How to tell if a Homeowner is not Serious about Selling
The home buying process in general can be a bit stressful. That stress, however, is generally well worth it once you find the perfect dream house. Unfortunately, there are sellers out there who are not actually that serious about selling their properties. There are few things as frustrating as trying to negotiate with a seller who was never serious to begin with. To avoid such a situation, keep your eye out for the following signs that the owner may not be serious about selling their house.
The seller's listing is questionable
If you notice that a real estate listing has disappeared and reappeared from the real estate market multiple times, it means that the seller is having trouble committing to putting their house up for sale. In some cases, the seller may simply be updating their listing, but if there are few changes made to the listing, then you can assume that it is an issue with the owner's commitment. If they cannot even decide whether or not to put their house up on the market, then there's a very good chance that you are not going to be able to get an offer accepted.
The home seller's home is in disarray
If you arrive at the property for a showing of the house and the home is in disarray, it means the seller simply did not care about making a good impression. A serious seller would clean and stage their house in order to impress potential buyers.
The asking price is way too high
You should always do a little research into whether the house is appropriately priced before speaking with the seller or the seller's real estate agent. If you notice that the house is priced much higher than some of the other homes for sale in the same neighbourhood, then there is likely one of two reasons for this. The seller either has an inflated idea of how much their house is actually worth or they are not sure that they actually want to sell their property. By pricing it too high, they will scare away most potential buyers, but if someone does bite, then they can justify selling it because of the fact that they are getting well above its probable market value.
The seller refuses to negotiate
Generally speaking, when a seller prices their house higher than it should be, it is because they know that buyers will attempt to negotiate. This gives sellers some room to negotiate without having to let go of their home for below what it is actually worth. If you try to negotiate with a seller to bring down the cost of something that more accurately represents the value of the home and they refuse to negotiate at all, it means that the seller probably is not very motivated to sell it.
The seller takes too long to get things done
The seller has a lot of control when it comes to how quickly things get done. If they are slow getting things done, then it is probably a sign of reluctance. Serious sellers will do everything that they can to speed up the process so that they can close the deal as quickly as possible. If a seller is dragging their feet when it comes to scheduling showings, scheduling inspections, performing required repairs or they keep forgetting or neglecting to do agreed-upon tasks, there is a good chance they are trying to sabotage their own deal.
These are signs that the homeowner is not serious about selling. There are many reasons why they may be listing their house but actually be reluctant about selling it. For example, maybe they are being convinced to sell by family members due to financial reasons and just are not ready to part with their home. Perhaps they decided to downsize but are having second thoughts. Whatever the reason might be, you will not want to waste your valuable time dealing with a seller that is not serious and committed to selling.
