Plenty of property on sale, need to buy urgently, can't do a deal!

alexanderreturns

I'm another who feels your pain. Sold my place earlier in the year, currently living in boyfriend's flat. We want to buy a place together. Everything is on at a silly price. I sold at 10% under asking and was ecstatic. NOTHING is selling. I'm on Rightmove everyday and all the same old stuff stuck there.

I have to ask, how does it benefit you NOT to sell? When I sold, it was a major hassle keeping the place clean and tidy. Our weekends were ruined because the agent would phone at a moment's notice and we'd have to scarper. It would be a nightmare if you had kids or pets.

I'm looking in a completely different area to the OP but my experience is the same, looking elsewhere doesn't help.

I am hearing on neighbourhood jungle drums that lots more places are coming up for sale though, perhaps competition will focus the mind. Or interest rates going up.

sinbad182

Most of London seems to still be hanging around 2007 prices, or thereabouts from what I saw during my search. Stuff in and around the London metropolitan area hasn't taken the hit the way many other parts of the country has. Where I eventually bought (w5) places are selling for pretty much what they were in 2007. In my experience of looking around west London, it's the property In the fashionable, typically desirable areas where the sellers are lumping another 15% on top, thinking the postcode will sell the property. From what I've seen, it ain't working.

westlondonbuyer

Thanks Alexander returns and Sinbad, I'm glad I'm not going mad.

Completely agree with your comments about selling being just as stressful (actually more so?) than buying. I was a nervous wreck through both our sales, convinced they'd fall through any second.

I'm not bothered about paying 2007 prices - I've lived here for 8 years and the area has improved beyond recognition. It's certainly very different to how it was even 5 years ago so I'm not expecting a discount. What I can't do is afford 15% on top, in a more difficult economy, and I'm obviously not the only one.

It's just a silly situation: no-one buying, no-one selling, more and more houses coming on sale. As I said, there are 6 on sale in my street alone.

Charliezoo

I'm finding there's a few vendors out there trying their luck at the moment. I'm guessing they're taking advantage of the slight upturn and putting their houses on the market to see what happens. Quite often they're happy to sit it out for a few months and if they don't get close to the asking price they just pull it off the market and they've lost pretty much nothing. Many houses I've looked at have been a mess so they haven't even spent time tidying the place to make it saleable. My partner and I are in a good position to move quickly but many vendors just shrug their shoulders and tell us they're in no rush! I've even found properties on the market but unable to view because the owners are on holiday and won't give the EA a key. When we were selling we lived and breathed the sale of our house, I would even tidy up before I popped out shopping just in case and I would have never turned down a viewing.

Times seem to be changing!

westlondonbuyer

I need to chill my boots, don't I, and see what happens?

I'm just sad because it just seems a real waste of time and energy when we could all be getting on with our lives. I'm not getting any younger, for sure.

NyimaR

I guess it doesn't help that London papers still post the odd 'UK prices drop, London prices continue to rise' story every now and then - teh hopeful could easily latch onto this!