“Rather than simply advising us to lower the price, Scott asked us what we loved about the home. He used those thoughts to reposition the new listing and highlight the extensive remodeling, quality finishes and features. This resulted in a sale at 99.5% of list price, and we were under contract in four days, before we even held the open house.” — Scottsdale North sellers”

Fall listing season is approaching. Around Scottsdale North, activity often begins to stir as the weather changes and seasonal residents return. If selling is somewhere in your plans, this is a useful time to consider not just decluttering, but how buyers will first understand your home. That is what I call positioning, and it matters more than usual in today’s selective market.

People say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but the cover is often what makes us pick it up. It doesn’t change the story inside. It simply helps us notice a book we might otherwise walk past. A home listing works the same way. The home is the story, and the listing is the cover.

I was reminded of that this spring when we took over a Scottsdale North home that had already been listed twice and accumulated nearly 300 days on the market. Most people would assume the market had spoken and the price needed to come down. Instead, we put it back on at exactly the same price, and it was under contract in four days. The house hadn’t changed. The price hadn’t changed. The market hadn’t changed. What changed was the way buyers were introduced to the home.

That is what I mean by positioning. It is more than better photographs or a nicer description. It is deciding what buyers should notice first, what makes the home different, and who is most likely to appreciate it. A list of rooms and features tells people what a house has. Good positioning helps them understand why it matters.

The same feature can mean very different things depending on how it is presented. A large backyard can look like more maintenance, or it can be where friends and family gather. A quieter location can feel removed, or it can offer exactly the privacy someone has been trying to find. None of that changes the house. It simply helps the right buyer see how the house could fit the life they want.

Price is important, and sometimes a home really is priced too high. But lowering the price shouldn’t automatically be the first answer when a home doesn’t sell. Before doing that, I would want to know whether buyers are seeing the home’s strongest features, whether the photographs tell a clear story, and whether the listing gives the right buyer a reason to look closer. If the presentation isn’t making the value clear, lowering the price may just make the same unclear story less expensive.

That listing reinforced something I have believed for a long time.
When a home doesn’t sell, the market is telling us something, but we have to be careful about how we interpret the message. Sometimes it is saying the price is too high. Sometimes it may simply be saying, “You haven’t helped us see it yet.”
A book cover can’t make someone love the story. Its job is to make the right person want to open the book. A home listing has much the same job. So as fall approaches, before you think about price,or decluttering, think about the cover. The story of your home may already be there. We just have to make sure buyers can see it.

Scott Gaertner is an Associate Broker with Keller Williams Arizona Realty and a 35-year Scottsdale North expert. He’s helped thousands of people find their ideal lifestyle and shares local insights on ConnectingScottsdaleNorth.com. For more information, visit scottgaertnergroup.com or call 480-634-5000.