Small carpet damage in house we're selling - what to do?

matt_heath

We've had carpet moths in a couple of rooms in our loft conversion. Been dealing with them chemically which is working, but we've got two threadbare damage patches (one in each room) about the size of a paperback book, not far from the middle of one room, and nearer the edge of the other.

This isn't our room but it looks much like this (same carpet style too):

Our house is on the market and we strategically covered the patches for the photos/viewings. Now someone's made an offer, I'm unsure what to do - assuming we're able to get the moths themselves dealt with, is this a fair thing to leave the buyers to handle, or should I be looking at replacing it or declaring it to them? I haven't called out things like scuffs on the walls or marking on the paint etc...

They're coming to see the house again tomorrow so we could perhaps leave the patches exposed so they have every opportunity to see it themselves and decide if it merits discussion with us?

Would welcome any advice on repairing the damage too, have never had carpet replaced so not sure of the costs - would prefer not to pay a few hundred quid for a place we're about to leave!

TheJP

Why would you cover them during viewings? i would have left a note of explanation with the EA, likely the new buyers would possibly be replacing them. If they decided to make an offer and you didn't hide the carpet then this would have been visible and unless they made an offer with a proviso that new carpet was laid you would have been clear.

Act now and let the EA know with pictures, best to be honest at this stage, explain that the moths have been dealt with (keep receipts/invoice of any work) as that will build confidence in your buyers, all it may result in is you knocking a few £ off but nothing major.

olgadapolga

We had a similar problem of a damaged carpet when we sold our first house. We covered it up for viewings and said that we weren't including that particular carpet in the sale (we removed it and disposed of it when we left).

At least the buyers knew that they'd have to replace it although the carpets were seriously old so they all needed  replacing anyway.

user1977

What state is the carpet in generally? If it's generally quite old / threadbare, and the sort of thing your buyers would be likely to be replacing anyway, I wouldn't be too bothered about it. Different if it's good quality with a specific area of damage.

Olinda99

Sell the house without carpets included.

hazyjo

I'd have been tempted to remove the carpet before photos and maybe paint the boards white if they're present/ good enough.

TheJP

Olinda99 said:

Sell the house without carpets included.

That's an option but seeing as the buyer has made an offer that carpets are included/wasn't informed before offer they could adjust their price.

koalakoala

How disgusting. Of course you must mention it. Very sneaky to cover it up.

Debbie9009

I would now be honest with your potential buyers, it’s really not fair to cover this up and leave it for them to find when they move in.  Would you be happy if someone did that to you ?

nicknameless

Not sure why you would even need to ask the question.  Dodgy behaviour to start with.  Of course the decent thing is to be honest.

Ramouth

I would make sure it is visible when they come for their second viewing but wouldn’t be pointing it out.  You are not selling a new house.  The house we bought has a moth problem we didn’t know about until we got the keys.  We aren’t annoyed with the sellers about it - it’s just part of buying an old house.  

On another note, in our place the moths have a very strong preference for edges and corners behind furniture.  You may find more patches when you move out.