AIBU to broach the issues with my parents house sale?

[RhymingRabbit3]

My parents are thinking of putting their house on the market to downsize. They live in quite an old house but recently (about 5 years ago) added a large extension.

The "new" part of the house is gorgeous. Nicely decorated, great for family living, underfloor heating and modern decor including a lovely new kitchen. The issue is the rest of the house. The "old" part of the house (75% of the building) is single glazed, the carpets and threadbare, there are cracks in the walls and ceilings, ancient avocado bathroom suite, wallpaper hanging off. You get the idea. My parents just seem unable to see these issues.

My mum is convinced their house will sell in no time and for a high price because of the lovely extension. WIBU to try and explain that the rest of the house is letting it down and they need to address some of the issues before sale? Would this sort of thing put you off buying - it certainly doesnt make a good first impression.

That's the estate agents job. Don't get into the argument yourself, let them do it for you.

@vivacian

Why are you interfering?

Bore off. OP obviously wants the best deal for her parents. Nothing to do with interfering but everything to do with making sure her parents don’t get screwed over.

If they have a specific figure that they expect their house will go for - then you may need to be ready to talk them down when Estate agents value it lower.
It also depends which estate agents they talk to; some will give a realistic price, others might give an inflated value but will then suggest lowering it if it doesn't sell quickly (however it can then hang around).

I agree that the wall cracks are the issue here, and I think it would be a good idea to get a surveyor to look at them. They could be caused by subsidence or failed wall ties.

I wouod say something. They are your parents after all. If you can’t say something like this to them, who can you ever talk to like this?

But I suspect that the estate agent will say the same. Maybe a way would be to suggest they ask the EA what would the house be worth if they had the windows changed to double glazed etc... so they can get a better idea?

Are similar properties in a similar condition or done up nicely?

It's hard to say because it's in an area where the houses are really varied. It's not like a street where there are 15 similar houses in a row.

They don't need a quick sale so I suppose it doesnt matter too much, hopefully someone will fall in love with it.

Selling your home is a business transaction and the people who will sell quickest at the best price are those who can see it this way.
When we downsized we spent £2000 making our already lovely home really desirable.
We also packed away lots of personal things and had a duvet set that only went on our bed when a viewing was imminent.

We sold swiftly and for a good price.
I would be truthful with you parents but back it up with some facts off an internet site or buy a home magazine.

We have bought/are buying ( never attempt to complete between Christmas and New Year) exactly this house.
The new extension is great, but we also love that the older part of the house we can make our own with new bathrooms, carpets and decorations. We paid a fair price considering the work that needs to be done.

If they are in a sought after area then you may be surprised ! In our Street recently (30s style semis) 2 houses on opp sides of road were for sale .Old couple had died, house with green paint ,floral carpets went for about 25k under average price .2nd house done beautifully, still for sale as asking about 50k more ! ATM Buyers are still wary of borrowing too much ,and lenders are very strict with criteria too .As far as DP are concerned, you may just have to wait and see how things go for them .As others here have said .the Agents will advise the best price but it will come down to what people are prepared to pay really!

Nothing to do with interfering but everything to do with making sure her parents don’t get screwed over

That's not what is in the OP

OP is keen for her parents to do work on the house before getting valuations.

I have just had my parents' house valued following my father's death (my mum still lives there but has advanced alzheimer's).

I spoke to all 3 agents who visited. I wanted to know if we should consider doing any work now, given the fact that sadly the house will be up for sale in the not too distant future.

They all said, not to do anything. Buyers are likely to be revamping any way and replacing items like the bathroom suite could well be counter productive.

Like the OP's parents house my parents extended and added a downstairs loo. So the footprint of the house is much better than the original 1920s layout. But have done nothing else for years.

A sound house with the right layout but in need of even substantial cosmetic changes is a perfectly good seller.

There are cracks in the plaster but they are not structural isdues.

Nope. Say nothing and leave it. If it sells quickly- you will have been proved wrong and it won't matter anyway. If it hangs around on the market for ages with no offers, then I would suggest this could be the reason and you were right from the beginning.

I would also say that home buyers are weird (and I was one). You can have the most awful, outdated, dilapidated, 70s decor house and someone will fawn over it, presumably seeing it as a fixer upper. Then you can have a beautifully decorated house in elegant tasteful styles and noone flipping wants it!
Location is the most important thing with house selling so in a way, if the location is good the decoration/state won't matter as much as it would in a less desirable location.
I sold a house I inherited a few years ago in a very, very desirable location. The interior was covered in cracks, the kitchen needed work, the garage was collapsing, one of the internal doors was missing etc
It was due to go on the market mid week on a Wednesday. The estate agent mentioned it to someone who was desperate for a house in that area and an offer was made on the Tuesday- a day before the house even went live online. I sold it before it even went on the market because people were so desperate to live in that particular road. I was absolutely stunned, but also pleased. But it does go to show- location is more important than the state of the house.

My mum is like this aswel.

Had triple glazing fitted with a new front porch and a new small extension for kitchen appliances yet doesn't see the 30 year old kitchen.

They did have the bathroom ripped out and a shower suite fitted which needed doing 25 years ago and the rooms have been decorated however they refuse central heating even though it's cold every where in the house

The wiring needs ripping out and redoing aswel.
Even though they aren't in the market she constantly goes on about how it will sell quickly and she bets I wish I had it

Dh has spent ten years renovating our home which we love.

Sorry, I should have said that the location is a massive factor too.

As long as the estate agent has done their job and priced it accordingly it will sell. I know some EA like to flatter vendors and price unrealistically to get their business.

Would say nothing - they will soon find out what someone will or won’t pay. And have the option tonseek information and advice if they want to.

The great thing is it sounds as if new owners could more or less live in the new part whilst doing up the old. I would think that could be quite appealing.

I think it depends what the cracks are caused by. Their house insurance might cover underpinning but a mortgage company might not agree to mortgage it without underpinning. Plus the house would probably be best underpinned when empty. If it can't be mortgaged then you are restricting yourself to developers or cash buyers. The rest of it could make a difference or not. A lick of paint and plain white bathroom might help but to renovate all of it might cost more than the increase in value.

Keep your nose out. It has absolutely nothing to do with you.
I can imagine the comments if your mother came on here posting the same about your house sale.

I'm not sure I understand the problem, unless there is some kind of issue with your parents this sounds like a perfectly normal conversation to have with anyone thinking about selling their house. Is there a reason you can't discuss it in a neutral way, it doesn't matter if they agree with you but it makes them aware of possible areas the estate agent will cover.

Surely this is the estate agents job?

Ignore the "why interfere", they are your parents, you try to help! Concept sadly lost on some posters.

That's why some people do very well with online agents, but others absolutely need "professional" help.

Get 3 valuations to start with, go online and find similar properties.
A high valuation doesn't mean it will sell at that price anyway. They can always put it on the market, and if it doesn't shift, put a lick of paint and hide cracks, get new photos and put it back.

If they are next to an oversubscribed school for example, they don't need to lift a finger. If it's a very slow area, they should make their home more appealing. No need to replace the bathroom just yet - and a fancy fashionable wallpaper will be quicker and cheaper than replace the avocado suite.

this is hideous, but people love this at the moment

Leave it to the estate agent. You will upset them and it won’t achieve anything.

There will always be buyers who’d prefer to do up to their own taste, rather than pay a premium for someone else’s idea of a nice kitchen/bathroom(s).

What will be key is realistic pricing, i.e. not accepting the highest valuation from the sort of EA who just wants to secure the business, while well aware that it will have to come down, maybe quite substantially, in the end.

Plus of course supply/demand for the type of house in the area wil always be a major factor.

Ignore the "why interfere", they are your parents, you try to help! Concept sadly lost on some posters.

There's a difference between helping and interfering. A concept apparently lost on you JosefKeller and others who automatically think they know best.

In our area, people seem to be going off the idea of shiny new vastly overpriced houses. There have been a number of estates whose reputation is terrible. One in a nearby posh market town was built on very expensive land which was contentious. The builders indicated potential buyers should not even bother viewing unless they had sold or had money in the bank. Like anyone has over half a million just sat there. Two years on they have only sold two. Bad attitude alongside a spot where people take their dogs to do their business and kids gather at night to drink has not been a winning combination.

I am downsizing and dont mind a bit of work either. You cannot look at pics on Rightmove, it is about the feel of the house. However, I can see where you are coming from op. We have redecorated ours and need to undertake works like flue lining and redoing the garage roof (which is huge and a selling point) prior to marketing. That said, we could get a low offer anyway, but were worried about the survey.

You dont say how old your parents are op. We are in our late fifties and have been prepared to undertake some hard work ourselves - which it is at our age.

A decent EA will tell them it needs a bit of work. One told us another client had complained their house had not sold in two years of marketing and he responded that he had told them to redecorate, tidy up when it was marketed but they refused his advice.

You could tactfully mention it to your mum, I would. Prior to marketing ours, I am going to ask my dd2 to critique the house because she has lovely taste and I wont be offended. She will deffo tell me to ditch my mum's old furniture, which no-one else wanted. There is no sentiment in business.