Help - 15 viewings and no offers. (Is that bad? It feels bad)

[Ladybard]

Any constructive advice appreciated. Our house has only been on the market for just over a month. We have 'priced to sell' and had what I think are a lot of viewings, which tells me we are probably at the right price point, but no offers. It is a bit more cluttered than in the brochure/pictures online, but I have three kids under 7 though I do do my best for viewings (clean, hoovered, smelling nice, couple of bunches of fresh flowers, the basics). We live in a village and don't have parking (only parking nearby) and I suspect this is killing it for a lot of people (in fact I know it is) but WE bought it, and don't find the parking close by a problem. Also, if it did have a drive or other parking it would be up at a much higher price. ANYWAY, I am getting paranoid now that it is other stuff - does anyone have any tips to make a house look like a must buy?? Am I forgetting something? It's a period cottage, pleasant without being chocolate box on the outside, really charming inside, completely renovated by us 5 years ago. Many thanks...

[Iwasbornin1993]

Is the lack of parking included on the listing, OP? I personally wouldn't buy somewhere without parking, but I assume if it's on the listing then people who also hold that opinion wouldn't bother viewing at all surely?

[Ladybard]

It is not mentioned, but probably obvious from the pictures that there is nowhere for a car immediately there; and the estate agents tell me that when people phone up to view, they do tell them, but they think that people don't really realise how it will affect them until they see it in real life. It's a shame, as it's not that bad. it is the walk of maybe 15 seconds to reach where our car is parked. But I guess a lot of people want parking on a drive or outside the house.

[FishWithABicycle]

What else is on offer at the same price point nearby?

[Qwebec]

Have the EA no feedback from the viewers?

[Ladybard]

Fish, funny you should ask - house adjacent, up for 10k more (375), with a DRIVE, but apparently requires a lot doing to it - some structural, rewire, modernisation etc. Same amount of bedrooms (four), one fewer bathroom.

Then, close by, there is a possibly prettier 3 bed, but right on the main road, up for 410.

And two more 3 beds for about 350 but very modern. Ours and the two above are period cottages with beams etc.

[PippaFawcett]

What feedback are the viewers giving to the estate agent?

[Ladybard]

Kwebec - a lot of people say it's 'nice' and that's it. Quite a lot of people seem to have said the parking rules it out. One lady said it was too dark. The EA said yesterday that we need to declutter more but only one viewer has commented on this (and the photos at least are not cluttery)

[Ladybard]

Pippa - there doesn't seem to be that much feedback really, except it's 'nice'...I mean, it's not boring, it's a a cottagey cottage inside, farmhouse kitchen etc, though I know this is not everyone's cup of tea.

I suppose people buying a 4 bed maybe expect parking for two cars (but the price reflects this! Which is probably why we have had a lot of viewers)

[PippaFawcett]

Is it in a city? Hence the no parking? And, could you store any bulky stuff in the car just to make the rooms feel less cluttered? Eg, the buggy/some excess coats and shoes if the entrance area is messy that kind of thing.

[Ladybard]

Nope Pippa, it's in a village. Have taken more stuff out this very morning...It's here www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-39650316.html

[DayToDayShit]

You have a wonderful house!

[Ladybard]

Potap, maybe you're right. There is more stuff to get rid of (mainly in one of the two spare bedrooms) - I thought because it was in there it wouldn't matter so much. I guess we have nothing to lose but to try taking more stuff out. I guess I just wondered if there was something really obvious I was missing. I just think that's a lot of viewings with not a single offer, and only two viewers have asked for updates if there is any other interest.

[Ladybard]

Thank you DaytoDay. It's nice to hear something nice about the house! (Other than viewers saying "very nice" then running off never to be seen again

[PippaFawcett]

Your house doesn't look cluttered to me, quite the opposite in fact. I think it is lovely and exactly what I would expect from a cottage. And sorry, you did say about living in a village in your OP. The parking would bother me but there are always compromises when it comes to buying a house and there is nothing you can do about the parking! What are the local schools like? That is mostly what I am interested in at the moment (we are slowly house hunting).
Hang tight and see what happens, it seems to be a good price for a property of that kind.

[Quillered]

You need to mention the lack of parking in the particulars. From the look of it, there's quite a lot of space out front, so maybe viewers assume that they would be able to turn some of that into a parking bay, but on viewing change their mind on that?
In our part of the world, period houses are way less popular than new or newish houses, and go for far less money.

[PippaFawcett]

Did you buy the house for £150k in 2013? I only noticed the 'Market Info' button recently on Rightmove and I have to say it put me off a couple of places because one that I looked at has gone up a whopping £110k in a year and it made me feel we would be paying over the odds for it. Again, there isn't anything you can do about that apart from stressing the improvements that you have done etc.

[Ladybard]

Thank you Pippa. We are directly opposite a lovely primary school which our kids attend (and we want to stay in the village so they continue to go); local state secondaries good to average. I must admit the photos are perhaps slightly misleading - eg kitchen table has a bit of stuff on etc, one of the bedrooms has a pile of stuff off camera, as it were; the bedroom my daughters share is not shown (think explosion in a cuddly toy/plastic tat factory)...I guess we just hoped the price would mitigate for the lack of immediate parking, but not so far!

[Ladybard]

Maybe you're right Quillered.

[Ladybard]

No we didn't, Pippa, that is an error which keeps coming up and which we keep trying to get corrected. We bought it for considerably more than that in 2010 and had to do substantial work (to roof etc)

[PippaFawcett]

I don't think you should mention the lack of parking in particulars - you want people through the door to fall in love with it. My mum nearly left a property viewing because it had no kerb appeal but fell in love with it, rightly so, when she walked in and bought it. I always think if something isn't mentioned in the particulars, it doesn't have it. Garage, ensuite, whatever.

[Ladybard]

You are kind to say that, Cottonweary. We liked it, which makes it all the more strange that no one seems to want to buy it, but I guess parking is a big thing for people and we are just used to how it is and don't find it a problem.

[PippaFawcett]

Not sure how you get that corrected but it would be great if you could because DH in particular gets all 'we are buying at the height of the market/perhaps we should stay put' when he looks at those figures.

[Lweji]

In addition to the lack of parking
The absence of a proper shower in the main bathroom would put me off, particularly as it's not easy to fit to the wall as it's currently set.
The downstairs toilet and shower room is in an awkward position. It can work as an emergency toilet, but I can't see it as a proper shower room so far away from the bedrooms and by the entrance.
This is probably not easy to fix right now, but I'd keep in mind for any future projects.

Then, the fourth bedroom is more of a box room, so, 3.5 rooms, really. Is the price comparable to similar places with the same room space?