Dear Dionne,
That is a very good question and one that realtors hear all the time. I actually looked up your home to see if I could figure it out. First of all, a home sells or doesn't sell for three reasons: Price, Location, Condition.

You are competing with 29 other 3 BR, 2 1/2 BA condo/townhomes in Ankeny! Therefore, your home has to be the BEST one when people go to look. Eight of the properties are priced way above yours so they would not be competition. However, 14 homes are priced LESS than your property.

I looked at all the pictures and your home is very beautiful. However, in today's market you need to neutralize everything because some people can't visualize what their furniture would look like in your home if the paint isn't a color that will work for them. I noticed you have a lot of bright and/or dark colors in several of the rooms and have borders in most of the rooms. It would probably be worth the effort to repaint all the walls in neutral colors and remove all the borders. I know you love it, but the person taking a look on the Internet may not get past the colors and won't call to look. It is a fairly easy fix that may help you make your home the BEST one on the market.

Remember I mentioned price, condition, location. Is your townhome conveniently located for easy commuting? If not, that may be a big factor. You can't do anything about that.

I think I would try repainting, then having Ronda take new pictures. If that doesn't increase the traffic, you may need to lower your price, if that is an option. I noticed one of your neighbors has their place for sale for $20,000 less than yours. That doesn't help your cause.

You are competing with new construction, too. That's another reason why neutralizing the colors will help you. With new construction all the walls are neutral and people like that so they can pick their own colors. Having the walls already painted bright and/or dark colors measures up to lots of work to cover up the colors for the buyer. Most would rather buy new.

Otherwise, your home looks very well-cared for and I'm sure you are very anxious to get it sold. Good luck and hang in there with Ronda. She's a great agent. I've known her for several years.

Best wishes,

Roberta Brink
Iowa Realty
Waukee
(515) 453-6130
Licensed to sell real estate in Iowa