Is the current market sucking the joy out of moving?

dander

Don't worry, just when you think all the joy has been sucked out of moving, the process finds a bit more to suck out. 

SilverSix

Similar story here, been on the market only two weeks with only two viewings within 3 days of going to market and nothing since. 4 bed detached, £500k.

Priced very well in comparison to other similar properties and is a much nicer house, garden and location on this development. No chain too.

Having initially only considered proceed-able buyers I'm about to open this to those on the market but not sold, on the logic that things might move more quickly for someone upsizing with a smaller house to sell than a FTB with big budget or cash buyer etc.

[Deleted User]

Recession, new build hate, and at the best of times moving house is hell.

BobT36

Hoenir said:

77588p said:

When I look online, no 4 bed properties in my area are moving at all. Only 3 bed semis etc around 220-250 get snapped up. 

Higher the price the slower the market. £110k more for being detached and an extra bedroom is a sizable jump for people to make.  With the increase in interest rates makes it less palatable to take on that extra borrowing. 

And salaries have gone up what, £10k in about 20 years? lol. 

And hahahaha at the £850k one, that better be an almost mansion. Who's got nearly a million quid these days? All cause what, a few years passed and someone decided it was now worth a gazillion. 

Check out this one: 

Back in a 1996 a lot of people could have bought that with CASH (salaries weren't that much different), but now? AND with massive (proportionally to the prices!) interest rates, no chance. 

Bigphil1474

That's crazy. Our house cost £45k in 1995, and we just sold for £180k. Can't believe the jump on that one - has it been coated in liquid gold.

Just to say, we visited a lot of properties early on before our house was sold, but we realised this was a mistake as we couldn't put a proceedable offer in so even if we found the perfect house, we couldn't do anything about it. We did find a couple we'd have loved to buy, but they'd gone before we could proceed. After that, we just looked at the odd house here and there so we had an idea what we liked. When we did eventually get an acceptable offer, there wasn't a huge amount available in our price range and area so we had to look further afield.

I did see a nearly new house, been on the market for over a year, a good £50k over our budget, but when I spoke to the EA about a cheeky offer, they said no chance. I think the problem is getting enough people near the bottom of the pyramid so that the more expensive properties at £300k, £400k, £500k etc. have enough people interested who can afford to buy. Can't see a FTB getting in even at £300k in most areas (I'm in West Yorks. so I realise prices are relative - a decent 3/4 bed semi is around £300-£350k round here)

FlyMeSomewhere79

SilverSix said:

Similar story here, been on the market only two weeks with only two viewings within 3 days of going to market and nothing since. 4 bed detached, £500k.

Priced very well in comparison to other similar properties and is a much nicer house, garden and location on this development. No chain too.

Having initially only considered proceed-able buyers I'm about to open this to those on the market but not sold, on the logic that things might move more quickly for someone upsizing with a smaller house to sell than a FTB with big budget or cash buyer etc.

The problem you've got with that is that you don't know what kind of house that person is selling, it could be not a great house or not in a great location or too overpriced. Estate agents will advise you to perhaps accept an offer in principle but keep the house on market. We had people view our house that hadn't even put their house on the market, our house was apparently perfect for them and they told the agent they were going to get the house on the market because they wanted to put an offer in on ours - they never did because we sold to someone else months later whilst they were still trying to sell theirs.

What you don't want to do is end up sat there for month and months waiting for that person to sell before you can even start the months of actual solicitors process etc.

SilverSix

FlyMeSomewhere79 said:

SilverSix said:

Similar story here, been on the market only two weeks with only two viewings within 3 days of going to market and nothing since. 4 bed detached, £500k.

Priced very well in comparison to other similar properties and is a much nicer house, garden and location on this development. No chain too.

Having initially only considered proceed-able buyers I'm about to open this to those on the market but not sold, on the logic that things might move more quickly for someone upsizing with a smaller house to sell than a FTB with big budget or cash buyer etc.

The problem you've got with that is that you don't know what kind of house that person is selling, it could be not a great house or not in a great location or too overpriced. Estate agents will advise you to perhaps accept an offer in principle but keep the house on market. We had people view our house that hadn't even put their house on the market, our house was apparently perfect for them and they told the agent they were going to get the house on the market because they wanted to put an offer in on ours - they never did because we sold to someone else months later whilst they were still trying to sell theirs.

What you don't want to do is end up sat there for month and months waiting for that person to sell before you can even start the months of actual solicitors process etc.

Thanks, we've secured our next property via letter drop and have really good communication with the seller and are looking to get in to a proceed-able position as quickly as possible, considering every avenue possible.

I'm torn as most people will look at RightMove and I feel the agent is working hard but just not really producing results, I'm unsure if it's the supply of buyers. I feel price is fine and that it might just need us to be patient.

The lack of enquiries, interest or viewings is unusual though.

FlyMeSomewhere79

SilverSix said:

FlyMeSomewhere79 said:

SilverSix said:

Similar story here, been on the market only two weeks with only two viewings within 3 days of going to market and nothing since. 4 bed detached, £500k.

Priced very well in comparison to other similar properties and is a much nicer house, garden and location on this development. No chain too.

Having initially only considered proceed-able buyers I'm about to open this to those on the market but not sold, on the logic that things might move more quickly for someone upsizing with a smaller house to sell than a FTB with big budget or cash buyer etc.

The problem you've got with that is that you don't know what kind of house that person is selling, it could be not a great house or not in a great location or too overpriced. Estate agents will advise you to perhaps accept an offer in principle but keep the house on market. We had people view our house that hadn't even put their house on the market, our house was apparently perfect for them and they told the agent they were going to get the house on the market because they wanted to put an offer in on ours - they never did because we sold to someone else months later whilst they were still trying to sell theirs.

What you don't want to do is end up sat there for month and months waiting for that person to sell before you can even start the months of actual solicitors process etc.

Thanks, we've secured our next property via letter drop and have really good communication with the seller and are looking to get in to a proceed-able position as quickly as possible, considering every avenue possible.

I'm torn as most people will look at RightMove and I feel the agent is working hard but just not really producing results, I'm unsure if it's the supply of buyers. I feel price is fine and that it might just need us to be patient.

The lack of enquiries, interest or viewings is unusual though.

I know that feeling well, by the beginning of October last year I had given up on selling ours til spring because it has dried up so much. Then the market picked up a bit and a few viewings brought me an offer in Halloween which I was over the moon bit at the same time wishing it had been earlier because then we didn't know if we'd be moving on the doorstep of Christmas or if it would stop a two week trip of south east Asia we had long since booked for the end of last month. Luckily none of that happened but it's been a frustrating week or two thanks to the incompetence of my buyers solicitors but allegedly the exchange should be today or tomorrow!!

I'm at that really weary stage now where I just want and end to it - this buying and selling is just so many months of worry and limbo! 

Albermarle

BobT36 said:

Hoenir said:

77588p said:

When I look online, no 4 bed properties in my area are moving at all. Only 3 bed semis etc around 220-250 get snapped up. 

Higher the price the slower the market. £110k more for being detached and an extra bedroom is a sizable jump for people to make.  With the increase in interest rates makes it less palatable to take on that extra borrowing. 

And salaries have gone up what, £10k in about 20 years? lol. 

And hahahaha at the £850k one, that better be an almost mansion. Who's got nearly a million quid these days? All cause what, a few years passed and someone decided it was now worth a gazillion. 

Check out this one: 

Back in a 1996 a lot of people could have bought that with CASH (salaries weren't that much different), but now? AND with massive (proportionally to the prices!) interest rates, no chance. 

Since 1996, average wages have more than doubled. Not surprising really over a period of 27 years.
However the issue is that house prices have gone up a lot more, and the important statistic is the house price to earnings ratio, which from 1996 to 2022 has gone from 3 to 7  for the UK on average.
In the North it only increased from 3 to 4.5, but in London it has risen to 11.

Regarding the example above, London prices did increase a lot between 1996 and 2002, but not by that much so you can probably assume that when it was bought it was probably a wreck. £73K was very cheap for anywhere in London, even then. 

BobT36

Albermarle said:

BobT36 said:

Hoenir said:

77588p said:

When I look online, no 4 bed properties in my area are moving at all. Only 3 bed semis etc around 220-250 get snapped up. 

Higher the price the slower the market. £110k more for being detached and an extra bedroom is a sizable jump for people to make.  With the increase in interest rates makes it less palatable to take on that extra borrowing. 

And salaries have gone up what, £10k in about 20 years? lol. 

And hahahaha at the £850k one, that better be an almost mansion. Who's got nearly a million quid these days? All cause what, a few years passed and someone decided it was now worth a gazillion. 

Check out this one: 

Back in a 1996 a lot of people could have bought that with CASH (salaries weren't that much different), but now? AND with massive (proportionally to the prices!) interest rates, no chance. 

Since 1996, average wages have more than doubled. Not surprising really over a period of 27 years.
However the issue is that house prices have gone up a lot more, and the important statistic is the house price to earnings ratio, which from 1996 to 2022 has gone from 3 to 7  for the UK on average.
In the North it only increased from 3 to 4.5, but in London it has risen to 11.

Regarding the example above, London prices did increase a lot between 1996 and 2002, but not by that much so you can probably assume that when it was bought it was probably a wreck. £73K was very cheap for anywhere in London, even then. 

I've just looked and the average has gone up 20k since then, yeah. 

And that house is in the north, btw! And it is indeed a HOUSE lol. Double garage 4 bed, 2 bath.. It's very nice don't get me wrong, but it is indeed just a "house", not a mini-mansion or anything. I don't think it will have been a wreck back then, just "normal" prices. 

There's a reason most of my grandparents age owned multiple homes..