Good pics and ad. Are the ones selling single story though? Does yours have a bed and bath on main level? Many 55 plus people have elderly parents that stay with them that can't do stairs. If so, have agent put that in ad.

Big bedroom and full bath plus separate shower on the main level. Big bedroom and full bath on second floor plus plumed for bath on full walkout lower. Single and multi and two stories in development. Another home on the market is one level, full finished basement and $469,000. She has also had very few lookers and been on the market for a year. She is not willing to lower her price.

There has to be some other reason. Airport close? Train? Far from shopping?

House looks great. Is that hoa fee per month? Or is that for the year?

HOA per month, taxes are high , $9k per year. That's what we get for living in the Nutmeg State. Our governor is not well liked and many people are leaving because of the high cost of living, but for many others it's not an issue. For many down country people (Fairfield) we are an absolute bargain, but unless other areas know of our resort style living and gated community, we may not have this issue. Most buyers in our community are not locals. I also must add, every person who lives or has lived here adores our community. I think we need more exposure and not sure what we need (realtor) need to do to have that happen.

As someone who lived in Fairfield County..yes, your wonderful place is a bargain, for sure.

It might be the stairs..

And HOA is pretty high too. Not the worst of course, but high

We didn't put an offer on a gorgeous place (it was a foreclosure in 2010-now it's back to high 700's again, because it's a condo..otherwise would be more of course)-partially because they had an insane HOA fee, 800 a month-gate, concierge, all that jazz..

But I think -it's more stairs issue than anything else.

Together with this-I think you'll find your buyer. Will just take more time...

I agree it's probably the stairs issue since it's a 2 story house. I don't think those HOA fees are too high for the area you're in.

It's lovely - but I think you have way too much furniture! It makes the home look small and cramped. :(

Imstill -- I'm laughing at your comment on the place having too much furniture. You should have seen it before my realtor had me take TONS out before the listing went on. She is an absolute minimalist when it comes to furniture etc. we even had to take garbage pails out of our bathrooms and have nothing on the kitchen counters!
I was very happy after we removed so much and love the feel of the house even more :)
That said, we might just have to do a second purge and get new photos. The outside ones were just updated.

Your sun/screen porch looks like it's jam-packed with furniture, to me. And also the living area with the huge sofa. Is that a loft area with two sofas, a chair/ottoman, two tables, and a storage unit?

Ditto on the stairs comments. I think it looks and shows well. Like the artwork.

1) Photo #12 makes the living space look very small.

2) In photo #17, the tub has no stairs or easy access for a senior to climb in.

3) Too much furniture in several photos. #10 looks super cluttered and blocking the doorway.

4) Photo #11 gives me a nice shot of an irrelevant couch but no view of the fireplace poking out from the corner.

5) Massive amounts of dead air space around the loft, and those high windows will be impossible for a senior to maintain without paying a window washer.

6) I can't tell which bedroom is downstairs.

7) Why no close ups of the kitchen?

Hope for best - Just went back through the photo to see what many of you saw. Wow, I never realized that the fireplace was not in any of the photos. I can also see how the photos make some areas look cluttered. Some could be from the wide angle lens, and that's not a good thing.
The room with the bed is the main floor master. The office you see is the 2nd bedroom and that's upstairs.
I think the photos were to point out the openness of the main floor . I also agree that the kitchen should be hi-lighted more.
We will be touching base with our realtor and hash out more ideas. Thanks

Did your RE agent use a professional photographer? They should. It makes all the difference.

Wow, I'm speechless. Your house and property are gorgeous. In Toronto it would sell for $3 million after a bidding war.

I'll agree that you should get rid of another 25 to 30% of everything in the place and get professional pictures.

Make sure that it was inputted into the MLS correctly... make certain that any particular criteria that may be used to search for is not ommitted.

Ncrealestateguy is correct on pointing this out. It is imperative that the seller check the MLS information for accuracy. All kinds of things can happen if there is an error.

Realtors are famous for entering bad information or omitting important information. For example, a realtor enters the zip code of a listing incorrectly. It's a big deal because that zip code may drive a search engine. A bad address, number of bedrooms or age of house could create problems, too. The list is endless.

If a realtor enters the pictures incorrectly, the bathroom with the toilet seat up may be the first thing everyone sees. It doesn't make a good impression or causes buyers to go to the next listing. If a realtor writes a poor description with numerous errors in grammar and punctuation, it may turn off buyers.

The point is to check your listing very carefully and bring any errors to the agents attention.

I looked up your town on Zillow. It looks like you are the 2nd highest price home in that zip code. In addition to, there is quite a bit of competition in your 55+ community...between the builder and other sellers. Have you pulled up the listing of the other sellers? They have been on the market for quite some time too.

How did you arrive at your listing price? It really should be based on comparable recent sales. It looks like your house is priced at the same price you bought it for at the top of the market. You were likely able to enjoy no maintenance costs for replacing roof, HVAC, appliances, carpet, etc.. The appliances would now be assumed to have about 3 years before the new owner would want to replace them. The HVAC will be figured to be needing replaced by their buyers. You cannot use new builds as comparables....think about how much a new car looses when you drive it off the lot. There is a premium that goes with having everything brand new, picking builder material choices, choosing your own paint colors, etc..

Unfortunately, the market tanked right after you bought this house, it has just reached those prices recently in most areas. You said your area has not rebounded yet. One of the similar properties to yours sold in 2010 (lower point in housing market), and it looks like they are selling at a considerable loss.

I would recommend to look at your competition. Then imagine how much more spacious the rooms would look in photos of your house if you didn't have a picture hanging between every window/piece of furniture/opening. Your main living spaces need about 90% of the pictures removed. The sunroom needs to just have the table (with fresh flowers) and the love seat. Remove at least one of those bookcases in the main living space, preferably all 3, and move a different dresser type furniture piece over to that wall with a single flower arrangement. Remove all accessory pieces off tall furniture pieces and kitchen cabinets. Remove empty vase from dining table or put flowers in it. Move living/sitting room striped chair so that it is not in the walkway...makes it seem as though there is not enough room for furniture. Remove half of the lights in the master bedroom.

Is that library room photo after the pool in the common area? If so remove it, the amount of books on the bookcases is very cluttered.

Think of putting your house on the market as moving out. People moving in don't want all the space already filled up. They want to know they can move in with what they have and add to it for the next 7 years. All the photos/furniture/accessories show that your house is already full.

In addition, you need to know what properties have sold for this year....and how long they took to sell. If you want to sell faster than your competition, you need to be priced better or have a better product.

Briana Harvey - Thank you for you in depth analysis of our property. Wow! We really appreciate.
Our small town is mostly blue collar, old and charming. The housing prices in the town are very low as that is how the Valley towns are. People in our gated community have moved from Fairfield County to enjoy the next phase of their lives, much lower property taxes, cheaper home prices, a close community atmosphere and resort style living.
Our home was 3rd highest until one of the other resale sold. They will be closing 7/1 at very close to their asking price of $469,000. Their house is the same model as ours with more upgrades. They originally paid close to $600k. It has a heated sun room instead of porch, full finished basement with bath, br, bar and FR and is walkout like ours. They also have a large lot and are directly across from the clubhouse , a plus or minus. The other home is like ours but no second floor, but has the finished basement. She paid $525k and is in no hurry to move. Our home was a spec. Had we built ours from scratch, it would have cost $550k, but because of the market, the developer wanting to finish the block and the developer about to go under (a shock to our community when the bankruptcy was announced less than a year later ) we were able to negotiate the price we did, plus add more upgrades. We were very fortunate as they continue to build the three models before things crashed and still sold them for much more than ours and eliminated many items that were standard and made them upgrades, i.e. Fireplace, tray ceiling.
Price was determined by several factors, besides recent home sales which was over a year ago. Part of the higher price was due to several high accepted offers on the home that is about to sell. They were around $500k. Both offers fell though and one came back after the last price reduction. Because of that, our agent was optimistic and we listed at $429k. That said, we are sitting here, lowered $10k and recently added 1 year common charges worth aprox $4,400, paid and full home owner warranty. I also removed more items and had photos retaken. The agent is using a professional photographer. It's been interesting. I am still trying to get the agent to make the photos consistent as they are appearing as "Here it is, and now it's not"! Frustrating :(
Our agent is the top agent in her company (very large) and in RE. That said, she is the top listing agent not selling agent. We have had many conversations and I have asked her to do may things she has not suggested for whatever reason. We are listed until the end of September.

If you don't sell by September, I'd find another agent. Find the agent who is the "hungriest", not the top listing or selling agent.

It's been my experience that a lot of top listing agents are good at getting listings, but are too busy to offer custom service.

Success (as in being able to finish through and close the deal) usually doesn't happen with the wheely-dealy high roller agents. You need to find someone who is motivated to sell YOUR house and will fight for your best interest.

You have a beautiful house. Move it to Syracuse and we will buy it. I bet that you are hurt by the limited market for 55+ developments. We are downsizing and building a similar home at a similar price point here. But we wont be in a 55+ community which means that our eventual resale market will likely include young families, empty nesters and retirees. Probably anybody except the family with 3+ kids and/or middle or high schoolers - houses and lots are too small to be a good fit for those families. So I bet that that's a problem. If the developer is still selling to downstaters, how is he finding them? Where is he advertising? Are you advertising in the same places? Good luck.

OK! Just got the new listing posted and redid the write-up for my house. I did listen to all you had to say. I decluttered the place as much as I was able, got rid if some curtains and a few more pieces of furniture, but left up the paintings (I know, I know!). I had them place the listing photos in a different order so it shows as you are walking through the home.

One of our competitors is closing 7/1 at just under his list price of $460k. While the other is still on the market. The owner has no intention of dropping the price. The model (use to be the sales office) at $399k is still sitting there. That particular home is right at the entrance to the community next to the main road and isolated from the rest of the community. It also has no upgrades. That said, it is an absolute steal for anyone wanting to live here.

My agent was very agreeable to my changes and said more photos can be taken if we want. I'm giving it a few weeks to see how it plays out. We are supposed to have ads in our down country paper this and next weekend.

Let me know what you think! I'm not adverse to criticism.

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/11-Laurel-Rdg_Beacon-Falls_CT_06403_M44420-54380?ex=CT587417393

I definitely see improvement! This time I'm starting to feel like I know a bit more about the house. Your description is much more appealing.

Here are some thoughts for you to consider...

-- You should change the word expansive in the second sentence of your description. It looks too much like expensive.

-- Granite counters in your third sentence needs to be countertops.

-- Are you still offering a deal on the HOA thing? I don't see any mention of it.

-- Photo 3 shows a glass table behind the front door. I'd be really scared that if I swing the door open too much I'll break that table. Either scoot that table down or put it on the other side. Better yet, move it out of the shot while you're taking photos and then put it back if you must.

-- Photo 4 still shows an inch or two of that chair sticking out in the doorway.

-- Photo 6 does not help you at all. Delete it.

-- There is a puzzling abundance of lamps in every room. Take Photo 16. I see three lamps and five recessed ceiling lights just in that little space, despite the room being flanked by so many big windows. Then look at Photo 19. Why do we have an overhead light plus two big lamps out in the sunroom?

-- Speaking of Photo 19, it's awkward to see a painting hung on what was clearly an outside wall that still has the exterior siding.

-- I did a Google search for your listing. Zillow and Trulia still have the old information. Buyers have to go out of their way to find a website with the new page.

-- Most websites are comping you to far cheaper houses. Your own link here from realtor.com makes no consideration for the higher cost in your community. Trulia does at least reference real comps, but even then it says you are priced high. Your agent needs to be figuring out how that other seller got around it.

Good luck, my friend. I hope this all works out for you.

I don't like pic # 9. With the way it's shown, it makes the space look too narrow and it makes it look like the couch is too far from the fireplace and you don't need it

Also I don't think you need anything on top of your cabinets. It just highlights the fact they don't go to the ceiling plus my eye goes right to all the stuff up there and not to the lovely kitchen cabinets.

Also don't think you need pic #12. It's enough of the same area and that one doesn't highlight the room as well as the others. The first thing I see in this one is the white lamp shade.

In pic #16 remove the table on the right. Why is it there?

19 and 20 are terrific. Makes me want to go sit out there with a glass of iced tea.

Other than those few minor ones, I think the pictures are terrific now. Best of luck.

Also I don't think you need anything on top of your cabinets. It just highlights the fact they don't go to the ceiling plus my eye goes right to all the stuff up there and not to the lovely kitchen cabinets.

I thought about this too. Kitchen looks cluttered.

Does your realtor do video presentations of the property? Mine hired a guy with a drone who did video of the exterior from all sides including from a couple hundred feet up. The guy also used a gopro and videoed the inside. For people far away who cant swing by and look at the place maybe that would help?

I dont know if you should lower your price or not but it is pretty much the only variable that you have complete control over. And a low price will overcome many other shortcomings.

Any house will sell if the price drops low enough. It takes no talent to make something cheaper, and it doesn't mean the best possible deal will be achieved for the seller. A discount may be good advice in this case, but that's not the same as brilliant marketing.

I have to agree somewhat with Hope For Best.

Our condo went on the market and almost immediately all 10 other condos in our building that were for sale started a race to the bottom with cutting their prices. Week after week they cut their price. We put our condo on the market in January, (in FL that's prime selling season) and we had received one lowball offer.

In the middle of March we cut our price by 2%. We sold it less than a month later to the person who lowballed us after agreeing on a very good price. In fact we still wound up with one of the highest prices ever for a single unit in that building.

The other condos eventually did sell (except for 2 I believe) but at greatly discounted prices. Prices that were more in line with what prices were in 2011-12 than in 2015. What made the difference?

Well first ours was completely gutted and redone so it was completely move in ready. Secondly we had an excellent agent who did a great job marketing our condo, from the write up to the pictures to her promotional materials. She was on top of it from start to finish.

It's a good looking place. Nice amenities. I would buy it if it was West Coast. But then if it was here it would be 800k.

Good luck.

Updated - we are under contract and with only 6 showings!!! A couple walked into our house and fell in love at first look. They had a deposit to build one of the new ones and removed the deposit they had on it. They came from expensive down country, had no issues with taxes or common fees also have already sold their house. Yippee!!! I will truly miss our beautiful home and amazing neighbors but am ready to start our next chapter.

Congratulations! Happy Endings are great!

Happy Ending. This is a good example of a buyer that wasn't willing to wait. They had an immediate need.

Congratulations and good luck to you.

10 weeks on the market seemed like an eternity

Fingers crossed that the closing goes smoothly. 10 weeks is pretty good - I think the definition of a 'normal' market is 3-6 months between listing and contract.

I think you did great.

Awesome! Keeping these fingers crossed!