I cant sell my house - any advice?

googler

If you wanted to show the fact that you have a vertical shower head such as that, you could do it without the closeup photo, and show it in context above the bath...

Xiderpunk

Personally I think your house looks lovely, the kitchen is so much nicer than these cheap flimsy mass produced laminated kitchens. It also is very much in keeping with the house. I like all the original features you have been a faithful custodian of. The garden is brilliant and location looks great.

A floor-plan would certainly help as it is one of the first things I want to see when I look at a house.

30 viewings in that time-frame tells me people are attracted to your house which in turn means that the photos and the presentation are doing their job. A lower asking price would almost certainly bring in more prospective buyers. I would recommend dropping it close to the price you are willing to accept.

Davesnave

googler wrote: »

If you wanted to show the fact that you have a vertical shower head such as that, you could do it without the closeup photo, and show it in context above the bath...

Some of you are a bit fixated about this. OP didn't necessarily want to do anything of the sort; it's what the agent wanted to do, I expect. We already know from photo 8 that he is of the family paridae.

That & the bunting seems to have done the job of making the house memorable anyway! :rotfl:(and also got a lot of viewers through the door.)

The latter suggests it's a case of 'The Price [STRIKE]is[/STRIKE] isn't Right.'

paddyrg

Can you put the sofa into storage and get a smaller one in whilst trying to sell? To my eye, for a third of a million quid, it gives the impression of the furniture being squeezed in. Also, can you take your own photos with a wider angle lens to make the spaces feel bigger?

Riq

Picture 8 is superb.

The reflection :rotfl:

ellives

Guys, thank you all for you time.

Some very useful points that have swayed/convinced me to make some changes.

FYI - the new EA has taken some very good and different, wide angle shots - no shower heads!

We have de-cluttered and de-bunting'd!

We will move quite a bit of stuff into a local storage place over the weekend before the viewings begin.

AND I am going to drop the price again, to £310k.

Fingers crossed and please check out the new photos that will be online later - they've currently nicked some of the originals but these will shortly change - the EA is Keith Ian.

ReadingTim

Your house is beautifully decorated, and bang on trend, in a folksy, crafty way – a modern Victorian pastel-coloured paradise, bedecked with bunting and period pieces. Put some cupcakes in that cakestand and you’re away….

But strip that away, and the main problem is that you’re trying to present the property as a family house, whereas it isn’t much bigger than a ‘Coronation Street’ type 2 up 2 down. The following pictures to me suggest it’s just not big enough for a family with children older than nursery age, or the layout is unsuitable:

Pics 1-6 – all look good, spacious, trendy, light and bright – promising for a family home

Pic 7 – nice room, but what does it do? Looks both like wasted space used as a thoroughfare from the front door to the kitchen / breakfast room, yet also cluttered with that desk in the corner.

Pics 8-9 (living room) – doesn’t seem like you can fit a 3 seater sofa in it. TV in the bay window simultaneously blocks out the bay window and protrudes into the room. The meter cupboard seems particularly awkwardly situated – ideally you’d move the meters and utilise that space for a 3 seater sofa, demonstrating it’s a family living room.

Pic 10 – remove this – it adds no value

Pic 11 – seems like quite a cramped room, not much wider than a child’s bed, with no storage space. This is supposed to be the bigger of the 2 rooms on that floor.

Pic 12 – any room where a bed is pushed up against a radiator screams cramped to me. Strangely, this room seems more spacious than the other bedroom, maybe due to the layout, even with the bed against the radiator. The bed looks suspiciously small, even for a single though…

Pic 13 – adds noting. Why? Where? Etc

Pic 14-15 – nice loo, and gleaming sink(!), but it would be useful to see how/where the bath fits into the layout, rather than just a picture of a showerhead.

Pic 16 – I’m sure that in real life the view is very nice, but this photo looks like you’re peering awkwardly through a narrow window, to get a view that’s primarily of interest to roofers and portacabin enthusiasts (the 2 main features of that photo). I’m getting a sore neck looking at it, even now.

Pic 17 – a lovely room, and I love the bookshelf between the chimney flues. But it’s in the loft, which means limited storage space for the ‘stuff’ that a family will accumulate. It also doesn’t seem that much larger than the bed, and the window is somewhat slit or pillbox like

Pic 18 – a nice view. Of the aforementioned portacabin and next door’s scaffolding.

Pics 19-23 – good pictures of a nice garden, although I’d lose one of the garden furniture, as I presume you won’t be leaving the table and chairs.

In light of the above, I think you’ve had so many viewings because people are curious about the property, and many aspects of it are very well presented. However, on viewing one realises its shortcomings, and that maybe its being marketed as something it’s not – it comes across as a family house, whereas it’s probably only really suitable for a couple with a small baby.

As for how you can improve the listing, you really need a floor plan so we can see how the house fits together – where the hall and downstairs loo is for example. Where are the stairs? Unfortunately, the pictures don’t help our understanding, and in come cases hinder it – pic 7 for example – does that show the entire room? I won’t comment on the bunting, other than to say it goes well with the look. However, that twee, crafty look is also quite mumsy- again, it gives the family look, which there isn’t really the space for, except in the kitchen / breakfast room extension. I would therefore suggest you tone the look down a bit, and make it a bit more grown up, and appealing to adults of today rather than housewives of the 1950’s. You may find that you get fewer viewers, but at least those who do come to view will have a good idea of the layout and size of the place before they visit, rather than being disappointed on site – at the moment I think people are being lured there under false pretences.

Hope that helps – none of the above was meant in a nasty way….

Riq

ellives wrote: »

Guys, thank you all for you time.

Some very useful points that have swayed/convinced me to make some changes.

FYI - the new EA has taken some very good and different, wide angle shots - no shower heads!

We have de-cluttered and de-bunting'd!

We will move quite a bit of stuff into a local storage place over the weekend before the viewings begin.

AND I am going to drop the price again, to £310k.

Fingers crossed and please check out the new photos that will be online later - they've currently nicked some of the originals but these will shortly change - the EA is Keith Ian.

NOOOOOO!!!! Not the bunting, the bunting was awesome!

IMO of course, but then I don't want to buy your house!

JodyBPM

ReadingTim wrote: »

Your house is beautifully decorated, and bang on trend, in a folksy, crafty way – a modern Victorian pastel-coloured paradise, bedecked with bunting and period pieces. Put some cupcakes in that cakestand and you’re away….

But strip that away, and the main problem is that you’re trying to present the property as a family house, whereas it isn’t much bigger than a ‘Coronation Street’ type 2 up 2 down. The following pictures to me suggest it’s just not big enough for a family with children older than nursery age, or the layout is unsuitable:

I think ReadingTim has hit the nail on the head TBH.

I LOVE you house, I LOVE the decor, and I LOVE the bunting. The way that it is decorated really appeals to me. But, I'm a late 30's mum of two school age children, and the size of the house wouldn't cut it for me.

Your target market is likely to couples planning/expecting their first baby, or couples with just one young child. Because any more than that and your house will become too small (perhaps why you are moving?)

Younger couples are likely to be drawn to a more clean edged modern (soul-less IMO!) look, rather than the cosy vintage style that you've gone for.

Its also a lot of money for a starter home (because that is what it is - a top end starter home, but the size will mean it always remains a house that people start their families in, rather than a forever home), but I guess that reflects the prices in your area.

I like it, I really do, but a cleaner more modern look might help it to sell.

puddy

of course, years ago people really did manage with 2+ children of all ages in a house that size, its perfectly ok, no one is going to die of cramp

read the room sizes, they are average sizes for... yes... a family home

its not enormous but presumably if they were much bigger the price would be (although as i said i cant comment on the price as i havent done the looking up)