Blogging my Sale

courtjester

I sympathise with earner, but this is the position that many people find themselves in - it is in fact normal, but owing to great expectations hyped up by agents and the media over house prices and the state of the market, many people expect selling to be quick and easy when it is not.

Properties around the 250000 stamp duty level are difficult to sell - you are looking at selling either at 249,999 or £270,000+ - few buyers will offer anything in between because of the massive hike in duty and it makes it very difficult for vendors to decide where to pitch the asking price - to be honest, dropping the price from £280k to £273k probably makes little or no difference to the buyer's perspective.

Offering to pay the whole of the purchasers stamp duty (£7,500+ 3% on 250k+) may be better than dropping the price to get the property moving and as a way of dealing with buyer's SD concerns.

I don't subscribe to the TV-promoted anecdote that viewings need to be conducted in a particular way in order to 'sell' the property to a viewer, subject of course to common sense.

I suspect that most buyers either want the prpoerty or not due to the way they feel when they walk in the door - if it doesn't feel 'right' or it plain doesn't suit their requirements, no hard-sell by an agent or vendor over how many benefits the place has will change their mind and get them running to their mortgage lender.

There is a shortage of property on the market and a shortage of buyers this year and many properties that are on the market have sat unsold for a long time as the right buyers for those properties are not there. It doesn't follow that a shortage means high demand or a 'sellers market'.

I think viewings-wise, honest answers and a pleasant attitude are the most important way you get a buyer to consider the property for themselves - in this respect, there is a body of opinion that suggests viewings are best conducted by the people who know the property best, the homeowner not a distracted agent with other interests.

earner

Bit of an update.
I had a viewing booked for last Saturday. I had a hair appointment so was out of the house, but then lurked down town in the cold waiting for it to finish - got home. No show. No note from the agent. No phone message. Gits.

So I phoned them and told them I was disappointed they hadn't told me anything.
They phoned first thing Monday morning saying it was a no show, but I still think they could have slipped a card through the door (the agent was outside in her car) or phoned and said.

Today, Wednesday, another viewing. Couple and a kid want to move to the area - want to run a B&B. I don't think it will be for them. They were interested in the garage so they could live in that to rent out more house rooms. But the garage really would need replacing to do that.

Re: why can't I do the viewings. I work from home - plugged into skype from 8am to 6pm answering inbound telephone calls. So I don't get the time. That leaves me just Saturday morning to get things done (e.g. picking up parcels I missed as I was on the phone/didn't hear them knock; hair appointments; dentist; doctor; banks; supplies I need to do my job like new equipment/stationery; post office for stamps and posting things) - why is so much to be done Saturday mornings! And the estate agent will be making over £4k for the sale and from the start I said I wanted them to do the viewings - and the people seem to come in the week not at the weekends. Now also, it is dark before I finish work.

I did start out by saying to the estate agent I would pay the stamp duty, but they said no, that was a bad idea. I took their advice on that. A friend of mine is paying the 2% on his sale and still not getting a sniff. 2% on mine would be £5,300 and I'd be happy to do that. I need to get some time with the estate agent, but they don't really have time for me now, except maybe Saturday mornings. Their office is open Saturday mornings but there is only 1 of them on that day.

Yes I'd have to tidy up sometime, but on my schedule, not the viewings. Like today. Viewing was at 4pm. With no viewing I'd have knocked up a quick lunch and abandoned the kitchen until after I'd finished work; instead there was no lunch. And I tidy up differently and more for viewers to how I have the house normally. If I haven't had a viewing for a week, it takes me about 2 hours to get the house from how I live to viewing-acceptable. I have to tidy away all my work stuff for starters, even to the extent of moving a table out of my workspace as they wouldn't be able to get in the room, but for just me working it's great.

No more viewings booked now.

earner

Thursday 24th: Had a call from estate agent at 12:15. The 2nd viewer yesterday wants to come back today before they go back home. They saw several properties and mine is their favourite. Can they come at 1.30?

Well, that'd mean I have to do all the washing up from last night - and this morning's breakfast, clear out the shower room where I had a shower and dumped the towel on the floor, pick up yesterday's clothes from the bedroom floor, make the bed, empty all the bins, vacuuum, polish ... but yeah - they can come.

Oh - and - the estate agent has to go for a lunch break so can I do the viewing? grrrrrr. So, I have to stop doing MY job so THEY (who are paid to do this stuff) get to have a lunch break. I told them I will start charging £50/viewing at this rate.

So I dashed off and spent 20 minutes tidying up/cleaning. And the phone rang. I left it as I was busy. Listened to the message left. They have another viewer at 10am. So I phoned them up and said "Yeah OK". The estate agent will do the viewing. But again it's another day my work routine is interrupted.

It's driving me nuts ... and I can't pull it off the market and start again or I'd be back to square 1. I might have missed the person that would have bought it while it was off the market!

Oh well... better get some work done as I was already behind before the phone rang!

Working from home is harder than working in an office because other people think you are available "Oh well, you're there aren't you" as if that makes it all right.

rosysparkle

earner wrote:

Well, that'd mean I have to do all the washing up from last night - and this morning's breakfast, clear out the shower room where I had a shower and dumped the towel on the floor, pick up yesterday's clothes from the bedroom floor, make the bed, empty all the bins, vacuuum, polish ... but yeah - they can come.

When my house was up for sale I gave the place an extra clean and polish every night and morning. I know people are entitled to live how they want, but since there's always the chance you might get a viewing on short notice, is it possible to do the washing up as soon as you finish a meal, and pick up after yourself so you don't have to interrupt your work routine? If you had been out of the house, would you have turned down those short notice viewers because the house wasn't tidy?

Not trying to have a go, just make your life easier!

My ex intends to buy a big place in Cornwall, but not until his current new project (a kennels and cattery in his new house) is showing a good profit. But he might still be interested in looking at what you have for sale if you want to PM me.

earner

I am not making a mess. Just not seeing the need to tidy up behind myself all the time. Especially now it is dark all the time. I work 8am-7pm when I am glued to the PC/Skype answering inbound calls. At 7pm it's then feeding time and by the time I've cooked/eaten it's getting close to 8.30 and I have another job I do until midnight.

The house doesn't get messy - I just have my office/work spread all around me all day, so if people are coming I have to move things about - move furniture to different rooms.

And as I am tied to the PC for my work, normally I can run downstairs and quickly try to microwave a scrambled eggs on toast for lunch but if a viewer is coming I have to think what will happen if the phone rings and I am on the phone for an hour. If a viewer is coming I make sure the washing up is done/cleared away, the microwave is is a slightly different position.

Right now I have the printer in the middle of the floor. In case I need it. If a viewer were coming that wouldn't be there. And there are things all over the place that others would trip over, but I don't.

And don't get me onto the subject of: people who turn up for viewings with noisy children that need an ASBO slapping on them.

earner

Monday 18th December

Had a call from the estate agent. Couple down on holiday for Xmas want to view it next Thursday.

I thought about this overnight and called back to say "No"

Looking round houses is a holiday activity - and I told my agent I am not a tourist attraction. I stated again they need to pre-qualify my viewers, which they still aren't doing. They couldn't tell me anything about this couple except "they are here on holiday".

SammyD_2

Why no? Do you want to sell or not? Plenty of my colleagues (I work in the City) have gone on holidays with a specific purpose of buying a holiday home while they are there, so seems that you are eliminating people for no real reason.

Gorgeous_George

Houses don't sell for one reason only. The price.

Now, it may be too low so not attracting the right viewers or it might to be too high.

You've had offers circa £250K which is within 10% of your asking price;. Interest rates have risen and are likely to rise again. I'd seriously consider the next offer in the region of £250K. Perhaps sell some of the fixtures and fittings separately to recover some of the £23K difference.

Other options you may consider are
take it off the market and save the stress
use an auction house with a reserve set at £250K or thereabouts
rather than saying no, say yes but without putting in the effort
try another agent to freshen up the interest

Good luck with whatever you decide. I think your EAs are probably as fed up as you are.



GG

bs0u0128

i dont know if ur aware but you come across as tho prospective buyers are a bother to you for wanting to see your house???? you may be giving off this impression when taking them round!

rosysparkle

I agree with bs0u0128, you really don't sound as if you are bothered about a sale. If I were selling again, I'd see the need to tidy up after myself all the time!

You don't have to like the viewers or their 'noisy' children. All you want is their cash, after all. Those holidaymakers might have cash waiting.

You are in a difficult price bracket because of the way stamp duty skews the market, so it's not going to be easy to get the house sold at the market price.