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When divorcing homeowners need a house sold, every extra week on the market can feel like another week the divorce isn't really over.
There is another mortgage payment.
Another HOA payment.
Another week of coordinating with an ex.
That urgency can make it tempting to blame someone.
Instead, diagnose the listing.
The market is constantly giving sellers information
The market is constantly giving sellers information.
- How many buyers have seen the home?
- Are they scheduling second showings?
- What feedback keeps appearing?
- Have competing homes gone under contract?
- Are buyers choosing similar homes over yours?
If a house has strong exposure and buyers consistently walk away, the pattern matters.
Price is often part of the conversation
Price is often part of that conversation.
Divorce sellers sometimes resist reducing a price because the reduction becomes symbolic.
One spouse says:
“I told you we priced it too high.”
Now agreeing to reduce feels like admitting the spouse was right.
The buyer does not know any of this.
They simply see a house that costs more than they believe it is worth.
Access is another huge issue
Access is another huge issue.
If the spouse living in the home rejects most showing requests, the problem may not be the photography, description or market.
Buyers cannot purchase a home they cannot see.
Condition creates patterns
Condition also creates patterns.
One buyer complains about old flooring?
That's an opinion.
Ten buyers mention the flooring, odor or deferred maintenance?
That's data.
Marketing should also be audited
Marketing should also be audited.
- Are the photographs good?
- Does the first photo make people want to click?
- Is the property information accurate?
- Does the listing communicate the home's strongest features?
Lisa should be willing to evaluate her own strategy as aggressively as she evaluates the sellers' price.
The solution should not be more of the same
The solution might be a price adjustment.
It might be better access.
It might be addressing a condition problem.
It might be a marketing change.
Often it is some combination.
What it should not be is another six weeks of doing exactly the same thing while hoping buyers suddenly behave differently.
Important
Access problems are covered in Selling a House While an Ex Still Lives There, and pricing strategy connects to How to Compare Multiple Offers once buyers respond.
