Selling a victorian terrace house, should I try to sell it myself (e.g. purplebricks)?

NibblyPig

Falafels said:

What I don't understand is that you openly acknowledge stuff like this:
There are some things that could be done to improve it, for sure. Whether very minor cosmetic stuff like above, or much bigger stuff that seems like a waste of money for me to do them versus the buyer. For example, the bathroom floor is in dire need of replacement, and everyone that views it seems to pick at it and pull small strips out so holes in it are getting bigger every time I have a viewing 

...and then don't do anything about it! A lick of paint and a tidy garden won't materially increase the value of the property per se, but they will give an impression about whether the property's been cared for or not and hence its saleability. Whether rightly or wrongly, if small things haven't been attended to, it will look as though large, more important things won't have been either.

You don't need to put in an expensive bathroom floor, but there's something about icky floors in kitchens or bathrooms which are just, well, icky. If people stay in a property for any length of time, chances are they'll change bits of it - but probably not all at once, and it's nice if it feels clean and cared for in the meantime. Resiting a bathroom isn't something you 'just do', like rearranging furniture, but it can be really offputting to some buyers and will be more hassle than they'll be willing to take on. It doesn't stop them being 'sensible'.

Of course, you may be selling on the basis that the place will need a bit of work - in which case does the price reflect the financial cost of doing so, along with all the inconvenience? If not, I think you may have your answer. It's got nothing to do with whoever's showing people round. Viewers will look and make up their own minds.

I have done many minor things, a new garden fence, cleaned the garden, repaired and repainted some old cracks, renewed skirting boards etc.
When I say minor, I mean minor in terms of, okay this wall has a slight patch (20cm x 20cm) where it has been painted over after repairing damp, it is only visible close up and is purely cosmetic, however to repair it is a huge mammoth job that will involve some kind of plaster repair that I don't know how to do myself, and if I don't have enough paint left then I will have to repaint the entire room because I won't be able to spot paint it, and that becomes an expensive and huge job and I have to empty the room of all furniture, protect the carpets etc
I have done every small job I can to make it look good.

Thrugelmir

Wouldn't cost much to recover the bathroom floor in lino or something similar. Likewise paint the whole wall in one colour. Small things that improve first impressions. 

Falafels

P.S. My house is an early Victorian nailer's cottage with historic structural problems. When I bought it, it had been on the market for 18+ months. It featured a horrible chipboard bedroom floor which bounced when you walked on it, several different types of disgusting wallpapers in the same rooms and generally looked awful.

However, the rooms were very large for this type of property, and it still had charming sloping walls and exposed beams. The staircase was wide/high enough for furniture to be taken up there.

I've done it up slowly over the years, and it's been on the market twice. Last year's sale fell through because of a legal issue which was nothing to do with the house itself, but it went under offer within three days of going on the market. This sale's going well, and it went under offer within two weeks of going on the market.

If you actually want to sell the place within a reasonable timescale, do your cosmetic stuff. It's worth every penny.

Scotbot

RelievedSheff said:

NibblyPig said:

I edited the post there is a rightmove link at the top.
It seems like to fix the signs of repaired damp would be extremely expensive just for a slight cosmetic touch up but I guess I will get a quote, I suppose they will have to strip all the paint/plaster, repair, repaint, just to fix three spots 40cm x 40cm)?

I can safely say I will never ever ever ever buy a house that isn't a new build ever again

Well it certainly isn't a grey house!!

I think that part of the problem is going to be that you have a very unique decorative taste and that isn't going to appeal to everyone. All people are going to see at the minute is that they are going to have to move in and redecorate pretty much the whole house.

Not a lot of people will want to do that especially first time buyers.

True but it is perfectly obvious from the photos that it is a colourful house and people are still viewing. If you can sell for 300 reduce the price to 310.  I understand the market in Bristol is good at the moment  so if it is priced to sell it should sell at asking price.

numbercruncher8

TBF the repairs are quite minor.
The downstairs bathroom would put some off, but not much you could do about that.

Some things, you say the garden measurements are included, but I can't discern that from the listing, neither is it that obvious from the photos. The photo with the fence is about as big as some peoples side gardens, and could be confused as such, but i gather that pic is the whole garden. If there is more to it, it isn't shown.

The price seems roughly in line with what sold in the street, but those prices were in Jan 2020 before you-know-what hit. I would think that now outdoor space is more valuable. Families could view it, but then decide against on the lack of outdoor space. 

MaryNB

I've actually seen your property on Rightmove, I'm looking in the BS3 area but £315k is outside of my price range. £315k is very cheap for a 3-bed in the area, but perhaps some are seeing the 3rd bedroom as a potential upstairs bathroom rather than a bedroom. Saying that, most 2 beds in the area start at about £310k, not all with an upstairs bathroom so I can't see it being a showstopper. If you moved the bathroom upstairs, the downstairs room could function has a home office instead - 2 beds won't have this space. I would recommend sticking a coat of white paint in all the rooms. I know it seems superficial but psychologically it will feel like there's less work involved for people who are avoiding DIY. Maybe stick some plants in the back garden. A nice garden is all the rage thanks to lockdown.

Saying all that, £315k for a 3-bed is very good for the North Street area. Other 2-bed houses at about £300k-310k have been selling pretty quickly so I'm very surprised your 3-bed hasn't sold at £315k.

I've rented in Bristol for 4 out of the last 6.5 years, all in old buildings. Anybody who wants to buy in the Bedminster area needs to lower their expectation imo. Most of the houses are Victorian, they're not going to be anywhere close to new builds. 

I've put an offer on a property further out and during my initial inquiry about a viewing I was asked about the bathroom downstairs so I assume the EA doesn't want to waste time on people who don't want a house without an upstairs bathroom. Maybe the EA has to do more screening so your time won't be wasted. Perhaps consider putting some of the issues in the ad, with a note that it's been priced to account for these required fixes. 

NibblyPig

Thanks I really appreciate that feedback. I'm going to do those things as much as I can.

getmore4less

more like this    1/2 mile  0-£350k
numbers are for sale/SSTC
price....2b....3b
0-300 25/28 03/09 
0-325 31/42 04/19
0-350 36/61 10/32

Plenty of buyers and 2 beds are selling in your price range have a look at the 10 SSTC upto £325k as a start.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-80481880.html
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-78056134.html

someone bought this(new on) in preference to yours.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-72464784.html
or this that had been on a while
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-76038850.html

The competition is just better.
who owns the garage?

NameUnavailable

Most sensible buyers looking at a Victoria era house would expect some jobs - it's more a case of ongoing maintenance.

But if there are obvious signs of damp that will definitely put some people off (even if you tell them it's repaired, they won't know for sure until they pay out for a survey - and damp on surveys of older homes is a whole other issue). 

I guess that most potential buyers would want to redecorate - they can see the photos so if they turn up to view that isn't putting them off (no offence just that most people would prefer a neutral scheme to start from). However, if it's redecorating, fixing 'damp', fitting new flooring.....it all starts to add up to a long and possibly expensive list for a FTB who probably won't have much left over for improvements. Also if a place seems a bit neglected people will assume that there are more issues they can't readily seel

I think you either need to lower the price OR get busy and attend to some jobs. Bit of lino on the bathroom floor, repaint and neutralise a few walls (thereby presumably covering the repaired damp), etc. You have an individual style of decor but you need to make it as bland as possible to appeal to a wider selection of buyers.

NibblyPig

Garage owned by someone around the corner, who bought it for £45,000 last year.
Some houses are definitely nicer inside, but you can always redecorate, you can't get the extra room though, which is likely why it's priced more than similar 2 beds. That said I didn't price it I got two valuations and they both came in around the same, it was actually priced at 320k and I lowered it to 315k. The estate agent advised me against lowering it further, they seem confident it will sell at this price, enough to waste their own time conducting a lot of viewings.