How do you know when it’s time to book a viewing or avoid a property altogether? It usually boils down to the real estate listing, and bad ones come with some glaring warning signs. A terrible listing could mean that either the home isn’t worth looking at or the real estate agents should be avoided. With that in mind, here are some of the key signs that point to a bad listing.
Limited Photos
Why on earth wouldn’t a listing have photos of the property? This is a massive alarm bell because it indicates that perhaps they’re trying to hide something. Maybe the home has terrible damage or an awful yard that will turn away potential buyers. Real estate agents use this tactic a lot - along with a limited selection of photos - in the hope that the home’s information draws interest.
You don’t want to waste time looking at a terrible house because the photos should tell you if it’s good or not. Avoid any listings with limited photos, no photos at all, or even outdated photos from previous listings.
No Additional Information
Real estate agents should be able to provide all the information you need for a listing. There’s no excuse not to show you this, as demonstrated on https://fairfaxrealestate.net/fox-mill-estates, good real estate agents can tell you about a property’s location, the neighborhood, and other key things like:
The available utility services in the area
Trash and recycling services
The more information a listing contains, the easier it is to decide if you want to go ahead and learn more. Otherwise you waste valuable time by booking viewings and then asking questions to the realtor. You could travel a long distance and walk around a home just to realize it’s not right for you because it has terrible utility coverage, and you work from home.
A Poor Description
Similarly, bad real estate listings don’t have very good general descriptions of the property. They either include nothing or a terrible description that looks like this: One-bedroom house, one bath in a great location.
What does that tell you about anything?
Real estate agents and companies should really try to sell the house to you and make it seem like the best thing ever. A lack of a description doesn’t automatically mean this is a bad real estate investment, but it does mean the estate agents are lazy. This is a warning sign because it means you may deal with that laziness during the buying process, which could drag on because they’re incompetent.
Multiple Relistings
The listing itself might look great and contain everything you need, but when was it added - and has it been listed before? You will notice older properties that suddenly appear as “new listings” during a property search, which means the real estate agent has taken them down and put them back up.
Why? Because there wasn’t any interest in the property before, and they’re trying to grab people’s attention. This is a warning sign because it means the property obviously has issues - else why is nobody interested in it? If you see the same house relisted numerous times, stay well away.
Keep an eye out for these key warning signs to know which listings you should avoid. A good listing provides as much information as possible, along with loads of detailed photos.
