House Up For Sale for Two Years - Reality Check Needed

rebeccasmart

Hi everyone,

I'll try and keep things brief. My house (a one bedroom bungalow) has been up for sale for almost two years now with a local estate agent.

It was listed at the beginning of winter and as I suppose to be expected nothing much happened but then I had a string of viewings all through spring and summer but none of them came to anything.

I'm coming to the end of another quiet winter now and just starting to despair a little. My partner moved in "temporarily" about a year ago and basically, it's a very small house and everyone's patience is wearing thin. What wasn't a particularly desperate situation is slowly becoming one.

Over the last two years we've lowered the asking price by £8,000 from what it was originally listed at (an admittedly optimistic figure) and is now £3,000 less than I paid for it. I've done my sums and it's the exactly amount I need to pay off my mortgage and pay my estate agent and solicitor and come out with my original deposit to start over. This puts the asking price at £65,000: we're not talking tinkering with enormous sums. I guess I paid too much for it / made a stupid choice.

I haven't really asked a question here but I guess it's: am I deluded? It just seems that no one's interested. Is anything going to happen here? Does no one want it? What do I do? Does this happen a lot? Would a new estate agent make a difference? What should I be doing? I fully admit I'm completely ignorant of how this works. My estate agent never seems to have any other advice than to reduce the price and we've reached the end of the line there. They should teach this stuff in school!

Any thoughts appreciated,

Rebecca

Splatfoot

What about a fresh lick of paint and some new photographs?

WeAreGhosts

You need to relaunch on Right Move (or whatever website your house is on). I'd go with a new agent, personally. Freshen up the house & new photos.

hazyjo

Give us a link (drop the www. or add some spaces).

Definitely change agents.

Can you change the layout at all?

Unfortunately, a property is worth what someone will pay. Either it is now worth less, or you overpaid.

What you paid isn't hugely relevant. I presume you have a mortgage, some of which you will hopefully have paid off (although not sure how long you've been there). If the market has dropped, hopefully whatever you will buy will have dropped too.

Seriously, make it as lovely as possible, change agents, and get new pics. Definitely get it back up before Easter.

Try to be realistic about who you're in competition with.

Is there an obvious elephant in the room you're not noticing? Pub next door, motorway, main road, car park, industrial estate... anything?

luvchocolate

I agree with changing estate agents, new pictures too.
First though speak to current agent for feedback on the viewings you have had, something must be putting people of if not its still too expensive.

ReadingTim

The size and style of the house (ie the fact it's a one bedroom bungalow) will limit the pool of buyers, but priced correctly and someone will bite - stick it on ebay for a fiver and you'll get a hoard of them chewing your arm off....

As your EA what they'd market it at to ensure a "quick sale" from a "motivated seller" and see what they come back with. However, you may need to prepare yourself for the fact that it's less than what you currently owe on the place.

walwyn1978

You say you’ve had viewings. What feedback have you got from those which might help?

-taff

rebeccasmart wrote: »

Over the last two years we've lowered the asking price by £8,000 from what it was originally listed at (an admittedly optimistic figure) and is now £3,000 less than I paid for it.

So you've basically just said you overpaid for it and now are expecting to make more on it than it's worth.
Look on right move to see what's sold lately in your price bracket in your house style/size. That will tell you what's actually selling and you can see where yours falls.

seven-day-weekend

Where is it and can you give us a link to the ad? (as hazy jo says: drop the www. or add some spaces).

davidmcn

rebeccasmart wrote: »

I've done my sums and it's the exactly amount I need to pay off my mortgage and pay my estate agent and solicitor and come out with my original deposit to start over.

That doesn't make sense if it's still more than it's currently worth.

Gwendo40

It's only in recent years that the govt has embarked on a policy of protect homeowners and prop up house prices at all costs that has resulted in people not even being able to grasp the concept of selling their house for no more, or possibly less than they paid for it.

You just need to accept the fact that you overpaid for it and unless you can find someone equally willing to overpay then you're going to have to reduce the price further still.