House isn't selling going on 4 years (square foot, mortgage company, condo, percent)
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In spite of the renter, you could still take pix as I said. It's not fraudulent to move furniture...cozy fireplace setting, etc. And drapes open for a view, living room sofa pushed back for the picture. And placement of the pix. House looking pic first, great kitchen, cozy den/family room. Even the bathroom sing/cabinet/nice mirror is a good one. It just helps with the impression. Your home is indeed beautiful and what a great natural setting and...what...1/2 mile to the sound and I guess access to the lake.
In spite of the renter, you could still take pix as I said. It's not fraudulent to move furniture...cozy fireplace setting, etc. And drapes open for a view, living room sofa pushed back for the picture. And placement of the pix. House looking pic first, great kitchen, cozy den/family room. Even the bathroom sing/cabinet/nice mirror is a good one. It just helps with the impression. Your home is indeed beautiful and what a great natural setting and...what...1/2 mile to the sound and I guess access to the lake.
'Well staged, pretty listing pictures' are like a resume. They only get potential buyers to look at the house, but, will not 'sell it' (or, like a resume, it may get one the interview, but, not the job!)
As I stated earlier, a 4-YEAR failed sales effort reveals a fatal flaw ... that cannot be covered-up with a wide-angled lens and a nice couch in front of a fireplace.
'Well staged, pretty listing pictures' are like a resume. They only get potential buyers to look at the house, but, will not 'sell it' (or, like a resume, it may get one the interview, but, not the job!)
This is true, but you gotta get 'em in the door, and good pictures and staging help with that.
It really isn't, thats what our realtor told us, that any enlisted that come looking for homes don't want a commute. .............
Enlisted don't buy houses. Maybe your agent is marketing incorrectly? Even officers rarely buy unless they know that they will be permanently stationed there, which is rare.
I have 2 friends who work at the sub base, but they are civilian employees. They make a boatload of money. That's where your marketing should be targeted. There are lots of civilian employees and they are staying put and they make enough to pay a mortgage, so they are the ones who buy. Not the ones who know they will be leaving in 2-3 years.
I agree with other posters who commented about the photos. Too many photos of the outside (#7 is a photo of just a tree - that's a little odd). No photos of the 2nd bath and not one photo of the bedrooms - even the master.
Looking at your listing online is where buyers get their first impression of your home - the photos need to be good!
Could you make a deal with the renter, that has been renting since 2010? Could she buy the place? I don't even know if it is possible, but maybe work with her to take it out from under you. She would have to pay full price but then you would not have your money tied up anymore. A realestate Lawyer would probably have to handle everything.
I am not saying this is even possible, I am just wondering if it is a possibility.
Could you make a deal with the renter, that has been renting since 2010? Could she buy the place? I don't even know if it is possible, but maybe work with her to take it out from under you. She would have to pay full price but then you would not have your money tied up anymore. A realestate Lawyer would probably have to handle everything.
I am not saying this is even possible, I am just wondering if it is a possibility.
Interior photos are very nice. But the exterior photos on the MLS are very confusing and they are the first several phtos. They are too many of them and they are too close up.
Need the 1st photo to be the exterior of the entire front of the home, facing the road.
It would be good to change agents if your current agent isn't getting action. Pick the top agent in town.
Short sale is when the bank agrees to allow you to sell the home for less than what you owe. These are more common these days because the market dropped. It dings your credit.
BIGGEST QUESTION...MARKET VALUE: What is the home worth today, as it sits???
My guess is you are priced too high else you would have sold in 4 years. Price it for the current value. If you have to hire a licensed appraiser for $300 (or so). Tell them you want to sell it and you need to find out the value so you can price it correctly to make the sale.
If there is a large gap between appraised price and your mortgage balance...that's when you discuss a short sale with your lender. It's like walking away for a foreclosure but slightly less ding on your credit, from what I understand. I realtor can explain better. Or google.
I like the house, and I didn't know one could buy a four bedroom house in Western Washington state for so little. In my opinion, it looks like a great house to retire to; quiet community, near golf, and close to the water for fishing.
This house is going to be hard to sell and it will be impossible to get top dollar if there is a tenant living there while it is for sale. I think that you and hubby should make a decision as soon as possible whether to keep it as a long term rental property or to sell it. If you keep it as a rental, you need to try to increase the rent while trying to refinance to get the payment down. You must also realize that even if you do all of that you may still have a negative cash flow for a long, long time.
If you decide to sell, you both need to get used to the idea that you may have to take a loss, and maybe a big one. I have been through the same, and if you really want to get rid of it, you have to get the idea of a loss through your head in the beginning so that you can price it competitively and not waste time and lose prospective buyers with a high listing price. I didn't do that and wasted a whole summer and fall by continuing to ask a high price. If selling is your choice, the place to start is with your tenant. Does your tenant want to buy? Can they buy? There is only one way to find out. Don't call a realtor, a lawyer, or a banker; get a mortgage broker from a mortgage company. You need a person who has been in this business for quite a while, a broker so good at getting one a mortgage he could probably get a dead dog a mortgage. Have them talk to the tenant and if they say it can't be done, you will know to move on and list it with a realtor.
The listing as it stands is lousy. The real estate agent should have her license revoked. It states four bedrooms, but how many baths? It gives the square footage of the house, but not the lot. Nowhere does it state the annual property taxes. How is the terrain? Flat? Hilly? Is there a grassy front or back yard? Is there any grass anywhere? Is there a yard at all? All of that information is very important to me if I were in the market looking. If prospective buyers have this information up front, they won't waste your time or an agent's time. Also, it wouldn't hurt to have on the listing a drawing of the property from overhead showing the locations of the house and garage on the property and their proximity to the street and neighboring houses. I have seen this on listings in some places. One should be able to look at a listing without visiting the property and know whether they would be interested, without any surprises. The listing pictures are terrible. One cannot get any idea of what the house looks like. I quoted from the above poster because their advice on the photos in the first three lines of their post is spot on. You need a full front picture to begin with, then a full back picture, a couple of side pictures. You can toss the picture of the big tree; how that got in there is beyond me.
Good luck.
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