My DM selling her house - should anything be happening yet?

[SpidersAreShitheads]

My DM is selling her house and for various reasons is desperate to get things moving. Unfortunately for her, she also can't afford to take a massive drop in price - although there is a little bit of wiggle room.

Her property went on the market a couple of weeks ago - so obviously it's still incredibly early days.

However, I would have thought that there would have been more interest when the property first goes on the market, dropping off the longer it stays available?

She's not had a single viewing yet.

Two people expressed an interest - one person was a builder and I think the estate agent tipped him off before it went on the market, but he found somewhere else to buy the day before he'd asked to come round. The second viewing was cancelled as the woman drove around the area and didn't like the hilly roads on the way to the local shops.

Some of the photos were a bit crap, and there was virtually no description by the estate agent. He's been around today and taken better photos, and uploaded a description which explains that the upstairs floor could potentially be self-contained accommodation.

The problem is that her property is a bit weird in terms of layout - there's an absolutely huge second bedroom which takes up almost the whole of the converted loft space, and it's lovely. But the third "bedroom" is a tiny, tiny room which also houses the boiler. If I were looking for a three-bedroom house for me and my DC, the configuration wouldn't work - and I suspect that might be the same for a lot of buyers.

It's a nice property but I am a bit concerned there has been absolutely no interest. The photos weren't amazing before, but they were passable. Certainly not enough to make people skip past.

I'm a home owner but not sold on the open market before - do things normally take a while to get moving - or is this a concerning sign? I know it's only been two weeks....but no interest in even looking?

Does anyone have any killer tips to get people in to look at the property?

One of the reasons she's so desperate is that she needs something very specific in the next house she buys which is quite rare - and there's one on the market now which fits the bill. If she doesn't get her house under offer soon, this other property will inevitably be bought by someone else, and I don't know how easily we'll find what she needs again....

You have to get rid of all the stuff.

If it helps, just think ‘this is not my house anymore, it belongs to someone else’ and be brutal. Get rid of absolutely everything.

The photos are not good at all. The very first one makes the shed/guttering look crooked and as if it’s falling down.
The cover picture needs to be much better and I can’t see any layout drawing.
That might just be my phone now and apologies if there is a layout plan but I can’t see it.

Get rid of everything.
Start again with new photos
Good luck.

The clutter is too much and things like clear the fridge of all the magnets and the top of the kitchen units.
Remove the cushions and throws off the sofa, take the pans off the kitchen wall, take the photo frames off the wall, move the train set from next to the table and I don’t know if it’s a scooter
I don’t know why but I thought the bed wasn’t made but on a closer look it’s the pattern on the quilt cover.
It looks more like a taxi office in the bit where the desks are and that stuff doesn’t have a home they just seem to be put in random places like where the bin is.
Is that the only bathroom as well as for a family it’s not really practical

Ha, I looked at the first photo before seeing where the house was, and thought "that looks like Tuffley" and hey, it's Tuffley!

We recently bought and sold in the same area, and had bad experiences viewing properties with that estate agent. We bought and sold through The Property Centre, and we were very happy with them. Just saying.

It seems expensive a 3 bed bungalow sold in march for 256k but that was a bungalow which seems to be the target market & better decor/kitchen.

What buyers are you aiming for?

Take all the magnets off the fridge also, clear all bottles and everything out of the way. Clean clean clean. Good luck.

'Photo 19' makes me think the neighbours would be a nightmare with all those vans etc...

But yes in reality it is just to 'busy' the photos don't really show what the house is I suspect.

I would also question whether it is a price issue as barging hunters will usually see though the clutter but no viewers would perhaps suggest it is overpriced for the area/property type...

Have you tried getting a mate to ring the estate agent and get a viewing. My mum had this with her house and her new neighbours from 2 doors down wanted to look at both houses before buying but the estate agent could 'never reach' my mum so they gave up... might be worth checking up?

Photos 11, 12 and 13 are just awful, and completely pointless.

So the photos are pretty poor. Normally you’d also want to declutter. But who is going to buy this? Possibly someone who’d want to reconfigure the space to make it work for their circumstances or for their family, in which case the price would need to reflect that, and decluttering would be irrelevant.

If other houses in the street have the same layout and sell ok then it’s declutter, better photos (better agent if possible) and something to make the garden more attractive/ make it look like a more usable space.

That house and garden must be difficult for your mum with mobility difficulties. Good luck.

Quick fix - remove ALL random rugs & bath mats for the photos. People want to see the actual bathroom/flooring in the photos. Can always put back if needed by your Mum.

The exception to this is the lounge which as PP have said needs a rug to define the area as 'not a corridor'.

Id really consider paying for one of those house staging companies to come in. The house really isn't been shown to its best advantage at all.
The layout isn't going to suit a lot of people.

If it hasn't had any viewings at all yet then it's overpriced - it's that simple.

There's way too much clutter I'm afraid.

The fridge magnets make it look messy, the top of the fridge has things plonked on it which would indicate a lack of kitchen storage space, hide the mop, etc.

For the bedroom photo, hide the tray table, clear the bedside cabinet so there's nothing on it, pick up things from the floor, etc.

The office looks very small and cramped, but I think mainly because it has so much stuff in it. Can you move it all to a garage/storage unit so there is only a desk and chair in there? It would make the room look bigger and brighter - lots of people are home working still, so you need to sell it as an amazing clear big space they'd want to spend the majority of their day in. A desk, a laptop, a nice plant is really all you'd want in there.

Really clear out the bathroom, maybe get a quote or two from a local builder so prospective buyers can see how much it would cost to change.

At the moment the general feel I get from the photos is that it's all a bit messy and uncared for, which would make me think I'd have to spend lots of time and money fixing things.

I quite like the pictures. Not as bad as I was expecting. But for me it’s the price. Unless the location is absolutely fab and a brilliant school and wages are top notch- it’s just priced way to high.
As reference, we’ve been looking at similar properties in the Midlands and Derbyshire area and they are £100k less.

How do you get into the kitchen/breakfast room? The floor plan doesn't show a door of any sort as far as I can see.

I think the inside is quite pleasant but as others have said the rooms need staging - ie set up as what they are supposed to be with beds in bedrooms etc.
But the outside photos are awful. The one that appears first on Rightmove is mainly of the drive and the covered thing on the side. The back is clearly really hard to photograph due to the levels, so I just wouldn't bother.

But I think any canny buyer would overlook all of this if the price was appealing. Is it?

Also, I hope we are all getting the estate agent's commission. Did they do these photos and post them with their eyes actually closed?

However much you declutter etc it’s overpriced, fair and simple. To give you context we admittedly live in a busy popular area but we had 8 viewings booked within 2 hours of it being put on right move…

Could your Mum move around with alternate support for a while to allow furniture to be in storage or got rid of? Can she use mobility supports like a stick or frame just temporarily?

Sounds drastic, but this will be a huge amount of money for their next choice of home I presume? More dramatic changes now mean more options on buyers and a good sale price.

Any way of removing or perhaps painting the bars in the garden? I can see they'd be really practical, but they scream unsafe fall and trip hazard and look a bit industrial for a relaxing space.

A huge declutter exercise would help. Pop things in storage perhaps?

Definitely new photos once this has been done. The EA really should have advised on this.

Kerb appeal is very important - clean and tidy / nice colourful pots with plants.

I wouldn’t worry too much about the bathrooms as such as this could suit a potential buyer. But again - declutter everything and put some lovely green foliage around the house.

It does appear to be priced at the higher end, locality wise - maybe market at a little less?

Personally I would also spend some time making the rear garden look more appealing as well.

Good luck!

I don't think it will command a 3 bed price for a sensible buyer. It needs to be priced so someone can go and spend the money to turn it into a 3 bed and modernise. Did the agent provide her with any comparables when valuing? Because some of them will over value to get the listing then persuade her to drop when no one bites.

Its hard to see the house and garden due to the clutter. Even some simple things like get rid of the extra kitchen storage mobile thing its cutting off the kitchen view/space. I really think she needs to hire a storage unit and get rid of a third of her things sorry. The house would look bigger if it was more empty.

I think it looks a cluttered mess and a bit of a doer-upper. The pictures are terrible. There is nothing aspirational about this listing. I’d start again with a new agent and give the place a good tidy and clean before the pics are taken. I can’t comment on the price.

I really hope she has some luck. Selling can be so stressful.

I love that craft room and mine is similar only not so big or so nice but I know its going to have to go in store when i sell..same with the die cutting machine in the hall. As others have said clear out the bathroom for the photos and viewings...take the aids and the towels out. I'd put the sofa cushions away for photos and viewings too...same with the little island thing in the kitchen although i get that your Mum needs it. Clear off the fronts and tops of the fridge and freezer. remove trailing cables and tidy garden. All the usuals really.

I like the layout - there is a lot of space looking at the measurements but that doesn’t come through on the photos.
I would suggest getting the driveway and steps at the back jet washed - cheap and easy. Yes I agree with the clutter - most can be hidden for photos and viewings e.g kids toys’ the stuff on the fridge etc. I think it’s a nice house, I’m sure you’ll get viewings in time

oh ps if there is no bed to stage the craft room, I have seen boxes stacked into a bed shape and then dressed as if its a bed?

Sorry, I've got DC who keep popping up out of bed!

Trying to go through your comments, it's really helpful - thank you all!

To answer questions re pricing - I think it's a bit overpriced. I think top realistic price is £280-285k for it - if I were buying I'd probably try and get it for no more than £275-280k. DM priced it so that she would have room to discount it - on the advice of the estate agent..... Three separate estate agents came round and valued it between £275k and £295k. Mum went with the highest one - but to be fair, it wasn't solely because of price. He sounded amazing, returned emails etc - which others just didn't bother doing. Unfortunately now it's on the market, it turns out that he's actually a bit shit - notwithstanding the fact that DM didn't help herself by not having a radical clear out.

Btw, these are the new improved photos haha!

DM's house is more expensive than others on the street because lots of them don't have the upstairs converted, they are just downstairs bungalows. She's also got the back of the house extended which has created the large kitchen (I know it doesn't look big but it is!) and a separate dining room. There's a hell of a lot more space in her home than other houses on the street. The problem - other than the clutter! - is the layout of the rooms - she never anticipated moving, this was supposed to be her forever home so it was laid out to suit her.

Believe it or not, it has been recently decorated, and both bathrooms are new. She got rid of the baths because she can't get in or out of them, and neither can my stepdad. He had a heart attack a couple of years ago, before this, the garden was beautiful. He just can't manage it now.

@PuntasticUsername - that's really useful, thank you!! DM bought and sold through the Property Centre before and we were debating whether to go back to them - they valued the house at £275k. Maybe DM needs to accept that's a more realistic price.... how soon do we go cap in hand to the Property Centre and get them to try and sell it??

I spent all of my Sunday round at her house decluttering and getting rid of other furniture - yes, there was more than this originally haha! She is the typical old person, she likes chintzy stuff and trying to explain what decluttering means is like banging my head on a wall.....! I have two disabled DC and I work full-time (self-employed) seven days a week. My DP has been off work sick and unable to do anything for the last six weeks. It's all a complete and utter disaster right now and I'm desperately trying to help her, but unless I evolve the ability to do without sleep I don't have the spare time. Both DC are home educated now (long story - no school places) so if I go round there to help I have to take them with me - DP is too poorly to look after them. Because I spent all Sunday helping her, I had to work right through Sunday night to catch up.

I know, get your violins out. Woe is me. Blah blah 😅

It doesn't change the fact that we need to somehow sort this out. The honest comments have been truly helpful to see how others view it. I was thinking it's just the layout that was the problem but clearly her knick-knacks are more of an issue than I appreciated.

Thank you all. I am still here and reading if anyone else wants to add anything else. I've got my big girl pants on and can take the honesty.

Tbf, I'm considering torching the place and starting from scratch. Joke. Sort of... 😅