Been on the market 3 weeks, 6 viewings, no offers...

PasturesNew

cookie_monster wrote: »

Has your agent not been in touch to say if the viewers gave any opinions?

My experience of agents giving feedback is that they really don't get any.

When you view a house and it's not for you, the EA will ask you what you thought and you say the first/easiest thing "too big", "too small". You just want to get away.

I saw a house a couple of months back, the reason I didn't want it was: although the EA had said the house was marvellous, the owners had clearly bodged important aspects of their refurbishment in every room. What I said to the EA was 'it is the first house I've seen, so not deciding right now'. The second reason I didn't want it was: as I got out of my car the EA said to me that the house had had an offer of just £2k under asking price already and I didn't want to get in any race at all - in the end I noticed that that sale never went through anyway. Also, to be honest, it was the first house I'd looked at, but I KNEW I wasn't buying as I think the market is falling and I will only buy in the next 1-5 years when I NEED to buy. I had just moved into the area and thought it would be a good idea to get a feel for houses - especially that road as I had it on my list of roads I'd probably want to buy in.

What you tell the EA is not the truth. You tell them the simplest thing that will get you away.

Then the EA won't tell you what the viewers said because they've heard all the stock answers before and when they phone you, you might start asking awkward questions/questions they can't answer.

When I was selling, I asked my EA repeatedly what I could easily change to make a difference - and I always got the same answer - that my house was worth the money being asked, that it was lovely. They even used it as a feature/property of the week at one stage. And it still took 30 viewings and a year to sell.

Lavendyr

This is just another possibly random thought...

I'm not sure what the selling point of your house is. Yes, it is absolutely beautiful, both inside and out. Yes, it is in a lovely location (I know the area), and clearly the estate agents are bringing people to it.

However, in the ad it says "close to all major communication links including the Thameslink railway station less than three miles away in Harpenden." Yet there is no parking mentioned anywhere in the advertisement. If I were to move 3 miles away from the nearest town with travel links, I would need a car. And if I needed a car, I would also need parking to be readily available. It's clear that your house doesn't have off-road parking, which in itself is a negative point, but what about on-street or nearby parking? If there is any at all it would be worth pointing out, to reassure people who are considering it but tripping up on this fundamental flaw. Based on the apparent lack of parking, it would be an immediate 'no' to me. You can't push the "only three miles away from major transport links" point without backing it up with available parking.

Therefore, my thinking is either that you need to emphasise where parking is available (if any), or find a different selling point and really focus on that (for instance, country location great for families, wonderful retirement location - I don't know, whatever you think is most likely to appeal, you know your location best ).

I think you also need to speak with your EA and find out how they are pushing the house - what is the USP they are focusing on, does it match your view of the house, how can they improve the quality of viewers, and so on.

Hope that helps

carpmaster

Looking at the prices of houses that have sold in your road, there are quite a few semi detached houses that have gone for around £240,000 to £340,000

Your house is presumably bigger than all the others, or better in some way.

annie123

6 viewngs in 3 weeks 2 weeks of which are xmas and the new year and your expect to have sold!

Thats good going for the time of year.

UK007BullDog

Dimensions

Bedroom 1: 12'1 x 10'2
Bedroom 2: 10'9 x 8'1
Bedroom 3: 16'8 x 6'8
Bedroom 5: 1.60m x 1.57m
Reception 1: 26'5 x 10'10
Reception 2: 5'3 x 5'2
Kitchen: 17'2 x 11

Tell your EA to fix the ad. What is it now? Feet/Inches or Meters? And the number of rooms seems to be wrong.

Stamp duty might also be an issue. In your case a buyer at £339,950 would have to pay nearly £10,200 on this disgusting tax. So with mortgage and moving costs the future buyer is looking at £355,000 to £360,000. That could be a problem and also the time of the year, some people like to dream and look at houses they cannot afford. Especially now with the credit crunch people cannot get the mortgages they were able to 6 months ago. That is another consideration.

I dont like some of the inside furniture placements and the photos are not the best, maybe my perception is because of the photos. It looks quite cold due to the modern flooring. I see no cosy corners. So new photos are definately needed.

Just my opinion.

Zammo

Drop the price.

carolt

To me, as someone looking for a not dissimilar type of house, the main problem would be the room sizes. The 2 bigger bedrooms are OK though not huge, but the 3rd bedroom is very long and thin; depending on position of doors/windows might be hard to furnish comfortably - more like a corridor than a room. The box room/s - am I right in thinking there are 2? - are very small, so people hoping to use them as bedrooms or something, or confused by the one measured in metres, might be put off. Personally, I won't look at anywhere where the lounge is less than 12 foot wide - by the time you've put sofas in, it just feels like a corridor so the 10"10 measurement there would really put me off. Agree with others that the parking might be an issue.

Also, agree with others that it seems overpriced for the area - Wheathamstead is a long way out and has to compete/compare with St Albans where prices are now coming down again.

That said, it looks beautifully presented and a lovely if not huge house, and I don't think you need to change anything (other than the price) to sell it. You just may have to wait longer for your buyer in shining armour to come along in this market, that's all....

dolce_vita

Personally, I don't like houses where the front door opens straight into the living room so would not even go to view that house.

No help to the OP I know, but just saying.

Guy_Montag

When I was a student we had a cupboard that was c. 1.6m sq. Don't pretend it's a bedroom or get the correct dimensions.

DaveyDave_3

lisahobden wrote: »

I am getting really frustrated that after 6 viewings in 3 weeks, which I think is incredible in this climate and at this time of year, we haven't had an offer... 4 people said it was too small, one said it was too big, another couple just preferred another house to ours...

I am worried we are going to lose out on the house we want which is being sold by a property developer, who wants a quick sale.

What can I do to make my house more appealing and clinch a sale?? .

Frankly, I cannot possibly believe that a house of that size could possibly be worth that much (not at least for the next 20 years or so). This is not so much a comment on your particular property but a comment on the property market in general. For the same price you buy a pad like this:

http://www.green-acres.com/en/properties/1323a-2669.htm

You can just tell when something is fundamentally not right.

W. r. t. to the OP's posting, it will sell and attract offers if it's priced attractively and realistically. At the moment, that could mean a 10% mark down on last year's high.

Dave