Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think that you don't view a £200k house if you can only afford to pay £120k?

94 replies

StarsInTheNightSky · 15/06/2015 14:58

We emigrated a while ago, and prior to that we owned three homes in the UK (we are lucky, I realise that), two of which were rented out. We sold the home we lived in, and then sold one of the other homes when the tenancy came to an end. The other home was on a longer tenancy so we waited for that to end and then put that house on the market. The tenant had young children and a disability, so we agreed not to market the house until after they'd moved out so that it didn't make life difficult for them, they were a lovely family so we didn't mind at all. (Sorry, trying not to drop feed.)

It's on the market now at 20% below the realistic bottom end market value to try to get a quick sale, its in a very popular area where houses don't often come up for sale and its in immaculate recently redecorated condition (all neutral colours), we had a full structural survey done too at our expense to show viewers. We are paying a cleaner and a gardener to keep it immaculate. We've had lots of viewings, nearly all of which have turned into offers, which would be great, except every single one is at least £50k (normally £80k) below the asking price, and on a £200k house that seems a bit unreasonable. The estate agent can't understand it either, and I've checked with them to make sure they aren't saying anything to give people the wrong impression.

Am I just out of touch, is this what people do now? When our estate agents have gone back to them they've all refused to up their offers saying they can't afford anything more. So why look around in the first place? Am I being unreasonable?

OP posts:
EvaBee · 15/06/2015 17:25

You are out of touch. If everyone is offering what they think it is worth then you probably need to take notice if you want to sell the house. A house is only worth what someone will pay for it.

GiddyOnZackHunt · 15/06/2015 17:26

Yes stamp duty has changed. It now works like income tax so the dead zones just above the margins have basically gone

EvaBee · 15/06/2015 17:27

...and what is the relevance of the other two houses you have sold?

LaLyra · 15/06/2015 17:29

If it's so much underprice then I'd think there was a reason for it - work needing done, nightmare neighbours or desperation for a quick sale.

AdventureBe · 15/06/2015 17:31

Is it the kind of property that will mostly be bought by investors?

If so, they'll be taking a punt, especially if they know you've emigrated and want/need to get this off your hands. They don't have any emotional attachment the way a potential owner occupier does, so they're quite happy if you laugh at them and the next vendor might be desperate and agree.

Toofat2BtheFly · 15/06/2015 17:31

A empty property , below market price screams of sale needed quickly , we are desperate .

Buyers could just be chancing to see how desperate you are to get rid !

VivaLeBeaver · 15/06/2015 17:35

Market it at 245k or 249k so it's under the stamp duty threshold.

RabbitIssue · 15/06/2015 17:38

PP made a good point. I'm looking at moment up to 425k, I don't look under about 350k so I think you're just pricing too low.

BrockAuLit · 15/06/2015 17:38

I think the secret is well and truly out that you are desperate to sell

If you're not, change tactics

SoupDragon · 15/06/2015 17:45

evabee how can they be out of touch if five agents valuated it between£250 - 280k."

GoodToesNotSoGoodToes · 15/06/2015 17:55

Change ea.

answersonapostcardplease · 15/06/2015 18:09

answerson not really no, I just don't want to be paying a cleaner and gardener longer than I have to, but that's just me being tight grin

But but but op you are literally throwing thousands of pounds away as you don't want to pay fir help in the short term. Surely the cleaner isn't needed often, there can't be much to do.

Oldraver · 15/06/2015 18:32

I agree with others that you need to find out just what the EA is saying to potential buyers

xiaozhu · 15/06/2015 18:40

Maybe people are suspicious that its on so cheap? If it's too good to be true...

Gilrack · 15/06/2015 18:46

£40k will pay for rather a lot of cleaning and decorating ... !

Agree with everyone else's advice about de-marketing your house and then putting it back for sale in the appropriate price bracket. Good luck :)

Gilrack · 15/06/2015 18:47

decorating gardening, obvs.

StarsInTheNightSky · 15/06/2015 18:57

EvaBee the relevance was that the same estate agent sold the other two, for what they were valued at, and without all of the odd offers, I should have put that in my OP, sorry, but it added to why I was puzzled, and makes me feel like maybe our estate agent isn't completely hopeless as they did well for us with the other two. Sorry I wasn't clear, its still early morning here and I'm having chemo ATM so I'm a bit fuzzy headed and not feeling great.

Thanks everyone, I think you're right, I think we'll try 245 and relaunch with a different EA and see what happens.

OP posts:
GoodToesNotSoGoodToes · 15/06/2015 18:59

I would go for £260,000 as per the report and other ea figures.

Bogeyface · 15/06/2015 19:07

I'd start at 280, you will get offers around the 240 to 250 mark. In fact due to the stamp duty threshold you will probably get quite a few just under 250

londonrach · 15/06/2015 19:19

If all offers are below asking price you need to think if its over priced. Get three other ea in and have a look on rightmove to see what other properties have sold at in your area.

StarsInTheNightSky · 15/06/2015 19:28

londonrach we've had the only five estate agents which cover the area in, and paid for an independent RICS surveyor. Similar properties in the area have all sold for more than £280k, and at the moment nothing is on for less than £300k except ours. In our area a bedsit flat in poor condition is still £150k or more.

OP posts:
londonrach · 15/06/2015 21:09

In which case you underpriced it and ea marketing it wrong. Change ea and up price

Lymmmummy · 15/06/2015 22:00

Have sympathy with you in this - it happened with our last sale

Unfortunately sometimes agents are to blame - they plant the idea that the seller is "keen" to sell and "maybe open to offers" and then you get people being ridiculous about it - or you may have been unfortunate to have a neighbour or near neighbour sell a similar house for a lower value so that the last sale in the street is for a lower value

As others have said could be the house is overpriced but this seems unlikely given all the other valuations you have received - just bide your time and tell the agent to tell potential buyers straight away any offers below £200k will be rejected - I have also seen some "open house type days which shift houses" quickly

MisForMumNotMaid · 15/06/2015 22:08

We put our last house price up in a falling market and then sold it quite quickly.

We thought we'd priced realistically. We attracted a couple of really low unrealistic offers, but did almost get tempted to cut losses.

Its worth a try.

MayPolist · 15/06/2015 22:13

A house is only worth what people will pay for it, not what the EAs say it will fetch.