House still on market over 2 years later

[lonelysadfedup]

Hi our house has been up for sale for 2 years and 3 months. We had lots of viewings, no offers. My husband then reduced the price this year, more viewings and still no offers.
My name isn’t on the mortgage and deeds due to my bad credit rating.

mortgage in principle ran out ages ago so we don’t know how much my husband would be able to get a mortgage for and how much a month it would be. We have equity in this house. 22 year mortgage with 14 years left.

I’ve made different suggestions to my husband such as listing it as a 4 bed rather than a five with the bedrooms not been big. I’ve suggested decluttering to see if that helps. I’ve suggested going with a different estate agent and lowering the price. Then today I’ve tried to talk to him about it. Mentioned lowering the price and he just dismissed it.

im fed up of it all now and it’s not fair on our children. I’m now at a lost as what to do

Gosh the bedrooms are all really small, essentially boxrooms. You need to lower the price so someone can do the work of removing both ensuites to give space back to bedrooms, and converting bedroom 5 into a master ensuite. This would create a better balanced 4 bedroom house.

Well, two reasons. You're so distracted by the clutter and creased bed linen that you fail to notice all the good things about the property.

Also, it gives a general "don't care" vibe, if the homeowner couldn't care about tidying up the clutter or making sure the property is presentable for photographs, what else might they be neglecting or cutting corners on?

Work tops in utility scream this house has no storage. Worktops etc need to be clear. I know it's hard but at least for photos/viewings toys etc need to be out of sight.
Magnolia paint everywhere would be good.
I would also take pool down (and make good lawn)
Is it priced right as kitchen, bathroom and fireplace dated.

I think it’s really nice but I’m not sure what the prices are in your area. I live in Solihull and your house is priced around my budget. You can’t get anything like that for that price here.

No. I've never looked at bed linen. A buyer needs to think about location and price, size of the rooms, the parking space, the garden. If it's a bit messy? A family lives there. It doesn't matter.

I'm inclined to agree. It's disappointing for a 5 bed detached.

Hiya OP I had a look at other listings from the EA in your area and searched four bedrooms. There's quite a few for less than yours and then the majority are 10k more but these are more done up inside.

Aside from that, there are three beds for closer to 200k than 300k and your house size is similar in size to some of those. So I'm guessing it's the price for the amount of space you're getting and what needs doing. The conservatory looks cold, so I would disregard it in my mind as living space, so I think you need to warm up and cosy up the living room and dining room to show them as living spaces for the winter. Maybe make the conservatory into a dining space and put some heaters in when people visit.

You've got a lovely big conservatory, but I would have made an effort to tidy away the children's toys before the photographs were taken. Also I'd look at de cluttering in the utility and toilet area. Other than that, its a lovely house. The only other reason could be that house sales have gone down in the last two years.

My cousin lives in Wakefield so I know what houses cost there.
The photos are awful. I'd definitely change estate agents and get some really good photos done. Look at lots of estate agents and see who does the best photos.
The house looks fine to me. Get rid of as much clutter as possible.

You've got a lovely big conservatory,

I think to a lot of people though that isn't necessarily a plus!

It needs a lot of work (fire ripped out, new kitchen, new bathrooms, possibly conservatory roof reglazed), and is very cluttered/messy. I'd think if that's it looking its best for photos, in reality - and especially after that amount of time - it's likely extremely messy and in need of a good clean.

If you can, your husband needs to completely declutter and get everything into cupboards/storage. Give the place a good clean and paint it all white, I'd maybe get the kitchen spray painted/new handles and replace the fire with something more modern.

Do not do viewings yourself, it’s intimidating and irritating viewing a house with the current occupants there

Where I come from viewings conducted by owners are the norm. It’s so much better. The owner knows their home and can actually answer your questions. When I came here, no estate agent knew the answer to any question I asked. Estate agents limit your viewing time, whereas back home I got as much time as I needed with the owners which was much more relaxed. Furthermore, Estate agents actually stop interested owners from viewing. Over here, There were houses I could afford to buy and was very interested in, but never got a chance to view as the EA had no slots available. How the hell this is helping owners to sell their home and get the highest price for it I don’t know. No idea why peopld put up with this. EA are charging you an arm and a leg for a completely unnecessary function that creates a barrier to your buyers. Utter madness!

Don’t sell before you are divorced. My friend did that husband rented house she lost everything with 3 small children. He hid any money he had, she received minimal settlement.

This. You’re selling a dream, a lifestyle and currently it doesn’t look aspirational it looks a bit like a student house or a rental (not due to the house itself but due to the lack of care shown - crumpled bedsheets, clutter, terrible photos etc).

you need to stage it, you can do this easily yourself.

The house in it's nice but it's dated basic finish and very cluttered. The 5th bedroom is small. Drop it to 285000 and tidy it up a lot. Hire a skip. Paint the rooms off white. Hide all personal effects iron, bags labels and so on

The conservatory, utility main bedroom and garden at chaotic and untidy.

The bed needs making properly. The cotton wool and wash thing needs hiding!

I don't understand all the boxes in the conservatory - I've never seen anything like that!

I ignore feedback by the way from viewers. It a just that gut feeling that you don't like somewhere and how can you say that?

Come on OP do any of the houses you think look lovely look like this?

You need to change agent , no one should have taken those photos without taking a few minutes to move those bottles etc out of the way , same with the racks of storage in the kids rooms just suggests not enough space

Someone will buy it if the price is right. If it is at the top end of the valuation it needs to be well decorated, de cluttered and immaculately clean for every single viewing.
Basically you would need to do quite a bit of work, the house is nice enough but nothing 'special'.
I personally would take the listing down and remove as many toys as you possibly can from the house and the garden. Also get rid of the bottles and other clutter in the utility room. Once that has been done get a proper photographer to take the pictures (ie not just Bob with a cheap camera from the local estate agency!). Study the photos carefully before you approve them for use, if you notice anything off putting (make sure all the loo seats are down!) change it and have the photo retaken.
When you get viewings make sure everything is the cleanest it has ever been, people are looking for a lifestyle. I recently bought a property and part of what sold it to me was how clean, tidy and well presented it was. The owner showed us round with her young child and it was spotless. They lived a similar way to me so it already felt like home.
The other option is obviously to reduce the price considerably. People will know your property has been on the market for a very long time, it's easy enough to find out even if you re list it with another agent, it needs to be cheap enough to be ahead of the competition.

The fact that you're getting lots of viewings shows that people are curious enough to have a look, and the demand is there, but there is something or several things about your house which is putting people off from making offers. Rather than haggle you down to 230k for example, they just think it's easier to wait for another house or have found a better one elsewhere.

Many, MANY sellers put their house on the market in 2022, hoping to catch that COVID buzz, but things have really calmed down since then. I've seen houses in my area decrease by 30k. One house went from around 250k or more to 140k!

Rather than accept, that many people have just hung on and on and on, instead of reducing the price adequately.

The floor plan suggests that rather than this being a comfortable 5 bedroom house, it's an house with 5 uncomfortable sized bedrooms.

Bedroom 1 should have been one longer, more comfortable room rather than the fad for putting in on-suites in these days. He may have bought the house like that and had no choice though.

I mean my God, you have a toilet downstairs if you really needed an extra one for emergencies!

Bedroom 2 (at the front)- another en-suite! Silly! Imagine how big that would be if that wasn't there? It could be a really decent wardrobe space then.

Bedroom 5 - this is not a bedroom. It's a cupboard space. I'm not even sure if by modern housing standards that would actually pass for a bedroom space for an adult (I think it has to be a minium of 6 square meters). Still, estate agents will list them as 'bedrooms' all the same. Bedroom 5 & 2 are obviously meant to be the same room. Just looks like someone put in a partition.

Bedroom 2 (at the back, which should be labelled as '3' - looks ok.

Bedroom 4 - would make a smallish ok bedroom or study.

Downstairs looks fine - great big conservatory. That needs to be totally decluttered and new photos taken as it's the selling point of the interior, in my view.

You said smell - I wouldn't count on your house not smelling. Many families with kids would say the same, but people get used to their own smell after a while.

I'd put on a bit of eucalyptus globulus on a burner in there for an hour or so on each level of the house. I used to uy Neal's Yard one which is more expensive, but good. It's very good at neutralising any body type smells, and will give the air a faint green, minty tint to it. Don't over-do it though. 6-7 drops will be fine, and you might want to have look if it'll affect any pets or kids first.

If you can't face actually decluttering, consider renting a storage locker and just moving it all the excess there for now. Not only is it often quite mentally challenging to declutter but it can often look worse before it gets better. Using a storage locker to then go through things and bin/sell/charity shop etc can be quite helpful too.

The thing is, it's like trying to sell a used item on gumtree. You need to make some effort to spruce it up, take a reasonable photo and be prepared to haggle in you want it gone. Even more so when you're selling something for hundreds of thousands of pounds.

I personally wouldn’t view a house that was reduced back in February - it would be a red flag for me. Take off the market, declutter and get another agent to market the house better in the new year.

OP are houses selling in the area? And are you certain you've had no offers (could your DH have failed to mention offers he's rejected out of hand, for instance)?

I agree with the criticism on here that the photos aren't great, the place looks v. cluttered and the garden is a bit off putting. But the price doesn't seem out of line with other homes in the area (and the photos for some of those places look cluttered and not great, so in line with your place marketing wise). So if you've had a lot of viewings I think it's surprising that you've had no offers at all, unless your DH is putting people off when he shows them round. Have you been there when people have toured and heard what he's said?

Unfortunately, if your DH won't listen to you there isn't much point in people giving you suggestions. If the house isn't in your name there's little you can really do about it unless you leave him (and it will be a battle to get the authroity to do anything if you do). Do you know why your DH seems reluctant?

Hi OP, you could reduce it more and someone will eventually buy it, or if you are able, get your husband to stand down as the person doing the viewings and make some changes which will take some work but will hopefully be worth several thousand pounds in terms of what you'll get for the house.

I would personally take down the listing, declutter and put it back on with new photos and a different agent. Someone you feel will do a good job of selling when you meet them and ask to see the pics before they put them on so you can select them.

It's a lovely house but people often can't see past clutter and then don't buy it. Think of it as selling a lifestyle. When people look around, it needs to seem spacious (which it is) it's just full of stuff.

If you can, rent a storage unit for 6 months and get someone to pile everything non essential into it. Keep it to the bare minimum. On viewing days, all non essential items need to be off the sides and in cupboards. Almost like no one lives there. Also, if some of your garden stuff can go into storage, do it and cover it in potted flowers. No digging required! £100 in B and Q will do the trick. It's a great sized garden by the looks of things.

If you wanted to go all out, swap the curtains for neutral colours. Your walls and floors all look non offensive. It's a nice house. People will probably just wonder why it isn't selling.

Hopefully your husband will get on board as a good teammate and help you. Good luck.

The photos are awful, odd angles not focussing on best features or even giving a decent feel of the rooms and space available especially the conservatory. You need to put away all the products, toys, general detritus, make beds properly for the pictures at least. A bit of colour in the kitchen might make it feel less dated and heavy. Coordinate towels and accessories( have specific ones ready to come put for viewings).

Are there new build developments nearby which will give yours a ceiling price? Tbh it is probably worth taking it off the market, restaging it and try again in new year with new agent, price and look.

The pictures are awful.

I would take it off for a while, research what is available in the area currently and the prices they are going for, lower your price then get agent round to take better pictures after;

Cleaning worktops above washer and toilet, it screams lack of storage.
Huge clear up in the conservatory. Box it all up and store it somewhere else for a while.
Make the beds look nicer, lay out the smaller rooms better - give them a purpose (office, dressing room etc) sounds picky but it'd make a difference, you're selling a dream here.
Get rid of the swing and big pool thing in the garden, makes it look smaller than it is.

The angles of some of the pictures are ridiculous, they are so random and can't see the room sizes at all.

It’s incredibly cheap OP! Where I live (in Manchester) a house like yours would be on for around £750k. If it was newly renovated, £900k.

That makes me think the area must be undesirable in some way even if it’s “nice”? Is it cut off? Far away from public transport links and amenities (shops, cafes, schools)?

Do you have any savings you could invest in updating the property a bit (new bathrooms etc)?