Help with selling

CLH2018 · 16 January 2018 at 12:11PM

Hi,

I'm hoping to get some objective help/advice. We've just put our flat back on the market for the third (!) time in 18 months as we're struggling to sell it and I'm starting to lose the will!

We took it off the market whilst having a baby but we really need to move now for more space and we'd like to be closer to our families who are both quite far away at the moment.

Any advice on what we can do to improve viewings and get more people round would be really appreciated. The Right Move advert can be found here: rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-52329090.html

Thanks so much in advance.

hazyjo · 16 January 2018 at 12:45PM

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-52329090.html/svr/3120

So fourth floor? (Not that clear.) Is there a lift? Most will presume no and that will obviously massively limit your market.

How many years left on the lease? Not always on the description, but if it's a plus point then mention it. If low, maybe they've rang to find out and discarded it without you knowing.

Lose the 'one and a half bedroom' bit. Call it two beds, but add 'bedroom/study' to the floorplan.

Personally I hate the naff description, but maybe that's me. I also think it's a bit lazy to just put the sizes on the floorplan. Don't need a room description of every single thing, but I would want the sizes listed.

If I'd have been living there, I'd have considered stealing a foot off the other bedroom. Saying that, I'm in a bit of a 'two and a half bed' myself. My third is less than 5' wide!

I would have the pic of the outside of the flat as Pic 1. Hate it when they show a room first.

I would also suggest depersonalising it a bit.

Shame the table is wedged in a corner - it does look a bit like everything is lined up round the room like a doctor's surgery. Fill the middle a bit more if poss (without overcrowding).

Good luck!

lotteryman · 16 January 2018 at 12:47PM

How many viewings have you had?
Have you had any offers?

The flat looks really well presented but in the estate agent's description it talks about it being 'a one and a half bedroom'. This to most people will make it sound like a one bedroom flat. If it is a single bedroom it should be described as such.
If the second bedroom is really small (it looks it) can you afford a few minor alterations and grab some of bedroom 1 space? If the walls are stud walls this will be relatively straight forward but you may need freeholder's permission.
The description also seems to be narrowing down the target market to 'city types' and those wanting a cafe culture. The primary schools in the area are good and so my view would be to make more of this in the description as it may attract couples with a small child of that age (provided you sort out the bedroom size)
Another place to start is to look at any feedback you've had from viewings.
It is a 3rd floor flat so the steps may put a lot of people off. Assume their is no lift?
What about the communal entrance area - is that welcoming, if not can you do anything through the freeholder?
Things which prevent flats from selling are
1. the length of lease; what is the length of it? can you afford to extend it to make it into a long lease see https://www.lease-advice.org/article/12-good-rules-on-extending-your-lease/
2. The conditions in the lease ; are there any 'tricky' limitations in the lease that might put people off?
3. The service charge ; this can often be extortionate and quite often not very good value. What about ground rent - is this an issue
Is the flat valued correctly? do some research on the land registry site to see what places in the same area have sold for over recent years.
It's also worth considering using another estate agent.

Hope this gives you food for thought.

Cakeguts · 16 January 2018 at 2:25PM

Generally speaking if you haven't had many viewings and no offers it will because of the price. Your flat is worth what someone will pay for it not the estate agent's valuation or what you think it is worth or what you need to get for it to buy something else. Only what someone will pay you for it.

ReadingTim · 16 January 2018 at 2:57PM

It's price - at £350k it's simply too expensive and no manner of faffing around with photos and the wording of your listing can solve that.

Suggest you need to drop at least £25k to get any sort of interest, and if you really want shot of it, try listing at £299,950 and hope you can spark a bidding war.

lincroft1710 · 16 January 2018 at 3:10PM

£350K is a lot for a small flat.

CLH2018 · 16 January 2018 at 3:23PM

Thank you for the replies, really helpful.

In answer to some of the questions:

It's third floor without a lift and the stairs has put some people off before so we know that's an issue but not much we can do about it unfortunately.

The lease has 91 years left so not really that low but we might think of extending it if we need to. There aren't any tricky things in the lease, it's pretty standard. As is the service charge for the area, we also paid over £6000 in major works last year so not likely to have that anytime soon. Ground rent is £100 a year and doesn't change for another 30 years so I don't believe it is that.

We can't really do anything to the interior to change the size of the second bedroom. My feeling is that it's someone looking for a one bed with the bonus of a second bedroom. We have rented it out in short term lets to help get extra money and it has worked well or it could be a study for someone who works from home but it is definitely a single bedroom.

We've had 5 viewings and no offers yet but we have only relisted since last week. I just want to get outside opinions to maximize viewings.

We had 4 valuations all who put it at £350k and the flat on the ground floor has been on at that price and has just gone under offer having had 3 offers.

Thanks for the responses, all useful to think about.

hazyjo · 16 January 2018 at 3:28PM

Didn't seem overpriced to me. Yep, a lot for a small flat, but you pay for area in London, not size.

Cyclemonkey1 · 16 January 2018 at 3:47PM

That might be one of the issues. West Norwood/Tulse Hill are not the most popular of SE London areas. With the Overground further south areas like Denmark Hill, Sydenham and Penge are getting more popular.

It is a nice flat and very well decorated and maintained.

A couple of issues I picked up on - if the bathroom is so nice why is there no photo of it?

Is there a balcony or some private outdoor space? The floorplan suggests that there is a door leading off the kitchen away from the hall but it doesn't show where it goes.

Is there any storage or parking? If the hall is big, get some photos up of it, a selling point of our two bed flat is the fact the hallway is large and has a lot of built in storage.

Also 91 years left on the lease with £100 pa ground rent isn't great - many blocks in London of that era are share of freehold these days with no ground rent.

Cyclemonkey1 · 16 January 2018 at 3:55PM

To be honest the market for flats in zones 2 and 3 is stagnating a bit as well. Knock £10K off the asking price and you will get more viewings.

Windofchange · 16 January 2018 at 4:17PM

Price. Always the answer is price. If you put it on for 50 quid and a packet of crisps it’d go tomorrow.

Also, the area. I commute pretty much past your front door every day on my way to work, and I can’t remember the last time there wasn’t a murder appeal sign up. Just recently a few hundred yards from you:

http://www.croydonadvertiser.co.uk/news/croydon-news/tulse-hill-murder-teenager-stabbed-996751

Maybe people don’t want to pay top dollar to live in the middle of a gang battle? Not a lot you can do about that other than price as above.

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