Something not right about this 'news' story

[WallaceinAnderland]

70 year old woman claims to be unable to sell her house.

'I reluctantly dropped the price from £860,000 to £750,000 six months ago because I was desperate'

But if you look at the house on Rightmove, it's advertised at 850k. So she's only dropped it by 10k in all this time. Did the paper make the 'typo' on purpose do we think? Surely reducing your asking price by 10k in 18 months, is not news?

She's just asking too much for it.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/at-70-i-m-trapped-in-my-850-000-family-house-i-can-t-sell-it/ar-AA21m6md?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=69e8bdc7025d4e0ea96d196da0becc8b&ei=56

So did they deliberately lie about the non existent reduction in price?

We paid almost £50k for our 3 bathrooms to be done about 5 years ago. I dread to think how much a kitchen is now as it looks a reasonable size. Depending on spec, a lot. Then new flooring and other things as it looks really dated. And the hassle. No idea of the area though as to what it should be priced at.

£850k for Chippenham is wild, and it’s not a Wiltshire village - it’s a pretty big commuter town.

They want you to feel sorry for the pensioners. They’ve got their work cut out. lol.

Quite. And not a particularly nice one.

You're just giving it oxygen. The newspaper article, posting it on here - it's all just free press for her that might get her ad to the one person who will pay that much for it.

It's clickbait!

And much more the decor you'd expect from a 70yo.

But why would they when the big 'story' is that she will accept 750k? That does not work in her favour at all. No one is going to offer anywhere near her asking price.

If it is the second one posted - with the conservatory - it needs plenty of work. New carpets, kitchen, redo the conservatory as an extension - so yes over priced

This is just one of the really nasty responses on this thread.
OP - i don't know if it was your intention, but congratulations, you have started yet another mean-spirited, spiteful and downright nasty ageist thread.

She says she won't sell for less than it's 'worth' just because of all the issues in the world! She comes across as a bit of a knob there.

My neighbour is selling and says the same thing. Bought in 2018 for £430k and now wants £600k having done nothing to it. It's unrealistic.

I see the advantages to the paper but not to the women trying to sell her house. Do you think she's been conned into agreeing to the article?

Are you sure this is the right one?

Unless it's AI furniture, that one appears to be lived in by multiple people with need for two office spaces with multiple screens, a gaming chair in a gaming room and a host of other things I'd doubt a single 70yo woman would be using.

Ah, now that would explain everything!

It's the one in the article but maybe they put the wrong one in. Which means that someone else benefitted from the advertising 😂

It didn't sell at the asking price so she has this article advertising it at a knock-down price.

They even started it at £900k, looking at the listing history on Zoopla - although they have it first listed in Sept 2025, not Nov 2024 - although maybe that’s when they changed agent?

That ‘news article’ is so misleading.

www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/71272929/

I'm not being ageist against the woman. I think she has either been told her house is worth more than it is or it's not actually her house advertised in which case there is a bit of a story but it doesn't benefit her.

My point was to ask why the paper would write up a story that is a non story. It's not news to have a house on the market and only drop by 10k in 18 months. It didn't make sense to me. But now I see it may be the wrong house it does makes sense because the paper wasn't lying, it just put the wrong house in the article.

The age of the woman is irrelevant. I just quoted the paper.

It's not a knock-down price, it's a bit nearer to what it's worth.

The location is probably a nice one for Chippenham, but it's still Chippenham.

You honestly cannot believe a word you read in the newspapers.

I used to work with a man who had a prosthetic hand. His spare one was stolen when thieves took his car. The local newspaper told the story, spelled his name incorrectly and said he'd lost his false leg. Ever since then I've taken every news article I've ever read with a massive pinch of salt.

But the house they advertise isn't knockdown price, it's 850k instead of 860k

Same! And that huge fence to stop what looks like a block of flats behind from looking directly in would put me off.

The woman is quoted as saying, "I refuse to give my home away cheaply just because of the ridiculous economic climate"

This is the reason the house isn't selling. She wants what she wants, not what the house is worth in the current economic climate.

I’ve got some great news for you - you can buy it for £850k.

I can’t sell my house for £850k either so I feel her pain. It’s mostly because my house is worth £450k though, I definitely could find a buyer at that price point. I suspect the pensioner in the article is in a similar situation…