{"id":33033,"date":"2022-09-14T11:44:31","date_gmt":"2022-09-14T18:44:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=33033"},"modified":"2025-08-18T23:22:22","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T06:22:22","slug":"selling-a-house-in-a-recession","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/selling-a-house-in-a-recession\/","title":{"rendered":"14 Mistakes to Avoid When Selling a House in a Recession"},"content":{"rendered":"

The U.S. housing market is undergoing a rebalancing. Visit <\/span><\/i>HomeLight’s 2022 Housing Trends Hub<\/span><\/i><\/a> for information on how to navigate a shifting market \u2014 whether you’re a seller, buyer, or homeowner.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Preparation and perspiration are great allies if the housing market shifts<\/a> into a recession<\/a>. Before facing the effects of inflation<\/a> and a potential housing slowdown, now is the time to start planning a selling strategy to avoid costly mistakes if a recession occurs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You might think it could be harder to sell your home during a recession \u2013 but it doesn\u2019t have to be. To give you the best information about selling a house in a recession, we reached out to top-performing real estate agent Andy Peters<\/a>, who sells properties 50% faster than the average agent in Atlanta, Georgia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen there’s uncertainty, there’s generally waiting, so you really have to wow buyers. If you\u2019re a seller, you have to really get ahead of the market, and you have to wow them. Every day that a house is potentially on the market, the value of the house could be going down,\u201d says Peters.<\/p>\n

Besides emphasizing all the good features of your house, you also want to avoid mistakes that could potentially affect how much profit you\u2019ll gain once your house is sold.<\/p>\n

Here are the top 14 mistakes people make when selling a home in a recession:<\/p>\n

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1. Overpricing the home causing repeated reductions<\/h2>\n

When you overprice your home, especially during a recession, it\u2019s one of the biggest mistakes that a seller can make. Overpricing leads to future price reductions<\/a>, which can stall your home sale and place a stigma on your property listing that can act as a scarlet letter to buyers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe major concern when the property is overpriced is that you are wasting time on the market. And in a shifting market, time is not your friend. The longer something is on the market, the more a buyer believes something is wrong with it,\u201d says Peters.<\/p>\n

Peters explains that a house reaches its peak of value on the first day listed because it\u2019s brand new at that point. Also, according to Peters, the average price<\/a> point in a range generally is going to sell well as opposed to other high-end properties during a recession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

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Get a near-instant home value estimate from HomeLight for free. Our tool analyzes the records of recently sold homes near you, your home\u2019s last sale price, and other market trends to provide a preliminary range of value in under two minutes.<\/p>\n \n

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2. Being ignorant of the market<\/h2>\n

Understanding how the current market<\/a> is performing, according to Peters, is important in order to establish an effective selling strategy, which includes determining your home\u2019s value.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the recession that we’re potentially looking at now \u2014 and I’m just assuming that current market conditions will continue \u2014\u00a0we\u2019re seeing price erosion. That\u2019s mainly due to the fact that we’ve had two straight years of pretty wild increases.\u201d<\/p>\n

He explains that in the Atlanta market, home values experienced a 20% run up in 2020, a 15% run up in 2021, and now he\u2019s seeing a 10% take back, which he expects to continue because home affordability is being impacted by rising interest rates<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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3. Missing a big issue before the home inspection<\/h2>\n

Surprises might be good for parties but not home inspections. The last thing you need in a down market is to find out that you have a major foundation<\/a> or electrical<\/a> problem that has been discovered by the buyer\u2019s home inspector. Issues that can jeopardize a deal will generally either need to be fixed or replaced due to financing requirements<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One way to protect yourself before getting an unwanted surprise is to hire your own home inspector to do a pre-listing inspection<\/a>. These inspections typically cost between $280 to $401<\/a> but are often worth the expense if it helps to ensure your home sale won\u2019t be in jeopardy.<\/p>\n

One caveat regarding pre-listing inspections, state laws typically mandate that sellers must disclose known property issues<\/a> to buyers. You\u2019ll likely be required to disclose any major pre-listing inspection findings that you choose not to fix.<\/p>\n

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4. Settling on cheap, poor-quality listing photos<\/h2>\n

A picture can be a loss of thousands of dollars if it looks dark, blurry, or odd. Although snapping a quick photo with your cell phone is convenient, showing a toilet and nothing else, won\u2019t generally entice the online home shopper.<\/p>\n

While investing in a professional photographer might seem unnecessary, bad photos will discourage buyers from touring your home, and harm your marketing<\/a> efforts. A great first impression is crucial and starts online for getting your house noticed in a positive way.<\/p>\n

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5. The house looks bad from the street<\/h2>\n

Bad curb appeal<\/a> can definitely discourage buyers from touring a home when the first thing they notice is the deferred maintenance in the yard. If your yard has waist-high grass, dead trees, or rotting flowers, it can quickly curb their enthusiasm about seeing more.<\/p>\n

An unruly jungle that requires hours to tame, unless they are dedicated gardeners, will also be viewed as added effort and expense. Professional landscaping can generally cost an average of $1,309 to $5,683<\/a>. It\u2019s an investment that can help you avoid this costly mistake.<\/p>\n

\n Certainly pretty pictures are going to help, but the condition of the property is what’s going to hug them or, as we like to say, tackle them when they walk in the door, and it gets them to make the offer.<\/q>\n
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