Why Isn’t My House Selling in the Tri-Cities?

There are three primary reasons why a house doesn’t sell after you put it on the market:

1. Poor pricing
2. Poor condition
3. Poor marketing/presentation

There are other reasons that keep a Tri-Cities home from selling, and I’ll get to them below. But those are the most common issues that I’ve seen in my 21+ years of experience.

I’ve worked with hundreds of sellers, and I know it can be frustrating — even scary! — when you need to sell your home but you’re struggling to get showings and offers. So read on, and I’ll share eight reasons why homes don’t sell in our area and what you can do to attract qualified buyers. Ready?

1. Your price is too high.

I know this can be tough to hear, but price is the #1 reason homes don’t sell. Here’s what I always stress to my seller clients: The market determines your home’s price, not what you paid for it, not what you owe on it, and definitely not what Zillow says it’s worth. (Those Zestimates? They’re notoriously inaccurate in our area.)

That’s why I always research the sales of comparable homes before making a price suggestion. We need to listen to what the market is telling us. When you price your home too high, you’ll limit both the number of showings and offers — and that’s the recipe for a sloooow, and possibly non-existent, sale.

What to do: Lower your asking price. If buyers are coming to see the house but not making offers, a smaller price drop may be all you need. If you’re not even getting showings, a bigger price drop is needed. A well-priced home will generate interest and offers.

2. Your home is in poor condition.

I’ll talk more about market conditions in just a moment, but when inventory is up in the Tri-Cities, buyers can afford to be choosy. When buyers are choosy, homes with maintenance issues or outdated features won’t sell as quickly as they did when buyers had fewer options.

Two of the most common improvements that make a difference are paint and flooring/carpeting. A fresh coat of paint and new flooring where it’s needed can make your home more appealing to buyers.

Some sellers will ask me, “But shouldn’t we just leave the carpet (or the paint) as it is so the buyers can choose their own style and color?” Generally, no. It’s best to replace paint and carpeting to improve the home’s condition, and choose neutral colors that won’t turn away buyers.

(A few years ago, I had two sellers who hesitated on our stager’s suggestion to paint one wall. When they finally painted, the next buyers to see the homes wrote offers!)

What to do: If your home is in poor condition, you have a few choices: One, make some strategic upgrades to improve its condition. Two, lower your asking price to reflect your home’s current condition. You can also offer the buyers a credit so they can pay for the needed upgrades after moving in…but that’s pretty much the same as lowering your asking price. Talk to your agent about the best option for you.

3. Poor marketing or presentation

Buying a home is an emotional decision. The minute a buyer sees your home online or drives up to see it for the first time, they form opinions based on what they feel. Those opinions can be hard to change, so first impressions are really important!

Even if your home is in perfect physical condition, if it’s dirty or cluttered, you’ll turn away a lot of buyers. That’s why I use professional staging for nearly all of my listings. I pay for it myself because I know that staging works. It makes that first emotional opinion a positive one as soon as buyers walk inside. We also use professional photography for all our listings so that the first online impression is equally positive.

Here’s a look at the difference between an unstaged home and a staged one with professional photos. “Before” photos are on the left; “after” photos are on the right.

This is a home in Richland that two other agents were unable to sell after 195 and 177 days on the market, respectively. When the owners hired the Cari McGee Team to sell the home, we brought in our professional stager and photographer and sold the home at full price after just 24 days on the market. 🎉

What to do: In addition to professional staging and photography, make sure your home’s curb appeal is on point. Clean up the yard and cut the lawn. Strategically place some flowers out front and make sure the entry looks welcoming. (Check for cobwebs around your exterior light fixtures, too!) Clean (and paint, if needed) your front door. These small touches can make a huge difference in how quickly your home sells.

As I said earlier, those are the big three: price, condition, and marketing/presentation. But there are other factors that can keep your house from selling, too.

4. You’re ignoring market trends.

After several years of a very strong sellers’ market, the Tri-Cities is currently in a much more balanced market. Our inventory of homes for sale is higher than it’s been in about a decade. The number of homes that sell each year is also the lowest it’s been in about a decade. Home prices rose during the pandemic but have been relatively flat since 2022.

Homes are also selling more slowly than they have in years, as you can see on this chart.

I share all of this to emphasize that the real estate market is constantly changing. What was true when you bought your home might not be true today. What was true when your neighbors sold their home might not be true today. What was true when your parents or your co-worker bought or sold their home may not be true today. These changes impact you because, and this bears repeating: The current market determines the value of your home.

What to do: Keep an eye on our Tri-Cities real estate market reports every month. When it’s time to sell, work with an agent who can show you what’s happening in your price range and neighborhood. Together, use genuinely comparable homes that have recently sold to determine the best asking price for your home.

5. Economic factors are working against you.

In addition to local real estate market trends, larger economic factors can also keep your home from selling.

Higher interest rates have changed what buyers can afford. Someone who qualified for a $500,000 home when rates were 3% or 4% might only qualify for $400,000 now. Rising consumer prices — on things from cars to appliances to healthcare and more — may also impact how many buyers are able to look for a new home.

What to do: Unfortunately, you can’t control the economy. But you can adjust your expectations and pricing strategy to account for how economic factors impact today’s buyers.

6. Your home is too unique.

I love unique homes — they have character and charm! We have our share of unique homes in the Tri-Cities, too, from Richland’s mid-century modern homes to the alphabet houses built during the war effort of the 1940s.

But unique homes attract a smaller pool of potential buyers. It can be something as simple as a pool in the backyard; not everyone wants one. Something more unique like a pickleball or tennis court in your backyard? That’ll be even harder to sell.

(By the way, the same can be true for homes in challenging locations, like right next to a freeway or major intersection.)

What to do: Be patient. Consider removing extremely unique and personal touches before listing to help buyers envision themselves in the space. If that’s not possible (you can’t easily remove a pickleball court!), you might need to price your home more aggressively. Your agent should also market your home to buyers who’ll be attracted to what makes your home unique — i.e., advertising a home with a tennis court to local tennis players.

7. You’re getting in the way.

This one might be tough to hear, but sometimes sellers sabotage their own home sale.

For example, I’ve worked with sellers who put strict limits on when they’d allow buyers to see the home. They only wanted showings to happen at certain times of day on certain days. Sometimes you might need to do that, especially if you work odd hours or have other legitimate concerns. But limiting showings because you don’t want strangers walking through your home will also limit your chances of getting an offer and selling your home.

A couple other ways you’re hurting yourself:

• Demanding to be present during showings. This limits the buyers’ ability to imagine the home as theirs.
• Refusing to negotiate/budge on your price, repairs, and other elements of the sale.

These behaviors can significantly reduce your chances of selling.

What to do: Be as flexible as possible with showings, leave the home during tours, and be prepared to negotiate. Remember, selling a home is a business transaction, even though it feels deeply personal.

8. You hired the wrong agent.

We have about 1,000 agents in the Tri-Cities most years. In each of the past three years (2022-2024), fewer than 4,000 homes have sold. Quick math says that the typical agent sells less than four homes per year — and probably half of those are sales where they represented a buyer, not a seller.

For the sake of comparison, I sold 37 homes last year and have sold more than 600 in my real estate career.

My point is this: We have a lot of great real estate agents in the Tri-Cities, but we have more who may not have the experience and skill to get your home sold.

Selling a home successfully takes more than just adding it to the MLS and putting a sign in your yard. It requires strategic pricing, professional marketing, skilled negotiations, and deep market knowledge.

What to do: If your home has been sitting on the market for months with little interest, it might be time to consider whether your agent has the right expertise and marketing plan for your specific property. Who you work with matters!

Final Thoughts

Even in today’s more challenging market, homes are still selling every day in the Tri-Cities. (The average has been about 8-10 sales per day in recent years!) The difference is that the homes that sell quickly and for top dollar are the ones that are priced right, in good condition, and presented well.

If your home isn’t selling, don’t lose hope! In most cases, making one or two strategic changes can make all the difference between “still for sale” and “sold!” It’s important to look at your home objectively — the way a buyer would. Remember that they don’t love your home like you do.

Have questions about your specific situation? Email me below or send a text by clicking the TEXT US button below, and let’s get your home sold!