Top 5 ways to lose money on your home sale

When it’s time to sell your home, there’s a lot at stake. Most sellers have one clear goal: maximize profit. But even the smartest homeowners can make expensive missteps. It’s easier than you think to lose tens of thousands of dollars—sometimes without even realizing it—until it’s too late. That’s why it’s critical to understand the top 5 ways to lose money on your home sale before you take the leap.

Let’s dig into what you should absolutely avoid if you want to walk away from your sale with your financial goals intact—and how working with Robbie English, Broker and REALTOR at Uncommon Realty, keeps those costly mistakes off your plate.

TL;DR — Top 5 Ways to Lose Money on Your Home Sale

1. Mispricing your home from the start can sabotage your sale.
2. Ignoring repairs and cosmetic improvements reduces buyer interest.
3. Skimping on staging weakens emotional buyer connection.
4. Choosing the wrong agent limits your negotiation power and exposure.
5. Timing the market poorly leads to missed financial opportunity.

1 – Pricing Without Strategy

One of the most damaging missteps sellers make is mispricing their home. And this happens in two main ways: listing too high or going too low. Both seem like small errors, but the consequences are major. Overpricing drives away the right buyers. Underpricing? You leave money on the table that you’ll never get back.

Most buyers today have access to information. They’ve done their research. When your home is priced way out of sync with the rest of the market, even before a showing, you’ve already given them a reason to swipe past your listing.

A common trap is pricing based on emotion. You might remember what you paid, or the upgrades you poured into it, but the market doesn’t care about your memories. It reacts to value, condition, location, and timing.

That’s where Robbie English comes in. With decades of experience, a proven ability to read market trends, and the skill to align your home with the most strategic pricing strategy, Robbie puts you in the strongest position to attract buyers—and offers. He’s coached countless agents across the country on this very issue and has applied his knowledge time and time again to help clients just like you succeed.

2 – Failing to Prepare the Home

It might seem harmless to skip over a few repairs or let a project go unfinished—after all, buyers can see past a little cosmetic work, right? Not quite.

Buyers tend to overestimate the cost of repairs. A loose doorknob becomes a reason to question how the rest of the home has been maintained. Cracks in drywall, squeaky doors, or dated light fixtures don’t go unnoticed—they stack up, turning a potential sale into a slow exit.

Home preparation isn’t just about patching things up. It’s about creating a visual and emotional story for buyers. If your home doesn’t shine, it won’t sell for what it should. And the most painful part? These small things are often inexpensive to fix. Yet failing to do so is one of the top 5 ways to lose money on your home sale.

Robbie and his team take this part seriously. Before your home hits the market, you’ll get expert recommendations on what matters, what’s worth your effort, and what’s not. Robbie’s keen eye and honest approach help position your home so it appeals to today’s buyers—without spending a fortune or chasing shiny upgrades that don’t deliver.

3 – Poor Presentation and Lack of Staging

Great photos and proper staging aren’t just nice-to-haves—they’re critical. You get only one chance to make a first impression. A cluttered space, mismatched furniture, or dark corners won’t just turn buyers off. They’ll devalue your property in their minds, even before they visit.

Buyers don’t just purchase square footage—they buy lifestyle. They imagine their life unfolding in your living room, holidays in your dining room, and morning routines in your kitchen. If your home feels chaotic or outdated, you lose the chance to make that emotional connection.

And when buyers aren’t connected? They don’t compete. They offer less—or they don’t offer at all. That emotional pull is directly tied to how much they’re willing to spend.

With Robbie English and his team, you’ll have expert insight into what will capture attention and pull buyers in. Whether it’s adjusting lighting, rearranging furniture, or suggesting subtle design tweaks, Robbie knows how to elevate your home’s image. His years of hands-on experience mean you don’t waste time on gimmicks. You get results.

4 – Choosing the Wrong Agent

This is one of the costliest errors—and often, sellers don’t realize it until it’s too late. Not all agents are the same. In fact, choosing someone who simply has a license, or a friendly smile, might cost you more than any other mistake.

A skilled, strategic real estate professional protects your money, negotiates fiercely on your behalf, and guides you through complexities you didn’t even know existed. A less experienced agent might miss red flags in an offer, fail to vet buyers properly, or accept terms that leave you vulnerable.

You don’t want average. You want exceptional. That’s what you get with Robbie English. He isn’t just a broker—he’s a real estate instructor, a national speaker, and the expert agents turn to when they want to level up their game. Robbie has dedicated his career to mastering the ins and outs of real estate, not just for himself—but for his clients.

He doesn’t follow a cookie-cutter approach. Every transaction is uniquely tailored. Robbie’s thoughtful, thorough method puts you in a powerful position to maximize return and minimize risk.

5 – Timing the Market the Wrong Way

There’s never a perfect time to sell—but there’s definitely a wrong time. Trying to time the market without expert guidance can backfire in a big way. Some sellers wait too long, convinced prices will climb just a little higher. Others panic and list when conditions are soft, thinking any sale is better than none.

But here’s the truth: timing is strategy. It’s not about gambling. It’s about analyzing your personal goals, the market’s direction, and your local environment.

For example, if you’re caught in the “rent versus buy” dilemma as you prep to sell, that can dramatically change your timeline. Are you planning to rent after selling, or looking to buy again? Each choice has financial consequences. Robbie helps you look at the full picture—whether buying again makes sense now or later, and how to time your sale to support that decision.

Selling isn’t just about the sale. It’s about what happens after—and making sure that part of the plan works in your favor.

With Robbie English, you’re not navigating that alone. You’ll get a clear, customized game plan rooted in logic, not emotion. Robbie breaks down your options with clarity and candor, ensuring you sell for the right reasons, at the right time, with the right expectations.

How the “Rent Versus Buy” Question Ties Into It All

Sometimes, the costliest mistake isn’t in the sale itself—it’s in what you do next. After a successful sale, some sellers leap into renting without fully considering how that move fits into their long-term financial goals.

The rent versus buy decision isn’t a simple equation. It’s about opportunity cost, equity growth, lifestyle flexibility, and financial security.

If you’re selling and then planning to rent while waiting for the “right market” to buy again, it’s crucial to calculate what that gap really costs. Rental rates can climb. Housing prices don’t always fall. And you may be missing out on appreciation in your next home.

Robbie takes this decision seriously with every client. He’ll help you weigh your rent versus buy options using real-world logic, not just emotion or guesswork. With decades of experience behind him and a track record of protecting client wealth, Robbie helps you think beyond the transaction and into your future.

Why Working With Robbie English Saves You from These Mistakes

The top 5 ways to lose money on your home sale aren’t just theoretical—they’re painfully common. But they’re also preventable. That’s what sets Robbie English apart.

He brings decades of hands-on experience in real estate, both as a high-level broker and as a trusted instructor guiding agents nationwide. He’s seen every type of market, every kind of buyer, and every twist a transaction can take.

Robbie’s process is detailed and strategic. From pricing to presentation, from marketing to negotiation, he applies expert-level tactics tailored to your specific situation. No gimmicks. No shortcuts. Just real, practical expertise working for your financial gain.

When you work with Robbie, you’re not just getting an agent. You’re getting a seasoned advisor who has spent years mastering real estate for the benefit of his clients. He’s intentional, thoughtful, and relentlessly driven to protect your interests above all else.

Conclusion: Don’t Leave Money Behind

Selling your home isn’t just a move—it’s a financial decision with lasting consequences. And the top 5 ways to lose money on your home sale are real threats that can erode your equity and derail your next step.

But here’s the good news: when you choose the right guidance, those mistakes don’t have to happen. Robbie English, Broker and REALTOR at Uncommon Realty, delivers a level of service that turns potential risks into confident, profitable decisions.

He doesn’t just help you sell—he helps you succeed. Whether you’re figuring out the rent versus buy decision or wondering how to prepare your home for the market, Robbie’s expertise becomes your competitive advantage.

Selling smart starts with choosing smart. Start with Robbie.