Asking what puts you off when viewing a house to buy?

[DarkGreen]

We have had our house valued but we are just getting the house ready to sell. Touching it up bits and tidying up.

For context its a 2 bed terraced house on a country lane with no driveway but space on the Road to park outside the house. It is an old house.

What areas and things should we focus on? What would you look for and what would put you off?

I've been looking through rightmove today, at houses in our area posted in the last 24 hours (so, clearly, photos are likely to be January-esque), and there are plenty taken in ordinary daylight, or with the odd light on where it's obviously appropriate .

Lack of light and smells. I once looked round somewhere and the woman was cooking lamb chops. The son was still in bed and the porn was on display.

Smell of smokers
Smell of dogs/cats/other furry animals
Pet fur/dander everywhere (you can have it professionally cleaned, it will still be everywhere)
Anything that looks dodgy (DIY paint jobs, plaster, wiring etc)

But lots of times the need for a refurb is reflected in the price.

Not nowadays - most houses I am looking at priced as though it's been done, ditto with extensions. They want the uplift from the work you are going to do!!

Not being able to access something. When we viewed our first house they had no key to the back door / garden and the loft doors were painted shut - they said we could pull them off to look in there if we paid for them to be repainted! Turns out the house was full of shitty building work, leaking roof, and Japanese knotweed hidden behind a secret garden fence - none of which we found out because we couldn't access properly at the time of viewing.

Owners were absolute nut jobs but this was our first house and we were young and naive and had no idea what to look for!!! (absolute lesson learned)

@Bluntness100, what's your secret for getting limescale and cloudy marks off the inside of the spout of your waterfall taps?

I'd love to share that tap with my friends and family who regard them as a complete pain in the arse.

As a pp said, I'd prefer the estate agent to show me round. I don't see the house properly with the sellers present.

Oh god this reminds me of a house I viewed late last year. It was my dream house and perfect but when I walked In for the viewing it smelt of sex and it made me heave. Also the owner came to the door in a towel so was obvious what it was. Although the house is still on the market even now.

Garden full of dog shit and mucky knickers left on the bedroom/bathroom floor.

I've moved/ bought & sold loads of times, here's a list of things that have put me off buying houses:

The outstanding one is dirty/ worn carpets, unless the house is a total bargain and its possible to remove and renew before moving in. I recently sold a house and I replaced the knackered carpet downstairs with laminate before putting it on the market. It sold at the asking price in a week, I don't think that would have happened without the replacement flooring.
Old, knackered kitchens and bathrooms, especially with visible mildew
No dishwasher or space for dishwasher
Just shower, no bath
Overgrown conifers
Mosaic/ tiled worktops (look unhygienic)
One tiny bedroom along with one or two doubles (how to choose which DC gets the crap room?)
Lounge diner rather than kitchen diner
Damp/ smell of damp
Bodged DIY
Lack of privacy in the garden (would bother me more than no proper patio/ boarders)
Poorly maintained house next door
Gang of men in the next street with shirts off drinking special brew on the pavement at noon (actually happened)

What would put me off right now (and it isn't anything you can do) would be a property that is close to a flood plain or near a river.

[quote LakieLady]@Bluntness100, what's your secret for getting limescale and cloudy marks off the inside of the spout of your waterfall taps?

I'd love to share that tap with my friends and family who regard them as a complete pain in the arse.[/quote]
This works a treat. But I still got rid of my waterfall taps, they were a complete pain in the arse - all fur coat and no knickers.

www.amazon.co.uk/Kilrock-Gel-Descaler-160ml/dp/B00M36UXUG/ref=asc_df_B00M36UXUG/?hvlocphy=1006818&hvlocphy=1006818&linkCode=df0&hvptwo&hvptwo&psc=1&hvnetw=g&hvnetw=g&hvadid=375411049648&hvadid=375411049648&hvpone&hvpone&hvlocint&hvlocint&ref&hvpos&hvpos&hvdev=t&hvdev=t&hvdvcmdl&hvdvcmdl&hvqmt&hvqmt&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&hvtargid=pla-799057718831&hvtargid=pla-799057718831&hvrand=6983369982284790692&hvrand=6983369982284790692&adgrpid=77211368792

Totally agree TurquoiseDragon . Basing your home on only having outstanding schools in catchment is a bonus if they are- but SO much can change in say the 4 years from moving in pregnant/with a new-born to them starting school. Ofsted could re-check and it be downgraded in that time, headmistress/headmaster- crucial to any school's success- could change. Like you say SEN provision if needed still couldn't be great. Wait till you have school age kids- then you'll realise!

uuurrrghhhh CharlotteRose90 that is so grim!!!!

Storage which is cramped full of stuff so it’s really difficult to see the space and shape of the cupboard.

Realistic photos in a good quantity are important, if I’m going to need to do work that’s fine, but walking into a house that’s needing gutted when I’m expecting to go into something which is livable for a while is a waste of both our times.

I don’t mind owners showing you around, I find that they have much better knowledge and can answer more questions. Don’t mind being toured around but would want to have a look around some rooms again by myself. And yes I want to see your loft, your under the stairs the shed and garage. And yes my partner might want to see the boiler, fuse box etc.

Oh and I forgot having furniture in front of doors for cupboards so you can’t open them to see how big they are.

For me it's dog/animal smells, messy uncared for gardens, toilet seats up are grim, mess, filled bins, and smoking/ashtrays.
I can see beyond almost everything but I'd be putting in a significantly lower offer if it looked and smelt like you didn't care.
We have bought and sold many houses over the past 35 years, got some real bargains as some people didn't present their houses properly and many people were put off by the work involved.
If you want a good price then remember you are selling a lifestyle not a house.

Not so much the house itself, but I hate it when there's no floorplan available.

Great thread, I've never viewed a house to buy but I've viewed loads to rent, and I know what I wouldn't buy by looking at the one I'm renting right now: ancient dying boiler, faulty electrics, diy kitchen that needs scrapping, condensation and water inside the double glazing, artex on the floor and walls, dangerous drop in the garden, awkward and dated fitted features that would be costly and difficult to remove, cheap broken laminate flooring, water stains on the bedroom ceiling, windows that whistle with the wind, poor insulation throughout,

My dream is a clean slate house and garden. A house that is well maintained and neutrally decorated with minimal fitted features and lots of light, and a private garden with a lawn of grass, doesn't have to be smooth and perfect but no difficult weeds. I would tidy yours up and paint or replace the fence but don't start planting or fitting a patio or anything. A light clean airy clutter free house makes a big difference.

Unfortunately, a lot for me...

• funny smells
• out of date plumbing
• old windows (window replacements are expensive!)
• neighbours
• toothpaste stains in the sink
• dirty floors
• dirty underwear by the washing machine(!!!)
• owners following me around like I'm about to steal their first born child

Biggest thing; people who are unrealistic about what their house is actually worth and are unwilling to negotiate. Some houses near my have been on the market for 2+ years and it's because their owners won't negotiate and the house is nowhere near worth what they want for it!

Yes to there being no floor plan - I don’t expect you to take photos of cupboards or the attic but I like to see if there are any on the plan, plus photos don’t always show windows. I like them to have dimensions on the plan and a compass point shown too. I hate the 3D ones.
No photos of garden/3rd bedroom - I do expect to get a photo of all rooms and the outside space!
Estate agents who try to trick you into viewing: listings where the photo of the front of the house comes last so you can’t see it’s a high-rise flat, an extra bedroom that’s really the living room (‘flexible layout’!), photos of the park across the road as if it’s part of the property. I have a special hatred of videos where it’s just a slow-motion slide show of the photos and not an actual video of someone walking around! Yes, videos are really helpful in COVID times, but that’s not a video!

Fun thread!

I'd make sure there is space for viewers to park easily when they arrive, or that would be an instant red flag.

Smell of cigarettes/bubblegum vape.

Dog poo in the garden.

Low fences in the back garden- I'd like some privacy and would the neighbours get a bag on if I put up 6' fencing?

Wiring hidden behind conduit ffs really bugs me.

Lack of storage- evidenced by hoover & ironing board artfully stacked in plain sight, towels piled in the bathroom etc

I knew a couple who put their house on the market at £200k more than valuation despite all estate agents’ protests because they just thought someone would pay that. It was just off a motorway and had a really weird layout as they’d built it themselves. It naturally sat on the market for about two years before they claimed they just didn’t want to sell any more. No amount of trying to explain how markets work would get through to them. They still think it’s worth the extra £200k despite all evidence to the contrary.

Decor is easy enough to fix but after buying my first house things I will be looking at now are things like the guttering and facia, roof tiles, uneven floors, how well the sinks and Bath drain, thick wall paper hiding bad plastering etc.

Clean and Dec litter your house before viewing.
Air the space well.
Nothing puts me off personally - I look at the space as empty shell and location.
If your house needs work done, that should be reflected in the asking price.
I personally prefer to redecorate to my taste.