Trying to sell no viewers-Help!

clutton_2

i think that you may have decluttered too much - the pictures make the flat look really sparse, no colour, no soul, no "ohhhh" bits - no "lived-in" feeling to it - it looks quite barren ....

and drop the price a bit too

poppy10_2

Photos are really awful - they're so dim they make the place look really dingy.
How come estate agents find it so hard to work a camera? Especially a digital camera where they can see their craptacular efforts instantly.

No excuse for this, nor the amateurish description and lack of dimensions. Sack your estate agent, and knock 10% off the asking price.

SquatNow

You think the proprety is worth £140k. Buyers think it is worth less.

They are the ones with the cash. This means they are right and you are wrong.

You need to drop the price until your price matches the buyers price.

Knock £10k off the price now and £5k off until you get interest.

Understand that on 1st April the market will start to be flooded with discounted ex BTL properties.

The bottom line is until the buyers cash is in your pocket, the house is worth exactly zero.

seven-day-weekend

I am no expert on selling houses, but have sold two.

We wanted a quick sale on both.

The first one, an ex-Council prefab bungalow that my husband inherited from his mother, we put with a local agent who we knew had experience in selling them and priced it just under another that was for sale on the same estate.

It sold within two weeks to a retired lady who was trading down.

The other one was a two bed-flat in a development pretty similar to the OP's. We asked the agent how much the flats were selling for, she said just over £100,000, we put it on at £99500 amd accepted £97500 the same day.

So, I think your price is too high otherwise you would have people through the door.

dopester

Find out what your place was worth in 1990 to 1992... or even 1981. I think that gives a rough idea of where I think we are heading.

Property is an illiquid investment - as already stated... the value of it is only as much as you are offered and finally get. The valuations of recent years are based on fantasy and wishful thinking. People are going to find themselves in the real world quite soon.

SquatNow

HSBC.... a bank who would talk up prices, say that prices will drop by 30%.

Prices vs wages are 50% higher than last time. That is, if prices dropped 50%, they would only be level with prices at the peak of the last crash.

Work it out for yourself and DYOR.

Tibbie's_mum

If I were you I'd instruct a different agent and start generating viewings by lowering the price, what's the worst that could happen? You might get an offer, and, remember, you don't have to accept it. The more people you get through the door the better, even if they are just being nosey, it gives you or the agent something to talk to the other genuine buyers about and create a buzz.

I saw a property last week which the agent had tag another viewing on after mine. The property hasn't moved in months and probably won't, but it still got me wanting to put an immediate offer in.

We're putting our house on the market for 2 months, if it doesn't sell in that time we'll leave it until next year. We've told the agent they have this time limit, as we don't want our house to look like it isn't moving, as a couple of properties close to us seem to be stuck. Push your new agent to ring round it registered buyers for your type of property and ask them if they want to view your property, they need to do more than just put it in the property papers and in their shop window, get them working for their commission!

lil_me

My families house in what is classed as a nice/desirable area has been on the market for nearly 2 years, currently at 1/5th less than it's valued, no viewers

Save4ArainyDay

When you add the cost of mortgage payments to the as yet unknown monthly maintenance charges I expect the 3 bed house is a lot cheaper.

Drop the price now and save yourself months of continuing heartache.

Lavendyr

My thoughts, for what it's worth...

1) The price, as others mentioned, may well be too high. Look at what other properties in the area are selling for. Get a few more valuations from other agents. House prices are flatlining at the moment (if not, as some would suggest, crashing - yet, at least), and flats are probably the worst hit in most places, since supply in many areas exceeds demand.

2) The pictures on RightMove are absolutely awful and would never encourage me to view. The picture of the bedroom looks dark and cold because of the poorly exposed shot (and the bedstead doesn't help with the 'prison' look either!), and the lounge looks tiny, not to mention again the poor picture quality. Get some better photos taken and consider improving the presentation - perhaps a vase of flowers or a pretty rug to brighten things up a bit. At the moment it looks terribly cold and uncomfortable to live in.

3) More detail in the sale description would help. I know you have a floorplan but to catch viewers on their first view online, add in room dimensions, storage, and more pictures. I would want to see at least both bedrooms and the bathroom if considering viewing.

4) What are your agents doing to market the property? Judging by the pictures on RightMove, I'd venture to suggest they're not doing enough. Get better pics taken ASAP, make sure you're in the local rags, get a friend to "mystery shop" them by phoning up expressing an interest in houses matching the description of yours, etc.

At the end of the day though, while points 2, 3, and 4 may well help you to attract viewings, no matter how well your house is marketed, it will still not sell if the price is not right. By all means try every other avenue first if you want, but do consider dropping the price. It is currently a buyer's market, and though I am not a 'HPC evangelist' myself (though as a potential FTB, I wouldn't object to one happening ), it's quite evident that house prices are at the very least flatlining, especially with lenders dropping the amounts they are willing to lend and increasing the requirements for deposits. It may well be better to drop the price by £5k now than to hang on and risk losing twice that in a year (not to mention service charges).

Best of luck.