To those selling in these difficult times Part Deux. AKA sellers support network!

titch1984

Hi!

My partner and I have a flat in North Yorkshire which we have been renting out for the last six months since we were both relocated down South with work. We have now decided to sell up as we're struggling financially, and have had the flat on the market since Feb this year.

However, we haven't had a single viewing to date. Our agents say that it's the market at the moment, nothing is doing well, especially flats. I know things are tough at the moment but I was hoping that we might have had one or two viewings by now?!

To make matters worse, our tenants have just given us their notice to leave in July. We are getting so desperate that we are even looking into putting the apartment up for auction, even though I know this will lose us about 20% of the value. We're willing to accept less than it's worth (within reason!) to get it off our hands so we can get our finances straightened out, but if nobody wants it what are we supposed to do?

Any advice?

Thanks in advance!

[Deleted User]

oh blow. Viewer tomorrow cancelled. That`s the trouble with being a niche market. The ideal viewer will be a downsizer who also wants a property abroad, so they can lock up and leave

sigh

Karmacat

titch, I've no idea what your area is like, so its difficult to tell - but look at the condition of the property. Had your tenants agreed to move out, is there paperwork to that effect? Whats the prices of flats around yours? Is there something locally - a nasty shop or something - thats affecting your property in particular? If you look on rightmove at your area, is it priced in the ballpark? Have you lowered the price at all yet? I was advised that if I didn't get an offer in 6 weeks, I should lower the asking price.

Hope this helps.

titch1984

Thanks Karmacat!

It's in a lovely small town in a nice building, recently modernised and everything! We loved living there, we didn't want to move - work had other ideas though! lol

There are a couple of other developements in the area and we have priced our flat lower than equivalent ones in the other developments to make it competitive.

When our EA rang me to let me know the tenants had given notice, we discussed the lack of progress and lowered the price. She has also agreed to relaunch the property and make it "property of the week" this week, marketing it as a prime investment opportunity.

I've asked the EA to have their auction guy value the flat for auction potential, so once the tenants are out in July we may try that route if nothing materialises in the mean time.

NEH

titch1984 wrote: »

Hi!

My partner and I have a flat in North Yorkshire which we have been renting out for the last six months since we were both relocated down South with work. We have now decided to sell up as we're struggling financially, and have had the flat on the market since Feb this year.

However, we haven't had a single viewing to date. Our agents say that it's the market at the moment, nothing is doing well, especially flats. I know things are tough at the moment but I was hoping that we might have had one or two viewings by now?!

To make matters worse, our tenants have just given us their notice to leave in July. We are getting so desperate that we are even looking into putting the apartment up for auction, even though I know this will lose us about 20% of the value. We're willing to accept less than it's worth (within reason!) to get it off our hands so we can get our finances straightened out, but if nobody wants it what are we supposed to do?

Any advice?

Thanks in advance!

It is a slow market unfortunately, things are picking up now the election is over but still slow....Flats are especailly slow...I can sympathise our flat has been on the market since February as well but we are a niche market being a studio flat, only divorcees, commuters, FTB or students want ours and there aren't enough of them at the moment....Plus we have the added problem of the block of flats up the road, 3 others decided to sell a month or two after ours so there is a lot of competition..

I wish I could offer advice but we're in the same boat....and like you we don't live in ours anymore either...

Karmacat

Best of luck to you both .... I live in a fairly popular town in the south east, commutable to London, it makes a difference sorry in fact, a friend of mine owns a studio flat here, and was puzzled as to why none ever came on the market these days - the EA told him that buy to let investors tend to be the ones that buy them, and they buy them to keep, they're not flipped, because they're such good investments. Its very expensive round here, so he often has a couple living in his flat (erm, he lives in a house )

As for me - I had the fright of my life this afternoon, but in a good way - someone from the EA has been round today, and put the "sold" strip onto the "for sale" board - its really happening _pale__pale__pale_ I'm really going to move. Gulp.

azkaban420

Hi all, congrats to all with the good news, hugs to all those who need cheering up, hello to all newbies, and good luck to all those needing it

We've got a viewing at 2.45 today (tis now gone midnight) and it's an FTB looking at three properties including mine. It's so hard to get psyched-up for viewings...this is one after about a week's gap. Let's see. At least I'll be at work and not be standing by the window frantically trying to see if the viewer will turn up or not....

Still, saw an email about an hour ago that I've won two tickets to see Grumpy Old Women 2 in London...something to be cheery about and look forward to hehe!

Az

[Deleted User]

you quickly learn to face reality, don`t you and I too have stopped being psyched up for viewings. We got another one this thursday , so that is 2 on the one day. I am hoping that they have already done the drive around and are not time wasters
god luck az

monkeys_bunny

Good luck Az

still no word from our viewer on Saturday so guess thats another no go then

azkaban420

Yes Kittie, that's right, more than anything I really hope they're not time-wasters but I think as they're coming from outta town, it's unlikely they'll have done a drive-by already. I was up in the early hours hoping and praying for some good news for a change...fingers crossed for all of us;

MB that's another thing I find infuriating - all it takes is one phone call to say yes, liked the property, thinking about it, or no, didn't like it, moving on....it's funny how viewers can make EAs move mountains to get the right appointment for them to view, but once they've seen it, they forget to at least give 'some' feedback. When I've looked at properties, if the EA hasn't rung me, I make a point of calling them or emailing them to say thanks, but wasn't right/too small/too big or whatever reason I have for rejecting a property....I know what it's like to be hanging around thinking...maybe these are the ones? Only to be let down when they don't even bother to get back to the EA.

Sigh...rant over...lol!

Az