No viewings in 6 months

bitsandpieces

kinger101 wrote: »

What appears to be a larger and better arranged flat in the same block sold for £95K recently.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatching.html?prop=58816172&sale=88700883&country=england.

That one sold despite worse photos, and not really being 'dressed' for sale with bed etc, too. Suggests that, at the right price, things do sell in that block...

moneyistooshorttomention

BMTH wrote: »

Why did my EA not tell me about this before putting the photos on then? Isnt all this what he's supposed to be doing? Giving my a heads up with things like this

Yep...imo....it is.....

but she/he won't...

You tell me why - as it's not as if they aren't being paid a pretty decent whack of money (unless one is in a "cheap" part of the country)....

Mine didn't even spot typing errors or bad photos in the details of my last house when I sold it. In the event - that didn't matter - because I'm trained to do so and duly told them to correct them.

I just assumed a level of service that meant "Deal with any unreasonable demands/tantrums by buyers and I simply do not want to see any viewers and expect you to do that for me". At that level - the EA situation "worked". I also found that they werent bad at sussing out whether viewers' intentions were genuine or no and whether they had the money to back up their wishes or were just "dreamers".

AdrianC

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

You tell me why - as it's not as if they aren't being paid a pretty decent whack of money

Don't forget that it's listed with a cheap online agency.

westernpromise

Part of the problem here is the online EA fee. AIUI they make all / most of their money off the fixed price fee so it's easier, lazier money to bank that and do nothing more than it is to do the actual legwork of arranging and conducting viewings. It's cheap for a reason and of course they parasite off high street EAs, on whom they rely to give them an accurate idea of value.

I would echo what others have said - it is terribly, terribly dark. I would do the following:

- cover up the dark floorboards with a pale jute or seagrass rug, something like this £55 job http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/textiles-rugs/rugs/lohals-rug-flatwoven-natural-art-50277393/
(and you'll be taking it with you)
- paint the wallpaper
- remove and dispose of the dark blinds and replace with this http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/textiles-rugs/curtains-blinds/skogskl%C3%B6ver-roller-blind-white-art-60314465/
- get rid of the bed and replace with something like this https://www.warrenevans.com/beds/borneo-bed/?category=space-saving-beds
...the feet and frame are concealed beneath the mattress and appear to take up less space; get the 4'6" one and you will then have space for not one but a a pair of these http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/tables/bedside-tables/nesna-bedside-table-art-70215525/
- the fridge is a bit of a mistake as it stands out like this thing http://2001.a-false-flag-odyssey.com/full_frontal_monolith.jpg and there is no good reason to make a design / attention point out of your fridge, but we are where we are. Polish it till it gleams.
- invest in a folding-dining-table-and-2-chairs set and put it under the TV
- hide all that ratty TV cabling under a tidy
- put a glass shelf in over the sink just above the tiles and move the microwave down there
- if you must have something on top of the fridge make it a wine rack
- the sofa is too big for the room. Get a 2-seater
- put huge floor-to-ceiling mirrors in frames on any walls you can
- get rid of the black desk and chair and put your computer in something like this http://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-colosseum-ladder-desk/p592434 and your other stuff on something like this http://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-colosseum-narrow-bookcase/p592427 (it's called a ladder shelf)

You will be able to take the whole lot with you when you move out.

and finally sack the agent and drop the price. If nobody's been to see it, that's why.

moneyistooshorttomention

Good thinking western promise....

I guess it boils down to whether potential viewers have thought "Well - vendor has managed to live somewhere so small. So maybe I can too...."...

Yep...I know...and some of us (quite a lot of us....) get hauled in to those websites about "Tiny House Living" and think "Well - they've managed it - so maybe we can too" and it does take a while for daylight to dawn that actually = Nope they aren't managing it/not really....

Yep...that's speaking as someone that has a 2 bedroom house of 1,000 square feet (ie many cheapy just-built 3 bed/2 bathroom places are fitted into that space....) and it takes some very careful planning to "get my whole life" into a space that size....

BMTH

westernpromise wrote: »

Part of the problem here is the online EA fee. AIUI they make all / most of their money off the fixed price fee so it's easier, lazier money to bank that and do nothing more than it is to do the actual legwork of arranging and conducting viewings. It's cheap for a reason and of course they parasite off high street EAs, on whom they rely to give them an accurate idea of value.

I would echo what others have said - it is terribly, terribly dark. I would do the following:

- cover up the dark floorboards with a pale jute or seagrass rug, something like this £55 job http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/textiles-rugs/rugs/lohals-rug-flatwoven-natural-art-50277393/
(and you'll be taking it with you)
- paint the wallpaper
- remove and dispose of the dark blinds and replace with this http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/textiles-rugs/curtains-blinds/skogskl%C3%B6ver-roller-blind-white-art-60314465/
- get rid of the bed and replace with something like this https://www.warrenevans.com/beds/borneo-bed/?category=space-saving-beds
...the feet and frame are concealed beneath the mattress and appear to take up less space; get the 4'6" one and you will then have space for not one but a a pair of these http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/tables/bedside-tables/nesna-bedside-table-art-70215525/
- the fridge is a bit of a mistake as it stands out like this thing http://2001.a-false-flag-odyssey.com/full_frontal_monolith.jpg and there is no good reason to make a design / attention point out of your fridge, but we are where we are. Polish it till it gleams.
- invest in a folding-dining-table-and-2-chairs set and put it under the TV
- hide all that ratty TV cabling under a tidy
- put a glass shelf in over the sink just above the tiles and move the microwave down there
- if you must have something on top of the fridge make it a wine rack
- the sofa is too big for the room. Get a 2-seater
- put huge floor-to-ceiling mirrors in frames on any walls you can
- get rid of the black desk and chair and put your computer in something like this http://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-colosseum-ladder-desk/p592434 and your other stuff on something like this http://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-colosseum-narrow-bookcase/p592427 (it's called a ladder shelf)

You will be able to take the whole lot with you when you move out.

and finally sack the agent and drop the price. If nobody's been to see it, that's why.

Wonderful reply, I will certainly look into a few of these things.

If I sack the agent I've lost £800 and going to a local EA will be another £1-2K. How about just leaving the pictures and dropping 5 grand for now?

kinger101

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Good thinking western promise....

I guess it boils down to whether potential viewers have thought "Well - vendor has managed to live somewhere so small. So maybe I can too...."...

Yep...I know...and some of us (quite a lot of us....) get hauled in to those websites about "Tiny House Living" and think "Well - they've managed it - so maybe we can too" and it does take a while for daylight to dawn that actually = Nope they aren't managing it/not really....

Yep...that's speaking as someone that has a 2 bedroom house of 1,000 square feet (ie many cheapy just-built 3 bed/2 bathroom places are fitted into that space....) and it takes some very careful planning to "get my whole life" into a space that size....

In such an inexpensive area of the country as well, FTB are going to wait until they can buy a proper 2 bd terrace rather than such as small place like that anyway. It just has very limited appeal.

sheff6107

Crashy_Time wrote: »

Just accepting that it is over-priced would be less stress.

I pity you if the thought of putting in a bit of effort is too much to bear. Much easier to sit and tell people on the internet they are wrong day in day out eh?

kinger101

sheff6107 wrote: »

I pity you if the thought of putting in a bit of effort is too much to bear. Much easier to sit and tell people on the internet they are wrong day in day out eh?

Crashy and I hardly ever agree, but he has very valid point. Cleaning the fridge door isn't going to alter the fact it's way overpriced.

lincroft1710

tim123456789 wrote: »

to be fair, it's only tiny as a 2 bed


there are plenty of 1 beds that size

Which proves my point it is a poor design, as a 1 bed it would just be small at that size.