When the housing bubble burst back in ’08, selling a house was nigh impossible. Over the next few years, the tepid market and high unemployment made home selling a difficult and arduous process. While the housing market may not be what it once was, things have gotten better, but some folks are still finding that offers aren’t flooding in the way that they’d hoped. Why could this be?

The homes that get the most attention from potential buyers have positive aspects in three main categories: presentation, price and location.

Location
The term “location, location, location” is widely used in the business world as one of, if not the, most important factors when determining the success of a business, but it also applies to homes. Homes located within good school districts, for example, are going to be in greater demand than those in bad ones. On the other hand, homes on busy streets or near freeway entrances (or exits) typically garner less attention than those on quiet residential roads. Make sure to adjust the price accordingly if your home is in a less than desirable location. Your real estate agent can help you if you’re not sure.

Price
As mentioned above, the pricing of a home should reflect the area that it’s in, but it’s also dictated by a number of other factors. These factors include things like the market value, whether it’s a strong seller’s market or not, the price of the homes around it, and various other criteria. Buyers want value, so be wary of the price of homes around you when pricing your own. If your home is the most expensive in the neighborhood, even by a few thousand dollars, it can quickly shut down a lot of potentially interested buyers.

Presentation
When selling a home, don’t think of it as a house; think of it as a product. Making cost-effective upgrades to the interior and exterior of the home will make it more appealing to the masses. Additionally, hiring a professional home photographer can greatly increase the appeal of the home with their artful methods and ability to accentuate the positive in the eyes of the viewer. In an era where the majority of people shopping for a home begin their search online, the photographs are often the first (and if they’re bad, only) experience that prospective buyers will have with your home.