AIBU to wonder why our fairly priced new-build house is not selling?

We have a 5 year old ‘new build’ is a very mumsnet ‘naice’ area in the catchment area for some of the best state schools in the UK. A big 4 bed with four bathrooms, decorated very neutral and fairly high end - it’s definitely a nicer than usual new build. Garden isn’t overlooked, triple driveway, neighbours are staggered so not cramped. Three large doubles and a single bedroom (that could get in a double at a push).

We had our house valued by 3 separate agents. All valued the house between £675-£700k. We listed at £675 as we’d like a fairly fast sale. That was 8 weeks ago. 4 weeks ago we reduced to £649k as we’d had 8 viewings and no offers, and we’ve since had a further 2 viewings but that’s it.

I’ve looked at houses for sale in the area and also houses that have recently sold. We aren’t priced above what seems average. We had our house for sale a couple of years ago very briefly and received an offer for £690k but we changed our minds and pulled out of the sale.

The estate agents have no feedback for us either. They say nobody looks around and criticises anything. The only after viewing feedback we’ve had is that a couple of viewers wanted something a bit bigger/a 5 bed.

Any ideas as to why the house isn’t selling?!

If I see a house relisted I assume something was wrong with it. Make sure your ad explains what happened / reassures people. But, you're getting viewings so that can't be why. Wouldn't hurt to get even more viewers though as it is just a numbers game.

Then, I'd be on your estate agent to be more forceful about getting meaningful feedback. Do their actual job of 'sales' and 'sell' the idea of giving useful feedback.

It might be just that people want bigger bedrooms or an extra bathroom or 'something' for the money. Honestly, none of us can tell you - that's for your estate agent to look into.

I do think with the volatile economy, no point comparing previous sales. Buyers might be holding out for prices to drop even lower. You might need to price super low and hope for a bidding war.

We have a 5 year old ‘new build’ is a very mumsnet ‘naice’ area in the catchment area for some of the best state schools in the UK. A big 4 bed with four bathrooms, decorated very neutral and fairly high end - it’s definitely a nicer than usual new build. Garden isn’t overlooked, triple driveway, neighbours are staggered so not cramped. Three large doubles and a single bedroom (that could get in a double at a push).

We had our house valued by 3 separate agents. All valued the house between £675-£700k. We listed at £675 as we’d like a fairly fast sale. That was 8 weeks ago. 4 weeks ago we reduced to £649k as we’d had 8 viewings and no offers, and we’ve since had a further 2 viewings but that’s it.

I’ve looked at houses for sale in the area and also houses that have recently sold. We aren’t priced above what seems average. We had our house for sale a couple of years ago very briefly and received an offer for £690k but we changed our minds and pulled out of the sale.

The estate agents have no feedback for us either. They say nobody looks around and criticises anything. The only after viewing feedback we’ve had is that a couple of viewers wanted something a bit bigger/a 5 bed.

Any ideas as to why the house isn’t selling?!

Thats a bit scary, Gilt yields could go even higher than that forecast if we end up with government infighting - which now looks almost certain.
People often miss the direct relationship between government borrowing costs and interest rates on mortgages. Reading between the lines it looks likley that mortguages will be a full 1% higher than they are now by then end of the year - at best !
There really is "trouble at Mill" for home prices and selling if you have a large amount of borrowing. The good news though is once it settles out more younger people will be able to buy which is fantastic. High house prices only really benefit the Banks anyway. Society and the economy just suffer from less money flow.

Many who piled in in recent years on cheap fixes are gong to be in difficulty.

https://www.fxstreet.com/analysis/uk-30-year-gilts-hit-578-the-highest-since-1998-what-is-being-priced-in-202605051937

I think prices are stalling and buyers are more cautious on their affordability than a few years ago. Many people under 40 haven't owned property or known a time when mortgages weren't sub 2%. Now they're back to 4-5% and there is definately uncertainty over if they'll rise further people are rightly thinking they can't afford the same house the felt they could 5 years ago as the monthly cost is a lot higher, or the term would need to be longer, or they just can't afford it if the next rate rise is at 7 or 8% for example. Some very quick calculations assuming borrowing a £500,000 mortgage over 25 years:
At 2% Interest: (approx) £2,120 per month
At 5% Interest: (approx) £2,923 per month
At 8% Interest: (approx) £3,859 per month

Theres lots of places in the country where housing is affordable certainly. I dont know about 'improvement'. There are lots of places where a couple both earning NMW can afford a small 3 bed fairly easily.

I'm talking about on average. Is there somewhere in the country where the local income to house price ration has improved in the last 30 years?

That does depend where in the country you're talking about

That does depend where in the country you're talking about

So not dissimilar from many people nowadays, except there is very little chance that the current young can afford 5 children and a 3 bedroom house, even on two full time incomes, because house prices are so much higher now relative to incomes. This is a point which has been made repeatedly but you have still failed to acknowledge.

I also had 5 young children. Worked in the evening when my husband was home, as a cleaner. My husband was at the start of his career and his wage wasn't huge. We just got on with it and lived within our means. Never claimed benefits. First house was a 3 bed property.

I also had 5 young children. Worked in the evening when my husband was home, as a cleaner. My husband was at the start of his career and his wage wasn't huge. We just got on with it and lived within our means. Never claimed benefits. First house was a 3 bed property.

The Mortgage capital was hardly noticeable at less than three times your income too. You Had to work hard to fuck that Advantage up and still plenty of people did.

Interest rates were in double digits from the late 1970s until 1997 - the full term of some people’s mortgage, not a short period. Trust me, the tax relief was barely noticeable, the interest certainly was!

Not to mention they literally had tax Relief on their mortgage applied to their gross salary
So given that taxes were relatively high at the time, they would’ve been saving more than they would’ve been spending on interest

But 14.8% (for a very short time period) on say £50k is a hell of a lot less than 5% on £250k. Wages havn't risen anywhere near as fast as house prices.

But 14.8% (for a very short time period) on say £50k is a hell of a lot less than 5% on £250k. Wages havn't risen anywhere near as fast as house prices.

This is what our EA says. That we’re not in FTB price range, nor are we super highly priced where the buyer’s aren’t affected by rising costs of living and higher mortgage rates. We in the middle and these are the buyers who are choosing to stay put for now unless absolutely needed (divorce, school catchments etc).

But 14.8% (for a very short time period) on say £50k is a hell of a lot less than 5% on £250k. Wages havn't risen anywhere near as fast as house prices.

You buy what you can afford.
When we purchased our first house in the early 90's, the interest rate was 14.8%