Her house is in a "small dying town" and she has a tri-level listed at $200K? And she turned down an offer because the termite inspection had already been done? (The furniture would have had to have been a separate purchase even at $1.) And you're concerned people think she's priced too high!? Ummm guess what? She IS priced too high if she's only had one offer in 14 months and her listing is stale - unless DOM are 400+ in that area?

14 mo. on the market in a "dying town" no less, only a handful of lookers - I would say that house must be WAY overpriced, or she is just not motivated. If she wants to sell, she needs to lower it below her competition. If not, take it off the market and live in it and hope it doesn't go down further due to the "dying town" aspect.

Looking at realtor.com I'd say she's overpriced compared to her competition by 20 - 30 thousand.

How can she sell the house if she takes it off the market?

very nice home WITH a pool for that price..wow...I spent better then 1/2 the asking price on a pool..ouch..Just shows you the wide range of homes/prices across this great country

The thing is, an outdoor in-ground pool in Illinois is not looked upon as an asset by many people.

I notice that the three bedrooms all share a bathroom, so there is no private masterbath. The other bathroom is in the lowest level. The bedrooms are not large, and one is very small.

She's not going to be happy when she hears all these negatives, but you all have pretty much reinforced what I have already told her.

She was concerned with the online pics~do you think it shows well, other than the 4-seasons room being way too dark? She's already talked to her agent about that, since that's a huge space and looks directly on the pool. And yes, akkw, she has been told the pool could be more of a hindrance than an asset, but what ya gonna do with an in-ground pool, fill it with dirt? LOL ;o)

patty_cakes

We too live in a small town, around 250 people, but near a base so that helps. But none of the houses are anywhere near that price. We too have no medical groups, stores and even the school is closed. Just a cafe, motel with 3 rooms and a deli that does real well--local well liked person. Can't see the pictures so cannot make any suggestions, swimming pool--?? could be some people not interested because of insurance rates, etc. Furniture?? depends on where they move and how much it costs to replace?? Yes she can get out of the contract, by telling agent they have deceided not to sell--we did, but then we also waited 6 months and cleared out alot of stuff.

Seems to me the house is overpriced. We live in a thriving town of 30,000 in eastern Iowa. We just paid $170k for a nearly 2500 SF, 4 bed/2.5 bath house built in 1974. Granted, it doesn't have a pool, but are those worth much? (To us, a pool would be a big negative.)

The photos are fine, except for that awful red bed covering. Ouch! It hurt my eyes. I'd replace it with something less offense.

When the house was first listed, I told her I thought it was too high, but she insisted that's what the realtor suggested in order for him to get his cut, and her to get the $185K to pay off the mortgage on the new home. It was as though he paid no attention to the comps, and was only worried about his commission. I tried to explain she may not be able to completely pay off the new home mortgage if the old house doesn't sell at the price they're expecting.

She and her DH are both being too stubborn, holding out for the higher price. I just hope she's not going to be too disappointed if/when the price has to be brought down. ;o)

patty_cakes

Was it the agent looking out for his commission (because he doesn't work for free), or your friend saying that they need to walk away with $185K?

Why quibble over furniture, give it to them. Get another termite inspection, seems simple enough.
I've sold homes that included furniture in the contract.

I agree, I sure would have said bye bye to the furniture, and called the termite inspector right away, if it meant getting the house sold. After a few more months, if no sale happens, it will no longer be any fun sitting in that couch! It'll just bring bad thoughts.

I agree too about the furniture. In fact, after this last move, I joked with my husband that I'd only move again if we could sell all the furniture first (or with the house sale) and not have to move it ever again! I have moved five times in the past 10 years and want to spend the rest of my life in our new home. Ditto with the termites...have the area inspected again by a professional and then treat it if necessary. Just how much does this woman want to sell her house? She doesn't seem very eager to me.

We need to go backwards! I talked to my friend and the inspector deemed the house 'un-inhabited' by the bugs, as it was old damamge, but the lady was insisting on having it unnecesssarily treated anyway. She(friend) was told by her agent it's normally the obligation of the buyer to have the treatment, and told her it's 'your call'. She told the agent it's either the furniture OR the treatment, but not both. Apparently the lady didn't take too kindly to that, and recinded her offer. In hindsight, I told her they should have split the cost of the treatment, and let her have the dang furniture.

My friend thinks it was the best thing to happen, even though the house is still on the market. The lady accused them of removing/exchanging a light fixture, and taking out a newer dryer and bringing in an older one. She brought her brother, who happpens to be a lawyer with a 'shady' reputation, along every time, and friend thought he was the one trying to force various issues, and get something for nothing.

She IS eager to sell, and may have to 'lose' the agent so she can lower the price. Yes, she needs to bank $185K, or take on a small mortgage with the new house~those are her options. ;o)

patty_cakes

Seems like she's eager to sell, just not at a price the house will sell at. There's really nothing you can do.

The buyer herself sounds pretty shady to me. Some buyers aren't worth dealing with.

Re: Termites. In my state (Iowa), it's typical for the buyer to pay for the termite inspection, and the seller to pay for treatment, though I've heard of buyer and seller splitting the cost on the treatment. I guess it all boils down to how badly the seller wants to sell and how badly the buyer wants to buy.

Maybe she needs to buyer a smaller new house so she can reduce her price on this house. Can she not get a mortgage on the new house or she just doesn't want to?

Sounds to me like the buyer would be like the wicker shelf one....

If she was so worried about specific appliances, they should have negotiated all that stuff on signing (brand / model).. Unless it's one of those new front loader sets, a washer is a washer & a dryer is a dryer as long as they work.