What’s Stopping Your North Carolina Home From Selling This Summer?

By Collin Ramirez

Collin Ramirez, a Charlotte native, exemplifies unwavering dedication in his role as the Executive Listing Specialist for The John Bolos Group.

Is your North Carolina home just sitting on the market with barely any showings and zero offers? You’re probably scratching your head, wondering what’s going on, and I totally get it. But after working with a lot of sellers, I’ve noticed there are usually three main reasons this happens. Let’s break them down.

1. Pricing strategy is off. Right now, the market is shifting. Over the past four years, we saw home prices appreciate at an unusually fast pace. Think of it like driving on a highway: if the speed limit is 70 mph, normal appreciation is like cruising at 75. But in 2021 through 2023, prices were skyrocketing—more like 90 to 110 mph.

Now things are cooling down. For example, if your home is listed at $400,000 today, and it was worth $250,000 four and a half years ago, getting an offer at $350,000 might feel disappointing. But in reality, you’ve still gained a lot. The market didn’t crash, but only slowed down.

It’s therefore critical to price your home correctly from the beginning. If homes in your area are selling 2% to 3% below asking, you don’t want to be playing catch-up. Pricing ahead of the market brings in more buyers, increases your chances of multiple offers, and helps you get the best possible price even with higher inventory.

2. Poor condition and accessibility. Buyers right now have more options, and that means your home has to bring value straight out of the gate. If your property needs a full repaint, carpets are stained, and the cabinets are old, you’re going to lose out on traffic. Properties that need major work are less appealing. Buyers may pass on your home to a few blocks away and find something move-in ready for the same price or just slightly more.

Accessibility is just as important. During the busy summer months, especially in June and July, people are traveling, relocating, or attending graduations. The more available your home is for showings, the better your chances are of attracting serious buyers.

If scheduling a tour is difficult or inconvenient, buyers are likely to move on to the next listing. That’s why every aspect of your presentation—both how your home looks and how easily it can be shown—should work together to draw in as much interest as possible.

3. Weak marketing strategy. These days, people buy homes for two reasons: how it looks online, and how it’s priced. A lot of buyers are coming from out of state, especially here in the Charlotte and Carolina areas, so their first impression of your home is almost always going to be online. That means your photos, flyers, email campaigns, MLS strategy, and even your social media presence have to be on point.

But it doesn’t stop there. If the first two or three weeks go by and there’s no activity, you need to have a plan for what’s next. That could mean adjusting the price, refreshing the listing photos, or refining the marketing approach.

Bonus tip: Staging. If your home is fully furnished, we can work with that and help set things up to show your space in the best possible light. But if you’ve got empty rooms, that’s where virtual staging comes in.

We specialize in virtual staging, and we’ll add furniture to those empty spaces digitally. It gives buyers a better idea of what the home could look like with the right setup, which helps increase interest and make your listing stand out online.

At the end of the day, there are three core reasons a home doesn’t sell: condition, location, and price. If it’s not the condition or the location, then the price has to be the issue. That’s something we can absolutely talk through and adjust to help get more buyers interested.

If you’ve got questions or want to figure out how we can position your home to get it sold quickly and for the most money, reach out. Just call me at 704-368-3453 or send an email to collin@jbolos.com.Looking forward to chatting soon!