least I would switch out the globes for white /alabaster ones. For a more significant update I'd change those fixtures to simple black wrought iron ones.

And, although your back garden is absolutely fabulous, the photo from the deck looks like it is a from completely different house and I would not use it in the listing as it only emphasizes the lack of privacy in that area.

Good luck selling your home!

Windows look very plain/cheap for your asking price.

I'd like a photo showing the grand foyer as you enter the front door. It looks like you've got a double curved staircase...that would give a nice wow factor.

What feedback did you get from the showings?

How many homes in your neighborhood/price range are selling per month? How many are on the market currently?

I also see you have listed it for about $170K over the Zillow estimate. While people always disagree on the accuracy of Zillow, buyers often check out this number when house hunting; and it influences their decisions about the price to value relationship. You may have to make even further price reductions to be competitive.

I thought it was overpriced by viewing price per sq ft for nearby solds. I know those homes may not be as nice or in same neighborhood. I never look at zillow estimate.

" Lately I see a lot of people talking about X dollars per square foot.
That has always been the price of the dwelling only and that wouldn't
change no matter where it is."

I do not believe this to be true at all. While construction costs on a dollars per square foot might be the same for two identical homes built at the same time in the same area, when it comes to re-sale that perceived value per square foot can be quite different due to perceived neighborhood desirability or local "factors," such as busy highway, train tracks, next door to fire house, etc.

Price per sq ft varies greatly per house. I'm still amazed a house can sell for $200-300 per sq ft. I can't build a house for that, more like double then there is the cost of land.

Thank you again for all of the input! Hello blubird, - Rt 18 can not be seen or heard from our house at all and we don't back to it. It's extremely quiet in our developement and we have an enormous natural tree buffer in our backyard as well. That said, you are correct in that there are some houses on the other side of the street and at the very end of our long cul de sac that are closer to Rt 18 or back to it, and those houses will sell for less. The house directly behind us sold for $300,000 more than what we are asking. You do raise an important point - some buyers will look at the map, and not drive into the neighborhood to see where the house is situated. On the map it looks like we are much closer than we are - perhaps a point of confusion to be addressed for sure. Kudzu9 I believe Zillow estimate ties to tax assessment which is incorrectly showing on zillow - assessed at over $1.2m - zillow is showing $1.1. We were at $1.3 and appealed a few years ago. Weedyacres, thanks for photo input, good suggestion we do have unique staircases. Many houses in our price range and higher - only home to go under contract in past few months was a home that started out in our price range, but dropped into the $1.1 range (Nice 6000 sq ft house, but no backyard , no patio, no pool, very steeply sloped and heavily wooded lot, at the bottom of a large hill, higher taxes and well water vs public water). Other than that market seems slow. Feedback has been very positive. Some buyers need to sell their house first before considering an offer - that is a factor of course.

Higher end homes do take longer to sell, for sure. DH just closed escrow on he and his ex's 1.6 million home. Took a year to sell! Some weird offers in there but finally!! Money is in the bank today! Good luck!