What sellers can learn from buyers’ tips

Criticism can be hard to take.

But successful home sellers need to carefully weigh criticism over and over again.

After potential listing agents deliver their opinions, and after a stager points out cluttered or unappealing decorating, sellers still need to brace themselves for more — from buyers.

Now, when negotiating power is shifting from sellers to buyers, “it’s especially important for sellers to get feedback, as this can help them understand what buyers are looking for and how their property compares to other homes on the market,” explains Andrew Cayne of Elite Properties, New York City.

Gathering feedback

Listing agents typically communicate with buyer’s agents, arranging tour times.

Afterward, buyer’s agents may receive a questionnaire to describe their clients’ opinions. The best feedback is elicited from a phone call, believes Jon Sanborn, a San Diego real estate agent and home flipper with SD House Guys.

Forewarning buyers

Some buyer complaints are easy to anticipate. If a window is cracked, for instance, it’s best to alert the agent before the tour and explain the seller is going to fix it, says Tarasa Hurley of Keller Williams Realty in Pittsburgh. Some critiques can’t be remedied, such as a home near a busy street.

Making changes

If several complaints creep up about a relatively little thing — say the wall paint in a room — sellers will often mitigate the problem, says Maureen McDermut, of Sotheby’s International in Montecito, Santa Barbara County.

Some critiques can’t be remedied, such as a driveway shared with a neighboring property, Hurley says.

In those cases, Hurley advises warning the buyer’s agent. That agent “will know how to present issues to their client in the most beneficial light. Every buyer is different and has different tastes and tolerances.”

Settling on a solution

Major shortcomings, such as a worn and outdated kitchen, is a drawback buyers won’t miss. Then a solution is negotiated between a serious buyer and the seller, such as offering a credit to replace cabinets and appliances.