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montymouse
Posts: 71 Forumite
Hi All
I am about to be selling an ex-local authority maisonette. It became my council home when I returned to the area back in the late 90's. It then came under ALMO ownership, and later I bought it as I realised it would be cheaper to buy it than to carry on paying rent which was becoming signiificantly higher. I lived there for some time as a leaseholder, but now plan to move to another town, to another property which is already bought and paid for. So now I may as well sell on the maisonette.
So question:
Given that the maisonette will probably only fetch about 60k, according to a local estate agent who came by to take a look at it, do I go with a local estate agent who will charge me about 1k to sell it, or would an online estate agent be a better bet?
I have not done a whole load of research yet, and am in the market for any advice or tips.
Also, as I don't actually need the capital to buy my next home, I did wonder about renting it out. However, what tends to go againt this is the following:
When I moved into the block in the nineties there was a great set of neighbours - a lot of really pleasant people, with a few problem tenants. However, a lot of the longstanding nice tenants have either moved (bungalows, bigger houses) or departed, leaving what seems to be an increasing number of more problem type people. The bins used to be really neat, but there's now rubbish all over the place. There is now a reek of cannabis about the place. Anyhow, the estate agent who took a look seemed pretty sure that the property would only sell to an investor, and he seemed to suggest that the property would probably only be managed to be rented to people on benefits. He did drop one or two hints that there could be problems getting the rent from people. The estate agent said that the maisonette would command a rental of £400 pcm.
The maisonette is in a small ex-industrial northern town, and there is no college or big employer that would bring people into the town looking for accommodation. The only incomers tend to be people with professional jobs in the nearby cities who are attracted to the cheaper house prices of some of the more lovely old large Edwardian homes that the town has to offer.
Anyhow:
sell or rent out? Thoughts?
estate agent: online or local? Thoughts?
Thanks for reading!
I am about to be selling an ex-local authority maisonette. It became my council home when I returned to the area back in the late 90's. It then came under ALMO ownership, and later I bought it as I realised it would be cheaper to buy it than to carry on paying rent which was becoming signiificantly higher. I lived there for some time as a leaseholder, but now plan to move to another town, to another property which is already bought and paid for. So now I may as well sell on the maisonette.
So question:
Given that the maisonette will probably only fetch about 60k, according to a local estate agent who came by to take a look at it, do I go with a local estate agent who will charge me about 1k to sell it, or would an online estate agent be a better bet?
I have not done a whole load of research yet, and am in the market for any advice or tips.
Also, as I don't actually need the capital to buy my next home, I did wonder about renting it out. However, what tends to go againt this is the following:
When I moved into the block in the nineties there was a great set of neighbours - a lot of really pleasant people, with a few problem tenants. However, a lot of the longstanding nice tenants have either moved (bungalows, bigger houses) or departed, leaving what seems to be an increasing number of more problem type people. The bins used to be really neat, but there's now rubbish all over the place. There is now a reek of cannabis about the place. Anyhow, the estate agent who took a look seemed pretty sure that the property would only sell to an investor, and he seemed to suggest that the property would probably only be managed to be rented to people on benefits. He did drop one or two hints that there could be problems getting the rent from people. The estate agent said that the maisonette would command a rental of £400 pcm.
The maisonette is in a small ex-industrial northern town, and there is no college or big employer that would bring people into the town looking for accommodation. The only incomers tend to be people with professional jobs in the nearby cities who are attracted to the cheaper house prices of some of the more lovely old large Edwardian homes that the town has to offer.
Anyhow:
sell or rent out? Thoughts?
estate agent: online or local? Thoughts?
Thanks for reading!
0
Comments
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Sell.
Get some great pictures, don't be proud, just take what you can get for it. An online agent might be okay but please make sure it's presented well. Each month it takes to sell is money best invested elsewhere, or simply enjoyed.
The EA is right about tenants if the change you have observed is correct. I have that T-shirt and celebrated when we sold.Everything that is supposed to be in heaven is already here on earth.
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Doozergirl wrote: »Sell.
Get some great pictures, don't be proud, just take what you can get for it. An online agent might be okay but please make sure it's presented well. Each month it takes to sell is money best invested elsewhere, or simply enjoyed.
The EA is right about tenants if the change you have observed is correct. I have that T-shirt and celebrated when we sold.
Thankyou, Doozergirl! And I think that you are so right about not wasting time - yes, I'd like to get this sorted out, and I don't think that I should faff about for too long.
It sounds like you had some problem tenants. I have never rented out, so have no experience of how it can end up. I have heard on the grapevine that if you get bad tenants things can quickly turn horrendous, with no rental money coming in, and property trashed.
I have also heard that if renting property out is what you want to do, it works well in places where people are coming in for study or work and want to rent somewhere for a few years before buying.0 -
Sell. I was in a similar position recently myself. Ex local authority house, was lovely when we used to live there. Fast forward 5 years, tenants moved out and we decided it was time for it to go. Stayed completely realistic on the price, sold within a few days of being on Rightmove.
Good luck and enjoy the money ����0 -
Sell. I was in a similar position recently myself. Ex local authority house, was lovely when we used to live there. Fast forward 5 years, tenants moved out and we decided it was time for it to go. Stayed completely realistic on the price, sold within a few days of being on Rightmove.
Good luck and enjoy the money ����
Thankyou, lees80! The way the block is going I am not inclined to rent it out. I think that now I just want to get it off my hands.
I feel a bit sorry for the good tenants that are left. The place is truly going down the dip.0 -
If you have problems selling enter it into a property auction.0
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montymouse wrote: »Thankyou, Doozergirl! And I think that you are so right about not wasting time - yes, I'd like to get this sorted out, and I don't think that I should faff about for too long.
It sounds like you had some problem tenants. I have never rented out, so have no experience of how it can end up. I have heard on the grapevine that if you get bad tenants things can quickly turn horrendous, with no rental money coming in, and property trashed.
I have also heard that if renting property out is what you want to do, it works well in places where people are coming in for study or work and want to rent somewhere for a few years before buying.
Anecdotal posted on here seems to suggest that it can turn really bad with the wrong tenants.0 -
You could look at letting to your local authority or a housing association. They don’t pay particularly well, but they take on a large part of the headache. Typically, they will take the property for several years, and they pay you rent regardless of whether their tenant pays them.
The main snag is that you have no control over the tenants, who may trash the place.
This is an example.
https://www.lettobirmingham.com/we-are-birmingham-city-council%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98social-lettings-agency-we-work-solely-council-provide-privateNo reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?0 -
I suspect if the OP does this, and the estate has become a bit of a sink estate, it will actually be worth less and be harder to sell when he wants to sell in in a few years. Better to sell now.0
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Crashy_Time wrote: »Anecdotal posted on here seems to suggest that it can turn really bad with the wrong tenants.
Yes, so I have heard from people who know people who let out property. It seems like a bit of a lottery, you can get tenants initially thinking that they are ok, but then they turn out not to be. Have also heard of people letting property out only to find it is then being used as a brothel or cannabis farm!0
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