To think you ought to tidy to a reasonable basic standard before people come to view your house?

I disagree with you both.

When having viewings it should look like a show home. Every agent I've worked with has said that and I've sold three homes now, and in two days each.

😨 I remember looking round someone's house and they had to get Grandma out of bed. It was an 8pm viewing, but the owners could have rescheduled! I did feel awful for her.

And it was around midday - not like we'd turned up unexpectedly at 09.00!

I'm not a tidy person by any means, I keep the house clean but I have far too much stuff and clutter I'm not always the best at putting things away, we have limited storage that doesn't help. However I would not want people to come and view my house and it being a mess, so I'd make an effort to looking as presentable as possible for people coming to view it.

😂that estate agent had their work cut out!

By the time the EA and I reached the bedroom I'd already decided that this place wasn't for me. She opened the door to the very messy bedroom and the oaf turned over in his sleep - so we just left!

The husband and the house are different issues. I once went to the very cluttered cottage extended into a house to buy an exclusive guitar for my son's 18th. But it was a large and very desirable house with middle class clutter. They clearly had enough space and storage but were too caught up with erudite concerns to clear and clean. Seriously they had a 12 foot dining table that the seller had to push an A4 space into it was so cluttered. Working class clutter on a new build estate is not desirable.

I would have bought the cluttered house in a heartbeat if I won the lottery.

Your husband doesn't sound very nice OP.

You're heavily pregnant and ill and looking after 2 other DC.

What an arsehole.

If I can't see what I'm buying I won't make an offer because I need to be able to see the floors, kitchen sideboards etc. The mess could be hiding something. Tell him to get off his lazy arse and clean it up.

I make my house show home ready every single time because I wanted to sell after finding my dream home .. every single person commented how lovely the. Presentation was to the EA so I'm guessing a lot of people don't bother but I have pride and I'd hate someone to think I was grubby ! ( I am not so unlikely I guess )

It sold after a few viewings so I think it definitely helps

He doesn't believe that the house should be untidy when it's viewed. He just doesn't want to tidy the house. Its weaponised incompetence.

Untidy people don't mind viewing a tidy house. Tidy people really don't want to view a untidy house.

You DH will not be able to find a single article which supports his alleged view.

If I viewed a messy house where I could not see the bedroom floor, dh and I would probably beat a hasty retreat and would be talking about it for days but not in a good way.

But if it’s ok to live in it like that day to day then why not ok to show people round?

I wouldn’t run around cleaning for viewings as I cant live in a space I would be embarrassed for others to see.

I understand your other half’s point of view- why make extra effort for total strangers if you all can’t be bothered to make the effort for yourselves?

and btw at least your ten year old is trying to help you- calling them incompetent is mean as fuck

Maybe it's my respectable working class roots but I would certainly never want to give it to be said that I kept my house in that state. It is a matter of both self respect but also respect for the other person who is coming to view. You expect them to come and view and potentially spend hundreds of thousands on your home and you can't put your dirty clothes in a hamper? One of the saddest thing I ever saw was when I viewed a house lived in by an elderly person who had died. The children selling it - so making pure profit - didn't even have the decency to clear away the man's medicines and eye glasses and personal bits and bobs from the bed side locker. I felt like we were violating this man's privacy in some way and I cannot imagine he would have wanted a crowd of strangers trooping through his life long home gawping at it.

I'd be ordering a litter picker from amazon so you don't have to bend over and just putting everything he owns that's on the floor in a black bin bag and shoving it in his wardrobe, car boot, garage.

I would concentrate on teaching the kids to tidy up after themselves, that will be of more use when a baby comes and hopefully you move house.

If they are willing to consider what special toys they have that they are too big for and want to give as a present to their new baby brother or sister, it's a good way to get them to help weed through toys and box them up.

Selling a house is exhausting trying to keep everything tidy. Much easier in a sellers market which this isn't. If it's not madly urgent then maybe take it off the market until next year and hope that things improve. If you want to keep it on the market then perhaps agree which days of the week you can facilitate bookings so that the EA doesn't put you at everyone's beck and call.

Back to school soon, that will make things easier.

When we sold our house it was in pristine condition where possible (as in, we couldn't update the old kitchen but you could eat off the benches they were so clean). Generally I don't like going anywhere that's not clean but it would make me feel unfavourable about a house I was viewing. Or I'd think ' They just want a quick sale so put in a lowball offer'.

This! Not workable space etc, no room for clothes.
we recently moved and the absolute hell hole houses were an immediate no. When you can’t pick your way round to see out the windows why bother looking roun the rest of it.
one house said we couldn’t look in loft or shed, we took our asking price offer off the table

I’m house hunting at the moment and messy house pictures immediately put me off. If they can’t be bothered to clean I can’t imagine they’ve been bothered to keep the house maintained.

Normal life clutter doesn’t worry me, but I’ve seen some shocking pictures.

I would not buy a messy house unless it was at a knock down price for the location and I had plans to do it up.

Sorry but I don't want to see people's lives around me. The state it is in indicates the owners do not take care and query what other things could be lurking.

All the houses I have seen are immaculate in their listings and on visits. Then again, those owners were aiming for a good price.

That's brilliant! Did you just walk round him to look at the room

I went to view a flat and the guy didn't even get out of bed!

If I viewed a messy house, I would assume either as PP suggested, that the vendors might have neglected maintenance of the property, or alternatively that they didn't really want to sell, and therefore were likely to be obstructive further down the line.

I would have to REALLY love the property to make an offer, and even if I did, it would most likely be a low one.

Yes, I think that's the problem.

I'm going to go against the grain here, a bit. We bought our current home from a couple who had toddler twins and the woman was pregnant. There was mess and toys everywhere. Clothes hanging from the bannisters, stuff all over every surface.
We bought it because we could tell it was a good house, in an excellent area, for a fair price. It was a great decision.
Plus - when they moved out it looked spacious!