If your Orlando home is sitting, price is the first place to look. But a few staging and touch-up moves can make a real difference too.

If your home has been sitting on the market a little longer than you'd like, you're not imagining it. We've gotten through our typical busy summer season here in Central Florida; sales have started to ebb and flow, demand is a little softer than normal right now, and interest rates have peaked. All of that means homes are sitting on the market a bit longer than they were. So let's talk about why that happens and, more importantly, what you can actually do about it.

Price is almost always the first culprit. At the end of the day, when a home sits, the major theme is usually that it's priced too high. In my opinion, 80% of marketing is price, and I've heard that from a lot of other folks in this business too. It's almost always the first indicator I look at. When a home is priced above where buyers see the value, they simply move on to the next one, and the listing starts to go stale. Getting the number right from the start matters more than anything else.

Staging makes a bigger difference than people think. That said, price isn't the only lever. There's more competition out there right now, so presentation matters. Having a stager come out at the very beginning can help a lot, and it's a service I provide, including for someone who dropped a previous listing and hired a new agent. When I say stager, I'm not talking about bringing in a truckload of furniture. It's more about moving things around, decluttering, and rearranging. Those are subtle little differences that can make a huge difference in how a home shows.

“When a home sits, the answer is almost always price, and price is fixable.”

A few small touch-ups go a long way. In today's world, buyers are a lot pickier, so you've got to go a little bit extra. That means taking care of a few more of those touch-up items. I'm talking about touching up paint here and there, taking care of some wood rot, getting rid of outdated fixtures, maybe swapping out some lighting. None of it is dramatic, but there are a lot of little things that can cause a home to sit longer when they're left undone. Knowing which fixes and repairs to make before listing can be the difference between a home that lingers and one that moves.

At the end of the day, a home sitting longer usually comes down to a combination of price and presentation, and both are fixable. If you by chance know someone in your world who's having a hard time getting a home sold, they'd love a second opinion, and I'd love to talk to them. Sometimes a fresh set of eyes and a few targeted changes are all it takes, which is exactly why a second opinion after a listing hasn't sold can be so valuable.

So if your home is sitting, or you know someone whose home is, reach out anytime. You can call or text me at 407-499-8993, email me at chris@mypinnaclehomes.com, or visit mypinnaclehomes.com. I'd be glad to take a look and put a plan together, and I look forward to hearing from you.