Offer - don't know whether to accept it! What do i do?

[Summerysun]

I posted my first ever post last week to ask why my house wasn't selling and got loads of great advice so posting again!

I have just dropped the price of my house from £675k (in January) to £650k (in June) to £600k (a week ago).

And I've just had an asking price offer.

I should be totally delighted! Finally!

But after doing a lot of research today and talking to a lot of people (I know, I know, a week later than sensible...) I am worried that I'm ripping myself off.

This is the house: www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/41069085

My husband doesn't want to take it, he was reluctant about a price drop and I think the fact that I'm 36 weeks pregnant with a toddler was making me way too desperate to sell.

The estate agent sounded a bit fed up when I said I needed to think about the offer. He tried everything to persuade me, including saying "it should be marketed as a one-bed really"

Fair enough, he wants to make his money and move on. And it probably IS annoying of me to be dithering.

What would you do? Is £600k too low for this size in Hackney?

From some Zoopla research, although prices did drop in Hackney by 1.7% in the last three months, they overall ROSE by 5% in the last year. A year ago, my neighbour sold an almost identical house for £640k. Which means mine "should" be worth around £670k, although no one wanted it at that.

What would you do? I don't want to be greedy, but I don't want to be naive either... and we're not rich, so whatever we sell this for will obviously determine what we can afford to buy!

(A very realistic option is that we could give up on selling - let it out and rent somewhere. I've spoken to my accountant about that, so it's an option.)

[NapQueen]

Well a drop to that price would indicate to me that you wanted to sell for that so if I were the potential buyer I would be mighty annoyed if you theb decided to retract.

However there is always the possibility that someone else may well put a similar offer in within a few days and you can be at the centre of a bidding war.

Id pull out of any house which id offered Asking on and who then came back and said they wanted more.

[Northernlurker]

Nobody wanted your house at the higher price. Now somebody has offered the price you said you wanted. Take it and walk away. I can see why the agent is mentioning one beds, there's no door between the master suite and rest of house is there?

[NapQueen]

Is there a reason you went from 650 k to 600 k without a middle ground for a bit?

[lalalonglegs]

I suppose you have to work out whether you can afford to move at that price. Presumably you want a bigger house for your growing family - is that achievable at that price?

I think you have done very well to get an offer at all at the moment - I live in a different part of London and there is a lot of stock stagnating on the market or just being withdrawn without an offer.

[totallyrandom]

It is a lovely house. I would only sell at that price if you get a similarly good deal on an onward purchase. Have you seen anything you like yet? Where are you moving to? I remember a neighbour of mine sold a flat in 2009 for what seemed like a very low price, but because she got a really good deal on the house she bought in same location it was a great decision (the house was 50% more expensive, so effectively she saved more buying in 2009 than if she had waited out the slump).
It does seem to be the kind of house that would rent easily and quickly. But do you really want to rent somewhere with 2 children as it can be uncertain? The pro to renting is that it can help with school catchments if you are anywhere near that time (although some boroughs have become really strict if you still own another place elsewhere).

[phoria]

are you still able to turn around a good profit even selling at a lower price? the problem with hackney is that it's very overpriced and that's why people with £600k to spend would probably just head to walthamstow now and buy a 3/4 bed instead of a 2 bed as lovely as yours is (and it is gorgeous). i'd take the deal and consider yourself lucky to have an offer in the current market.

if you're not desperate to sell you can always hold on to it until the market picks up again but who knows when that'll be!

[Summerysun]

NapQueen - yes I would be annoyed too! I feel odd about wavering a week later, I did put it on at that price... I wanted, initially, to put it at "offers over" £600k, but my estate agent said they don't do that tactic. I have two viewings booked for tomorrow, which my estate agent has told me won't lead to offers as he knows them and doesn't think the house will suit, so not sure why they're booked anyway!

Norhernlurker - the door to the master bedroom is at the bottom of the stairs, it is only for that room. He's saying it should be a one-bed because the kitchen/diner is small, but - although am totally ready and happy for criticism - don't accept that. It's definitely a two-bedroom house, the two bedrooms aren't living room spaces, they're very much bedrooms (and laid out that way, did come with built in wardrobes which I changed, etc).

NapQueen - when I talked about a price drop, this one was suggested as it would grab buyers in another bracket whereas £625k wouldn't... apparently?! Like I said, a week ago, I was feeling VERY pregnant and desperate to move. I still am, but just so nervous to make a wrong decision!

lalalonglegs - we can certainly afford less. I'd be totally fine with it if the higher price people would then accept a little less too...

totallyrandom - that's reassuring to hear! We haven't found anywhere yet. Well, we saw something we liked but weren't in a position to put in an offer. They wouldn't take much less than asking price anyway - and they got it quite quickly. It was lovely though - a period place with features etc etc. We wouldn't be able to afford it now though. We're aiming to stay in Hackney, so the same market!

phoria - yes part of me would just love to sell this house and move on! We have two kids and two cats and just need more space. But I wish I knew what was going to happen.

[SpeckledyBanana]

Ignore Zoopla, if you can afford to move on with that offer, I would accept.

[Northernlurker]

I see, given the lack of living space then I think you should definately take the offer

[BombadierFritz]

did you have offers before when it was 650? do you need to sell? all I know is we also offered asking price and buyers asked for more. it annoyed me and we withdrew. its still for sale. I dont know why buyers do it tbh but i'm not great at 'the psychology' of bidding etc. would you have felt better if they had bartered a bit first?

[kitkat6]

I can see why he says a one bed as I would use the first bedroom as a living room rather than a kitchen, diner and living room. If you want to sell and can afford the offer I would take it. Better a guaranteed 600k than waiting 18 months for 650k in which time the house you will want to buy will have increased by 5% as well

[Summerysun]

Bombadier - last year, we were offered £635k (was on at £675k) but I turned it down as I hadn't found anything and thought it was too low an offer. That was about 15 months ago. Then we took it off anyway for other personal reasons, deciding to wait a year (hence it going back on in January for the same price.)

I would be super annoyed if someone messed me around / rejected my asking price offer too. I haven't responded to it yet, I don't want to mess these people around at all. I would love to take it and move on, to be honest!

Just nervous that we won't find a house also willing to take the same % drop next up.

These are definitely things I should have thought about a week ago! I would like to blame my pregnancy hormones...

[SpeckledyBanana]

Take the offer. If you don't find anywhere you can afford, pull out. It's not the pleasant way to do business, but in reality lots of people do, IME.

[Summerysun]

Speckledy - that's what my EA advised, too!

[YelloDraw]

I think the property is a slightly difficult one to sell because the living space is super small for a 2 bed so will only appeal to a limited group of people.

It was priced at a premium to 2 bed flats but it's not really got any benefits of being a 'house' like a garden.

TBH I'd take the offer, look for something and if you can't make it work pull out. It's business.

[YelloDraw]

You're at the same price point of this (very small but with better living kitchen layout) freehold 2 bed house

Barbauld Road, N16
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-61938401.html

[eternalopt]

Never mind what zooplankton says - that's just done on maths mate all formulas and takes no account of the realities of the space on offer. As others have said, that's a small living space for a 2 bed house. A house is only worth what someone will pay for it. If you think you could get 625k, the market at that, but you know it wasn't getting anywhere at the higher price.

[wowfudge]

No offers until you dropped the price means it was overpriced. Accept the offer.

[Stokey]

I think you'd struggle to get a 3/4 bedroom house in Walthamstow for that price Phoria, you'd need 750-850.

I'd accept it and start looking. But realistically you're about to have your hands full with a new born, and may decide it's easier to stay put for a few more months.

I moved with a 3 month old but had found the house when I was 5 mths pregnant and still struggled.

[YelloDraw]

Maybe not Walthamstow but you can have a 3 bed period terrace with garden and potential to go into the loft in leyton for that price, which is better connected transport wise albeit no where near as trendy as stokey.

[EnriqueTheRingBearingLizard]

How have you got on Summery, have you decided?

[benbry]

I've clicked on the link in the OP and it's obviously the wrong house.

[Summerysun]

Thank you so much for all your advice, everyone!!

Maybe foolishly, I declined the offer and took the house off the market (which is probably why the link didn't work, benbry?).

I feel pretty bad for the couple who offered, and the estate agent who did a load of work, I did waste everyone's time by dropping the price if it made me nervous a week later.

I offered on another place down the road for what I could have afforded if I accepted this price on my house - and the same % drop - and it got declined immediately.

So I did a lot of different sums on spreadsheets and realised that, selling at £600k, I can't afford to buy the next place up in Hackney if people aren't taking offers.

Plus the house I offered on is the only one that's been the right(ish) price / right location I've seen since January. So I just decided it's time to give up for now (I'm 37 weeks pregnant) and try again later, and make the house look a bit fresher when I do try again.

I've heard there's going to be a price drop when Article 50 gets triggered, but the whole thing is just exhausting me!

I would welcome a price drop if everyone was doing it!

[Summerysun]

But I totally agree with everyone that the living space is a big problem - the bedrooms are both really big, but the kitchen / diner isn't and its obviously a sticking point for the viewers who come!