Beautiful! I'll be there tomorrow...*lol*

What has the price recently been reduced to? And, if you haven't had it on the market yet...uhm...WHY and WHEN was the price reduced?

Your pics are gorgeous, your copy is fine by me, (although some will tell you to only focus on the house, but...I would like that info were I a buyer)

I bet it will sell quickly!

~Christina

First, I'll tell you what I love - the Tudor style and exterior shots plus the local pictures. I hate to tell you though that most of the interior pics will be a turn-off to most buyers. Too much (fake?) wood paneling and wallpaper. The house looks very dated and most buyers are just going to see a lot of work - stripping wallpaper and replacing or painting the paneling. There are also waaay too many family photos and collectibles. I suggest you either have a stager take a look at your house, or if you are up to doing it yourself check out The Complete Idiot's Guide to Staging Your Home to Sell On the plus side, the house looks very clean and relatively uncluttered.

I have to agree with terriks. The exterior is gorgeous and enticing, but the inside is a disappointment because of all the wallpaper. I'm not fond of the bleached kitchen cabinets or busy lino.

I like the floorplan and if it were severely neutralized, I would want to consider buying it. As it is right now, I wouldn't even come look because of the work that would be involved.

I'm not a fan of the outside. They were popular in a town we have a business in, I can remember them going up. I'm not sure I've ever been on the inside of one...

My 1st thoughts were the work that would eventually be needed. The family room would need the paneling down. The foyer while I love the wallpaper, the floor is the killer for me. It looks like tile we had in the waiting room of the gas station. I love the kitchen, that might bring me in.

Overall, the house looks nice but as was mentioned; looks like a lot of work and at this point in my life, not what we are looking for. I might go walk the house and even fall in love with all of the floral paper but in the end, probably would pass.

Looks gorgeous to me, but then again, my entire house could fit in your Master Bedroom / Bath.

When you take the outdoor pictures, close the garage door and have the cars out of the shot.

Remove all pets from the photos. Some people refuse to even view a house with a pet.

Ummm First, that's a lot of dark, dated paneling. Take personal photos down. You want people to imagine this as their home, not think of it is as your house. Turn off the TV (or get it out of the shot, it makes the room look awkward). The light fixture looks to be a late 60s, early 70s production.

In the fireplace, take down all the photos and clutter. Add only a few choice pieces to enhance. You don't need a second shot of that room as there is nothing architectural to be featured.

Your foyer is going to turn off a lot of people. I am no fan of wallpaper. In your house, it screams "dated", and it doesn't match the floor. Take it down and paint a neutral color. People will be walking out before they even have an opportunity to see the rest of your house.

Clear the kitchen counters and retake the photos. Leave the coffee pot or a bowl of fruit.

The office study needs to be straightened up.

Wow, your master bedroom bath should be a great selling feature. Get rid of the exercise bike and all the personal items around the tub. For the photo, if the stairs are movable remove them from the shot. Same thing with the double sink photo - get rid of the personal items.

I have to tell you that some parts of your house I would kill for! The built -ins & the interior doors are outstanding. The rest .... not so much. Your house is extremely personalized. When I look at it, I see WORK. The wallpaper makes me think of days and days (as opposed to hours) of striping, patching, sanding and painting. Unless your walls are a mess, please consider having most of the wallpaper removed and your interior painted a neutral color.

The paneling screams "dated, and what are they hiding". Maybe if the rest of the room was light and bright it would help neutralize this?

You seriously need to declutter. You have so many "things" I could see people getting caught up in looking at your stuff and ignoring the house.

Remember that when you actually list, you'll want to use your best 6-8 photos to entice people in.

The Wrongs: Too many photos, no one has any reason at all to call for an appointment. They have seen the ENTIRE house.

All that info about the house, its features, its surrounding area, and no mention of the most important thing that buyers want to know "HOW MUCH!?"

The RIGHTS: Nice write up, good info about the area.

You're on the right track about presentation, but you have just essentially given buyers a way to discount the house because of all the pictures.

Since you asked for honest opinions; my honest opinion about your days on market is you're going to be on the market for quite a while. Buyers typically will pay more for a house before they will buy something (especially in your price point as I assume this is not a first time homebuyer home in your area)that needs work. As a buyer, I love to buy homes that I can "redo" to my liking. I'm not into new construction and can see "beyond" normal cosmetic updates, however, your house seemed overwhelming to me in the "work" department. Every room needed something. You have some sort of wallpaper that would have to be removed in almost every room of the house. I think I counted 8 different wall papers. Each room had different flooring, I counted 9 different floorings between linoleum, carpeting, tile and wood. You have dark wood on some doors and trim and white on others. There is no continuity whatsoever in the house.

I think if you are serious about getting this house sold, you should have all the wallpaper professionally removed, and think about changing your kitchen lino which seems to go into the hallway, laundry room and possibly the foyer into something not quite so busy.(Entry foyer included if it leads to the kitchen). You need to establish some kind of flow and continuity in this house.

I like the write up on the listing site. The one on the other site, not so much. It's my experience that the only people who talk about crime rates are the people who are fearful of crimes in their neighborhoods. Your repeated mention of it makes me think your neighborhood is potentially unsafe.

The house is aesthetically dated, but looks to be beautifully maintained. I would emphasize the quality of construction (sounds like it's good, you make mention of the 2x6 framing) and reduce the number of photos. Also, just say the fridge is built-in. People know what that is. I would also consider posting a floorplan because I suspect your house has generous rooms and a good layout. And, quite frankly, the decor isn't going to sell it for you.

If you are open to changes, the first thing I would do is remove the family photos on the family room walls. People don't do that anymore - family photos go in standing frames and are displayed more sparingly. Thse photos just scream 1970's. The other thing I would consider is switching out some of the light fixtures and doing general neutralizing (maybe remove the wallpaper), but I don't think you should knock yourself out or spend alot. You will either sell to someone who *wants* to re-do everything, or a retiree who loves it as it is.

I love the mature landscaping & the site looks beautiful. Once I get to the house itself though...my feelings change.

I agree that the house needs overall updating/modernizing & that it's likely to languish on the market if listed in "as is" condition. I actually groaned when I saw all the wallpaper & flooring materials. Because I think it's going to be difficult to update one room without making the rest look even more dated, I'd recommend pricing the house accordingly. Pricing is going to be your 'new best friend', so to speak. If you list at a price point reflecting your houses's need for updating, I think it will sell easily. You've got a beautiful site in a spectacular location.

I can see past photos & cluttered wall units but think your house would present better if you seriously decluttered (remove about 75%). It looks like you've lived there for quite a while & 'stuff' just sorta builds up...as in, "Hmmm, what to do with this picture? Well, I'll just squeeze it onto the top of this credenza!" Hey, we're all the same so please don't feel alone!

Question...What is the material on the laundry room walls?
It looks like some type of plastic sheet-paneling? If so, that's also going to scream 1960-1970s.

After you've decluttered, reshoot the pictures. Choose the six best for the website. Include one exterior, one or two of the kitchen, the master bedroom (or, master bath), family room or living room, & one of the backyard.

Also, there should be no evidence of your great St. Bernard. Many people won't purchase a house where pets have lived for a variety of reasons.

One more thing....what is the house priced at? All I could find was "significantly less than $600,000". That tells me nothing & I found it very irritating.

/t

I think it looks great, EXCEPT for the wallpaper and paneling. Those two things would keep me away, well the wallpaper for sure. It looks like there's wallpaper in every room!

I sold my mom's house that had wallpaper in the kitchen and both bathrooms in 2 days. However, I completely decluttered it and staged it and it was a very desirable house in many ways. The new owners have since stripped all the wallpaper.

I don't know how much work you want to do or what your area is like but you need to declutter and stage your pictures. This would cost nothing to very little and make a huge difference.

You can always move things like your exercise bike out of the way for the pictures and then put it back. Your wall unit in the den needs serious straighening and you need to pare back the books in the bookcases. People here have made excellent suggestions so I'm not going to repeat all of them.

I would suggest that you strip the wallpaper in the entry and paint it a warm cream or beige. As for the paneling, lots of people paint it now a days. Again, go for a neutral warm cream and take down all the pictures.

The floor in the kitchen wouldn't be my choice but a vinyl floor is easy to replace, I wouldn't worry about it unless you want to replace it.

Good luck!

I forgot to mention the foyer. I thought it was extremely busy with the reddish tile, busy wallpaper and dark wood doors. Nothing matches, in fact, everything clashes. This will be the first impression of your home when people walk in. They will see how gorgeous it is on the outside and then be astounded when they walk into that foyer.

That big unit in the living room takes over the entire room. The couch looks like it's crammed in front to make room for it.

We bought this house and it had *some* wallpaper that we figured was manageable to remove. If it had wallpaper throughout, we would have passed. It took us an entire weekend to remove it from the kitchen and one bedroom. I couldn't imagine tackling the removal from a home your size and with the foyer turnoff as the first impression, all that wallpaper would be the final straw.

His price is listed here. Your description is rather wordy.

$344,900 for 3000 st ft (the photos make it seem larger than 3000 sq ft)

How in-line is your price with recent comps? Have you taken into account how dated your house is with that price? I see you just lowered your price $15K. Maybe it is time for a new set of comps? I was actually shocked to see your house was built in 1979.

Counter offers welcome.
That phrase says to me.... "hmmmm They know they are priced high, how low can I go?" To others it may make you seem like a motivated buyer. YMMV

You have a load of hits on your listing site. Have you had a lot of viewings?

I didn't realize you were FSBO, and my thoughts about your pbase page when I 1st saw it was that you posted that link so that you could get better feedback; I didn't realize they were the main pictures of your house.

I have to say you have way too many pictures.
The description on the FSBO site is too wordy as was mentioned - you lost me by the time I got to Master Bedroom with lavatory/dressing area..

You should try doing a bulleted list instead.

I went to realtor.com and put your zip in, there are no houses for sale in your price range and I did not get any hits until I changed the price to $100k w/ 4 beds 2 baths.

If you're serious about selling, I don't see how you can do it yourself unless you pay to get an MLS number so that realtor.com picks it up. If it was me, I would interview a few agents, then choose one. They can help you best with pricing / selling the home.

The highest price house is:
$164,900
4 Bed, 2 Bath
2,800 Sq. Ft.
2 Acres
Year Built: 1960

Here is a link that might be useful: highest price house

I just took another look at the pictures. What jumped out at me this time was the 'red' deck. That starburst pattern is decidedly NOT tudor & looks odd with the house. It would be less noticeable if painted/stained the same color as your house trim. The old deck could be painted/stained at the same time so the two match.

/t

I think the house looks very nice and well designed, although I agree it screams remodel me. Even though the house is clearly dated, it looks as though its been very well cared for and maintained. I really don't think there is much you can do. I certainly would not start changing things unless you are willing to go all the way. To bring you house up to date I would guess it would take somewhere between $40k and $65k. As someone that has remodeled many homes I see a lot of potential with your house.

I also have to comment that you local area photos are stunning. They make me want to live there. I am looking for a house in the mountains right but no further north then North Carolina. Seeing those pictures makes me that more anxious to find something.

My thanks to all of you who posted comments, both good and bad. I noticed that the wallpaper in my home got some of the most frequent and critical remarks and it's left me wondering about something. Is wallpaper no longer in vogue in new or remodeled homes or is it that my particular wallpaper is not to the liking of most of you? I also realize that the paneled family room is dated but my thoughts on that is to either paint the paneling a neutral color or rip off the paneling, put up sheetrock and then paint. I also want to install engineered wood flooring in that room and perhaps extend it in to the foyer where, I admit, the tile color is also dated. Another area of critical comments was due to my home having so much carpeting. Has carpeting also gone out of style or do I just have too many rooms with carpet? I appreciate all of you who took time to look at my photos and offer your opinions. BTW, the Saint Bernard that appeared in at least one photo and brought about a comment or two that some people wouldn't even consider buying a home where a dog had been passed away on June 10 much to my hurt. I'm in the process of cleaning up all traces of his presence here. That is, everywhere but in my heart!

Here is a link that might be useful: My home for sale

Wallpaper hasn't been "in vogue" for at least 10 years. I think that your plan to tear out the paneling is a good one, but if you want a budget solution, painting it a warm neutral would work also. Wood flooring is another good idea. Many people dislike carpet, especially in the common areas of a house. I'm sorry to hear about your beloved dog passing away :(

Ralph - I'm glad you took the comments in the spirit they are intended, and that is to truly help.

Regarding your wallpaper, I think it's a little of both. It's overkill. It's everywhere and it's froo froo floral. There's just too much of it. Even removing most of it will help, but if you remove most, you should remove all because most people just don't want to deal with any.

I can't remember the carpet, but if it's old, then that can hinder the sale of your home. In your neck of the woods, I don't think carpet is out of style. I'm in AZ and people keep it to a minimum here in favour of tile solely because of the heat. You're going to have to check with local custom with respect to your carpet.

You can get away with painting the paneling a warm neutral colour. The most important thing is to get rid of all that wallpaper and possibly the lino in the kitchen. That's pretty dated too.

I'm so sorry about your dearly departed dog. They are a part of the family and it's tough when they leave us.

Ralph, glad to see you've checked back in & understand comments are geared to help you see your house through a reasonably broad group of collective eyes.

Yes, wallpaper is out of style & the only place I know where strong florals still work are with a true-to-period English inspired decor & then only in quite small doses such as a floral upholstered wing-back. Removing the wallpaper will help your house sell...no doubt about it.

Continuity of flooring would also help. My recommendation would be to replace the entire first floor with wood including the kitchen. Then, purchase one or two area rugs for appropriate places. Upstairs, if the carpet is in good condition...leave it...although it should be steam cleaned. Carpeting upstairs will not be viewed as "dated".

Painting the paneling a neutral color will be fine so that's a place to save time, money, & effort in preparing for sale.

Don't forget to declutter! I was serious when I suggested removing 75% of the "stuff" on horizontal surfaces. Since you're planning on moving anyway consider it early packing. The decluttering process will makes your house appear more spacious. When people see lots of clutter it seems to generally induce feelings of, "Gosh, there must not be enough storage available in this house."

And, of course, none of the above matters a whit if your pricing is inconsistent with your area. Sitting down with a good local REALTOR & reviewing recent sold comps will help establish a reasonable price point. With few precious pockets of exceptions it is a buyer's market now for residential real estate. The boom years are becoming an increasingly distant memory.

I'd also like to express my condolensces for the loss of your St. Bernard. Our pets carve a place in our hearts & their deaths leave a hole.

Good luck with your sale.

Tricia

The outside looks great.

As for the inside: Get rid of the paneling. Don't just paint over it. The buyer may want to paint, and shouldn't have to worry about what's underneath. I had panelling in my den, and got many negative remarks when I was selling, years ago. Also, like other posters said, get rid of the family pictures.

Wallpaper has been out for a while but seems to be making a come-back in high, high end homes (eek!). It will take years to trickle down to the masses (and never for me). Wallpaper is very personalized, much more so than paint. You want a prospective buyer to thing of your house as heir home, hence all the advice about depersonalizing and decluttering.

Yes, carpet is out of date too. Many people still enjoy it in their bedrooms, however. Cohesiveness of flooring is a nice way to create flow, but not absolutely necessary.

Whatever you do, may sure the returns outweigh the costs. If an investment of $10K - $15K results in a faster sale & near your price, it is worthwhile. make very certain your price is reasonable in your area. If you are priced $100K higher than everyone else, you are never going to sell regardless of the changes you make.

My condolences on the loss of your beloved pet.

My thanks to all of you who posted comments, both good and bad.

I can't begin to tell you how feedback about my florals opened my eyes, so I was able to change things for my next set of photos. I'd never think that removable "props" would turn someone off. I also have to say that you're taking it well and seem to appreciate the feedback. Those of us selling can now see our house through strangers eyes and what a potential buyer might think when seeing our house online. How the photos look will dictate whether they take the time to actually walk our houses. The last time our house was for sale we did not get any feedback, so I'm very thankful for this forum and hope that the feedback you got helps you.

I noticed that the wallpaper in my home got some of the most frequent and critical remarks and it's left me wondering about something. Is wallpaper no longer in vogue in new or remodeled homes or is it that my particular wallpaper is not to the liking of most of you?

I've walked a lot of new communities with model homes and can say that here they are still using wallpaper but not in all of the rooms. You might pick the nicest rooms to keep the wallpaper. I love the foyer wallpaper but not with the door color and not with the flooring. You might think to leave some of it up and paint other walls, using it as an accent.

Back entrance wallpaper - I would take it down.
Half bath - I like the wallpaper but not with the light fixture.
Study - I've seen similar paper used in homes I've walked.
Utility - dislike the walls - would sheet rock & paint
1st floor master - would paint
1st floor master bath - I like the paper but not for a room like this. I would paint and think about putting up beadboard
2nd floor master - while I like the top paper, I think it would look better painted. The wood on the door is much too dark. I'd also think about putting up a scarf on the windows, then opening the blinds for the photo. While I like pink, others do not :(
Second floor vanity/dressing area - this paper you could get away with leaving.
Bath 2, second floor - I would try to lighten this room up or leave the picture out.
Living Room - I would paint this

I also realize that the paneled family room is dated but my thoughts on that is to either paint the paneling a neutral color or rip off the paneling, put up sheetrock and then paint.

I also want to install engineered wood flooring in that room and perhaps extend it in to the foyer where, I admit, the tile color is also dated. Another area of critical comments was due to my home having so much carpeting. Has carpeting also gone out of style or do I just have too many rooms with carpet?

We just did this in the master bedroom. I would sheet rock. The carpet wouldn't bother me here. I'm one of the weird ones that actually likes carpet, especially for my bad back. Walking on wood floors kills me.

BTW, the Saint Bernard that appeared in at least one photo and brought about a comment or two that some people wouldn't even consider buying a home where a dog had been passed away on June 10 much to my hurt. I'm in the process of cleaning up all traces of his presence here. That is, everywhere but in my heart!

Very sorry for your loss. After 22 years, I still miss our German Shepherd.

Ralph, I am so sorry about the loss of your 'best friend'. I'm sure when you look around the house, you see his presence everywhere. Happy memories will be with you forever.

Now, about the house. When my ex and I sold our home several years ago, I had wallpapered extensively, and couldn't even think about taking it down. Needless to say, it hurt the sale, trememdously! Everyone who came in was turned off by the personalized style/color of the paper, thought it was dated, or just didn't like wallpaper. I know it's a lot of work, but get rid of the stuff and it will help sell your house in a heartbeat. I see it as your biggest drawback.

The flooring is dated, also, and too much of a mish-mash with all the different styles~narrow it down to two types of flooring. Carpeting in bedrooms is good~waking up in the morning and having my feet hit a cold floor would not get me off to a good start. LR/study/DR can also be carpeted. I would opt for a tile thru-out the rest of the first floor, to keep the uniformity. Wood might look nice, but you would not want to use it in a laundry room. Use big tile, 18" or bigger, and have it laid on the diagonal to give it a more updated look. You might need a few more tile, and it may cost just a bit more, but it's worth it in looks! In the bathrooms, find a smaller tile that's the same/similiar in color and have it placed on the diagonal in the shower area~again, uniformity.

And get rid of some of your more personal things so people can get an idea what *their* stuff would look like. You want to make your home as generic as possible so it appeals to the masses.

When you get all the paper down, paint the walls a nice warm tan~absolutely NO white! I would paint over the paneling. IMO, a differnt texture on certain walls adds interest~I don't think it would be a turnoff to buyers.

If your light fixtures and bathroom/kitchen sinks/shower/tub fixtures are old and discolored, change them out. If sinks are nicked, get them resurfaced or replaced.

I have to say that without even seeing the inside of the house, the view alone would sell ME! Everything inside is merely cosmetic and more time, than costly.

Best of luck Ralph!

Tricae - Our pets carve a place in our hearts & their deaths leave a hole.

*sniff* What a profound statement that is so very true.

I still like the wallpaper. Even though it is a bit 'frou frou' as someone says, I think it looks nice. Especially (if I remember correctly)in the dining room.

I disagree about too many pics. If I were in the area, I would go see the house because of the well-done pics, and because I think the home is very pretty.

Sorry to hear about your friend.

~Christina

If I were house hunting in your area, the outside photos would get me to the house. IMO, those photos are what would sell your house. However, if I saw *any* of those interior photos, I would not go see the house. I would limit the interior photos to just a few rooms.

The wallpaper, paneling, flooring, and light fixtures are a big detraction from what looks to be a lovely older home. Your best bet would be to get someone to the property who would fall in love with the setting, and who would be willing to tackle a massive updating job.

It's a beautiful house and I agree with the comments so far. Here are some additional suggestions:

On the first linked site, move community comments to the bottom, trim them a bit or add community links and let them speak to the area.

When you're writing about the house, it's to your advantage to organize to the "level" of the house and point out the improvements in each room on that level. The commentary seems to move from level to level or room to room, add comments about the community, then mention some improvements (antique sliding glass case - make sure it conveys if you're describing it). It's difficult to write a good commentary, the second site is much better!

An important point, anything installed in 2007 can be listed as "new". If the roof was installed in 2005, then list that year, or I would suggest using "upgraded". I know of a client who repaired pieces of his roof and ran into some issues when his "new" roof was inspected prior to the sale. Of course, those aren't the only misrepresentations, but he is now listed with another agent and still on market.

Even if you're going to list FSBO, get a local agent involved to give you advice and comps. A good agent will still want to speak with you especially if they have clients who might be interested. And get that house in the MLS, it will get seen.

Good luck!