Unable to sell house

Bailey1980

RAS said:

I hope these aren't photos the EA's taken?

A few points.

Decent, but looks unlived in. I know it isn't lived in but you can do a little staging.

Most of the carpets appear marked. Are those really marks that need treating, or just a hoover to deal with stuff brought in? If it's marks, I'd be inclined to replace the beige carpet.

All the radiators and some of the cupboards are cream against white walls. Is that by design or were they not repainted when the walls were done?

What's with the weird radiator in the hall that appears to be half way up the wall and suggests a central heating system that needs replacing?

What's with the badly fitted double doors at the bottom of the staircase and in the kitchen. Are they the same doors? If they are, photo them open rather than closed, which emphasises the problem. 

What's the odd thing in the sitting room floor?

Inject a little colour, greyage is out.

Kettle and a couple of mugs in the kitchen.

Bright towel or bath mat to cover some of the paint job on the bathside, a bright hand gel, remove the loo rolls from the window and add a bomb proof plant. There appears to be a shower, reflected in the mirror, but no shower curtain?

Remove the orange blind in the bedroom. Neither it or the lime radiator cover are offensive in their own right but the combo is strange.

If you are going over, take time to tidy up the garden. Remove dead foliage, strim the lawn edge, clean the patio. 

Buy a tray of primulas from a supermarket and place strategically. Use a few with some cheap pots of tete a tete daffs if you can get them to make up planters for the front. 

Inside a little foliage inside would also help. Sansevieria are cheap in supermarkets, seem to be a thing and are happy with neglect.

Personally, I'd have removed all those shelves, and made good the walls before redecorating. But that's too much of a job now.

Take a vacumn when you go. Remember to frighten a few spiders.

Thank you. Unfortunately these are the photos taken by the estate agent, I did crop them slightly to remove the estate agent's logo. 

The beige carpet has a bit of pattern on it which might be suggesting marks. 

The cupboards and radiator's weren't repainted. 

The radiator that is half way up the wall has always been there, even before we moved in. We have had it checked but there's been no suggestion that the central heating system needs replacing. 

The double doors at the bottom of the stairs is actually a bi-fold door which we selected to save space as the area between the bottom of the stairs and kitchen is very small/awkward. 

Not sure what the odd thing on the sitting room floor is. It might be a plug for some fairy lights that are in with the logs but will double check when I'm over there. 

What colour carpets would you suggest? I was thinking of also putting a rug in the sitting room but again not sure what would be the best colour? 

What colour towel/bath mat would you suggest? 

There is no shower curtain, instead it is a folding glass screen. 

lika_86

Bailey1980 said:

Though the valuations were done before mortgage prices went crazy. 

This is your issue right here. If valuations were done before mortgage prices went up and the house has failed to sell, it's price. There is nothing really wrong that anyone can see with the house. You could spend money making it look nicer or you could make the price more attractive to a buyer who will then do those things themselves to their own taste.

peterhjohnson

I don't think you should spend any significant money - especially on carpets. You will not get it back.
You are getting lots of viewings which suggests the house looks "sensible" viewed online.
However, once people view, they lose interest. There is something "wrong" that is only apparent on viewing. Difficult to see what it is but one possibility is that the EA has done too good a job of presenting it. Maybe online, it looks worth £200k but when people get there, they feel misled?

pumas

Don't fixate on renewing the carpets! but if the carpets really are the problem, leaving the underlay won't help.
All I can remember from the pics, is the green radiator!

sheramber

It's a pity you didnlt leave some basic furniture in the house as it harder to sell an empty house.

Try to dress it up a bit with bright towels and  bath mat  to brighten up thre bathroom. A small plant on the windowsill. A cactus does'lt need much looking after,  Or a vase/ bowl.

Maybe a bottle of hand wash/shower gel

Same for the kitchen. A kettle , a couple of mugs. A towel hanging up. Anything to  draw  some attention.

The radiator in the hall is up on the wll as the it looks like there are meters in the wall underneath the shelves.

As for the doors  - the bifold doors do not match the white of the surroundings, Some white gloss paint might improve them.
 The doors in the lounge are different colour- one wood and one white. which is noticeable because the room is empty 

Maybe curtains or voile drapes on the patio doors would disguise it a bit. 

People looking to buy will be factoring in what work they feel needs to be done.

Your choice may be spend some money improving the look or reduce the price.

i do think you should get  up to date valuations from other estate agents.

Bailey1980

Sistergold said:

Sometimes a house just takes time to sell. Why did you have to leave the house empty? Just asking as you are saying you are struggling a bit financially? 

Don’t be pushed to spend unnecessarily just change estate agents and see how it goes? Hope you get a breakthrough soon as it’s truly tough times for all. 

My other half lost their job and my parents died within 6 months of each other so we have moved in with my sister as she requires a lot of care which my parents were providing.  We also thought it would be easier to decorate/repaint it without anything being in it. 

Bailey1980

sheramber said:

It's a pity you didnlt leave some basic furniture in the house as it harder to sell an empty house.

Try to dress it up a bit with bright towels and  bath mat  to brighten up thre bathroom. A small plant on the windowsill. A cactus does'lt need much looking after,  Or a vase/ bowl.

Maybe a bottle of hand wash/shower gel

Same for the kitchen. A kettle , a couple of mugs. A towel hanging up. Anything to  draw  some attention.

The radiator in the hall is up on the wll as the it looks like there are meters in the wall underneath the shelves.

As for the doors  - the bifold doors do not match the white of the surroundings, Some white gloss paint might improve them.
 The doors in the lounge are different colour- one wood and one white. which is noticeable because the room is empty 

Maybe curtains or voile drapes on the patio doors would disguise it a bit. 

People looking to buy will be factoring in what work they feel needs to be done.

Your choice may be spend some money improving the look or reduce the price.

i do think you should get  up to date valuations from other estate agents.

Thank you what colour  towels/mat would you suggest? 

Sistergold

If there was anything to do probably just the radiator/s. It’s probably an element of just not yet found the right buyer plus maybe not the right fit of estate agents if they are now telling you to do work to a house which is looking quite okay. When I bought my house the carpets were being held together by tape, kitchen was falling apart and I still bought it. You can not be asked to do unnecessary work and told to reduce price. If it’s the price then they should just advise you on the price. I think a change of agent will be advisable. Good luck

sheramber

Bailey1980 said:

sheramber said:

It's a pity you didnlt leave some basic furniture in the house as it harder to sell an empty house.

Try to dress it up a bit with bright towels and  bath mat  to brighten up thre bathroom. A small plant on the windowsill. A cactus does'lt need much looking after,  Or a vase/ bowl.

Maybe a bottle of hand wash/shower gel

Same for the kitchen. A kettle , a couple of mugs. A towel hanging up. Anything to  draw  some attention.

The radiator in the hall is up on the wll as the it looks like there are meters in the wall underneath the shelves.

As for the doors  - the bifold doors do not match the white of the surroundings, Some white gloss paint might improve them.
 The doors in the lounge are different colour- one wood and one white. which is noticeable because the room is empty 

Maybe curtains or voile drapes on the patio doors would disguise it a bit. 

People looking to buy will be factoring in what work they feel needs to be done.

Your choice may be spend some money improving the look or reduce the price.

i do think you should get  up to date valuations from other estate agents.

Thank you what colour  towels/mat would you suggest? 

Since the bathroom is white any colour would go.

I would probably go for red towels and a white bath mat , but orange or torquoise or whatever bright colour is available.

prettyandfluffy

sheramber said:

I would probably go for red towels and a white bath mat , but orange or torquoise or whatever bright colour is available.

Buy some new thick fluffy towels, you don't need to spend much but things like that look so much better.