House sale - getting nowhere! Any tips?

thestens

We put our house up for sale on 27th November. We had it valued by 3 local agents, 2 of which said £300 000 and one said £325 000. We thought the high one was far too much and went for £305 000. It is a 4 bed detached on a small estate in a commuter village in NE England. It is hard to get a direct comparison as it is 10 years since one like this was sold - people tend to stay! However, similar houses in the village are more expensive (and not currently selling). We have had no viewings. The agent says the hits are about average on Rightmove and the agency's site.
Everyone who sees our house says they love it. We love it - it is spacious and well designed for a family. We are only leaving because it is too big now and we fancy living in the country. Decor is neutral.
We don't need to sell to purchase, but obviously don't want 2 houses for long - to insure, council tax, maintenence, etc!! We will probably be completing on our new house in about a month and it is 30 miles away.
Don't want to be marketing this empty either - think it will put people off?? Any hints on how to get things moving? We have about 5 weeks left when we are tied in with the current agent.

schrodinga

Is the rental market any better in the area, if you are not in an rush to sell?

Almadena

I'm in a similar situation. House on market back last August, sold easily then chain broke, sold again with a split in chain along the way. On exchange today the chain broke again. Have looked into selling thru a property company, lower offer but must be worth getting rid of this frustration? Has anyone else sold in this way?

thestens

Probably not - there is a house near us (a bit smaller) which has been up for rent or sale for a while. Don't really want to rent it if we can avoid it as it will be only putting things off and may get house messed up. I wouldn't say we aren't in a rush - we are lucky not to need the cash from the sale for our new house but do want to sell asap.

silvercar

put the rightmove link on here and get opinions.

Thrugelmir

Xmas is not a good time to list a property. Once spring arrives the market will pick up.

Owain_Moneysaver

Agreed; it's a stagnant time of year.

Why not try a special Valentine's Day viewing with some free fizz and chocolates for viewers?

[Deleted User]

My parents house went up on sale on December ~10th, had I think 10 viewings over proceeding month and someone offered last week just below asking price. I suspect that your area is the problem, not that people don't buy at this time of year... especially if there is another house in the area that is available to rent or buy and is sitting around without interest.

This may just be a case of perseverance and it may take quite a long time, no viewings (in most cases) either means your house is over priced (to the point where people don't think it's worth their time to view) or there just aren't buyers looking in your area.

I_have_spoken

Price is too high, put it on at £299,995

movilogo

If house not selling then it is over priced - as simple as that.

DRP

Based on the rest of your village, there is very little market movement in your area.

Therefore either lower the price to make it an unmissable bargain or wait (this isn't the busiest time of year after all).