advice needed - flat on market for 5 months and 3 viewings

stellaforstar

ILW - the flat downstairs sold just before xmas. (if thats what you meant)

BitterAndTwisted

Have think about this: the flat downstairs sold for £150k WITH A LONGER LEASE, so obviously yours could be worth quite a bit less than that to a realistic buyer.

Oh, and Addiscombe is in Surrey, not London by a long chalk

googler

You improvise. You adapt. You don't let it get you down. You take part in your baby's 'personal development' without toys, and interact with him/her yourself.

I freely admit I have no children, and maybe I'm speaking out of turn, but you don't have to look too far away from your home to find families who are coping with far worse than you seem to be.

You also don't have to go too far back in history to appreciate that in the middle of the last century, parents in your part of London were probably raising their babies with the ever-present threat of bombs dropping on them, taking shelter below ground on a nightly basis, and they still managed to cope.

BitterAndTwisted

I'd be tempted to apply a bit of lateral thinking to the perceived overcrowding if you don't have to sell right away. Is there any possibility that storage could be found or made on the landing for your child's play equipment and toys? I'd be seriously considering some form of sofa-bed or a mattress secreted in a cupboard or wardrobe in the living-room so the child isn't disturbed at night when retiring.

When I was tiny my grandmother had a single bed tucked away in a cupboard where she slept at night because there was nowhere else for her and her bed, so it could be worse!

stellaforstar

thanks - we have considered the sofa bed in the living room option but my husband is disabled and cant sleep on a sofa bed. we did also think og giving her the bedroom and we move our bed into the living room, but didnt think it would look very good to prospective buyers.

i know what youre all saying and I do agree - i know that children dont need 'toys' and she does get plenty of stimulation from us and the childminder without the need for 'things'. i just cant help feeling guilty we are in this position and always feel she is missing out in some way because we dont have a garden or a room of her own. i know all these things are not important in the long run and my feelings are misguided, im trying to stay positive. i think these new neighbours are the last straw.

i know addiscome is classed as surrey and not london per se - but it is a london borough and it doesnt mean house prices are any cheaper!

i agree with you about the point about the downstairs flat selling for 150 with new lease. as i said, we would be more than happy to do that as well. if we could just get people through the front door, we could let them kow we would be happy to do this.

snapping_crocodile

I think you definitely need a photo of the bedroom. The flat is well presented but I think you need a better photo of the lounge as all you can see is the windows, and you also need a clearer photo of the kitchen as the current photo is a bit small. I also agree on the price issue, if the flat below you sold at christmas for less than your asking price and it had a lease extension.I also agree with sccoter_chick. If people are searching online and search in the 150K and under bracket, they are never going to see your property

BitterAndTwisted

I would be tempted to reduce the asking price to about £154k and arrange for new and better photographs to be taken, even if you have to move the child's cot out of the bedroom on the day. That lovely kitchen could sell the flat if only the photos were much better

Cannon_Fodder

Get a garden for a child to play in...for £15k less.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-24591526.html


Or a communal garden and a nicer, airier feel all round for around the same money;

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-26864786.html

Despite the worse kitchen, on paper I'd prefer the SSTC one to yours.

And of course, we don't yet know what price they had to accept...

stellaforstar

thanks everyone - we will definitely renew the photos this weekend and get one of the bedroom - good ideas about getting the cot out the way. also agree that kitchen is the selling point so need better photos of that and of the living room.

will also drop the price to 153 for the next couple of months and then down to 150 by spring if that doesnt help. thanks - really needed that honest feedback.

stellaforstar

cannon fodder - thank you. yes, i see what you mean about the sstc property. it helps that there is bright sunshine that day though! but good pictures and more of them. will take that on board when taking new pics.