House on the market for 15 days, no viewings booked

phoebe1989seb

Rain_Shadow wrote: »

The boiler, pic 4, would be a no-no for me.

This ^ Why, why, why would you have a boiler located there?

The front elevation is lacking in kerb appeal and would benefit from an injection of colour from a couple of seasonally planted pots.

Also, the blurb states that the garden has "many well established plants and shrubs", whereas imho the garden looks a trifle unkempt compared to the inside of the property, which while not to my taste looks to be in reasonably good nick. There seems to be a lack of plants and the fence/shed are in need of a lick of paint/stain. Definitely replace those dead(?) plants in pots with something more colourful.......

Agree that the time of year won't be helping though. Two years ago we put our last house on the market on 1st Sept and saw a flurry of interest with a sale agreed by early October, whereas when we sold my parents' house in 2012, putting it on mid way through the school summer hols was a waste of time - it was a typical family three bed, 1920s home - and we got very few viewings till the kids went back to school.

fairy_lights

When I click on "see more properties like this one" it's shows me this...
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-41693457.html
Which is very similar to yours but 25k cheaper

Elsewhere

The estate agent is probably right about the time of year - once the children go back to school interest will pick up I am sure.

The house looks fine inside. At the front it's a bit plain - a pot of flowers or a hanging basket by the front door as your neighbours have would look nice.

The back garden picture is not taken very well... Also I think if you were to give the nearer fence and your shed a coat of wood stain/preservative to smarten them up, remove the rubble in front of the shed, tidy the toys and put some colourful flowers in your pots instead of the rather scrappy plants they contain - an outlay of maybe £30 - it would improve the immediate appeal of the garden in a photograph.

freeman3030

Hi, you're house looks lovely. The only criticism I would make is your garden not being very child friendly as there's not a lot of grass and the little ones could potentially fall from the level that the shed is on to the patio/stone areas below. Im assuming that your target market are young families this could be something putting them off. How did you neighbours garden over the road compare? Like you say though, your house do want need any work doing to it and from the photos appears to be in 'move in condition' which is very appealing to those with children.
People are often on holiday in August, kids will be back to school in September so people will potentially have a bit more spare time to go out on viewings/have the inclination to be in for Christmas.

Boatdweller

Time of year is going to be a large factor.

People are on holiday and not thinking about moving. Once the schools go back you should find interest picks up.

AdrianC

Phirefly wrote: »

Perhaps it is just a quiet time....

The middle of a roasting hot August...? Do you think?

That boiler would definitely benefit from being boxed in - who thought that was a good idea?
Spending half a day jetwashing the back garden paving and the front parking area wouldn't hurt, either.

But they're minor details. They're not what's stopping you getting viewings.

Phirefly

Actually, yes, that garden photo really is dismal. I'm certain you can improve on that. I have a 19 m/o and the steps would not be a dealbreaker for me. She loves steps and we encourage her to explore and gain dexterity on them.

I have looked through your photos again and they're really not great. Do you have a friend with a decent slr, a wide-angle lens, a tripod and a couple of hours to spare at the weekend? I think it could make a big difference.

carlislelass

A house on our street has the boiler in the main bedroom

pmlindyloo

I have to agree with the EA that because of the school holidays it does tend to be a quiet time for house viewings. Having said that if houses go quickly in this area then a little re jigging might not go amiss.

So, look at the pictures and be very critical.

My thoughts:

Some of the pictures seem very dark - might be my computer but worth asking PB for some of them to be taken again.

I think it is worth spending the money to have a cupboard put around the boiler - not a great thing to have in the dining room!

A few more pictures too - the lawned area of the garden? Other angles for the rooms?

What is that 'thing' by the settees in the lounge? Is it a fireplace? I would have a go at rearranging the furniture in the lounge (if you can) all looks a bit symmetrical.

Super critical I know and, other than the boiler, nothing that should put the buyer off.

JenB83

Thanks all, yes, that's the right house. I'm not keen on the photos either. Been meaning to box the boiler in but never got around to it. For a short term fix, I might take a photo from another angle so that it's not so obvious.

I'm going to work on the garden this weekend and get the photos improved. Yes, the steps are an issue and the garden is one of the reasons we want to move as we now have a 19 month old son. Unfortunately there's not much we can do about that though.

The house that's nearby but cheaper is on a not very nice street, I know it's close but ours has a much better reputation locally.