First time seller, opinions on pricing please

[youplonkerrodney]

TLDR: I bought my tiny new-build first time buyer house at £190k in 2022. One estate agent has valued it at £185k, another at £200k! I am obviously tempted by the higher figure but I do think it is optimistic given the market has been flatlining in my area. I really donMt want it to sit around on the market for ages. How should I decide what to do?

More info:

I live in Wales and I bought in April 2022, at the post-pandemic peak.
It’s a 9 year old new build (I was the second buyer). It’s a tiny house really, an open plan kitchen and living room/diner downstairs (with a small porch and WC), and 2 beds and a bathroom upstairs. It has a small private garden and generous offroad parking. It’s a bit of a ‘flimsy’ house, but I’ve kept it in good nick so it looks reasonably good.

It was bought from new in 2017 at £157k. When it went on the market in 2022 there was a bidding war and somebody offered over £200k (not sure the exact amount) but they couldn't get a mortgage so it went back on the market and I bought it for asking price of £190k - at the time I felt I’d had a bargain!

Anyway since then house sales have stalled in the area, there are still things coming on the market and selling but nothing like the volume a few years ago.

Very difficult to compare with sold prices nearby as house is on an estate with affordable housing. sold prices also don’t give a number for how many bedrooms. So a semi-detached sold for £220k could be an open market 2 bed like mine, or an affordable-housing 4-bed, I just can’t tell!

The agents should have an idea of similar sold houses that were on their books. That’s part of the reason you employ an agent, because of their local knowledge. I think, given the market, the agent who suggested £200K is optimistic and people are now realising that house prices can remain static or even reduce. You see it often on RM, when houses hang around with frequent reductions.

I’d go for the lower figure or thereabouts, especially as you don’t want it languishing on the market. Even if it’s less than you bought it for, your onward purchase is likely to be the same.

A valuation is no guarantee of a sale price at this figure, it's not uncommon for estate agents to attempt to garner business by doing exactly this - tempting sellers with a higher valuation. In reality given the current market I would brace myself for offers coming in to be below asking at either of those price points anyway and try to reach a conclusion on what sale price I need to be able to move/what is acceptable to me.