Property

[MissMess]

I wonder if I can get some legal advice. Long story short, my fiancee was Englsih (passed some years ago), and our child and I live in my Scandinavian country of origin. My fiancee was an only child, and his parents has now passed. Their house is out on the marked in South East of England, and their will states that a high percentage of the sale will go to my child. The estate agent has asked, through the lawer, if we should lower the price from £375,000 to £350,000 to attract more interest. I know nothing about the South English houseing marked, and my research has led me nowhere. The lawer also has no adcice, so I thought of just ask here as well as ChatGPD:AIBU to lower the price in order to attract more interest?

Presumably if you are representing your child’s interests, you can speak directly to the agent and understand their logic.

The market is a bit sluggish due to tax changes, and the cost of renovating is very high so an elderly person’s home may be seen as a huge project (noting I don’t know the condition of it).

How long has the house been on the market at £375,000?
If nobody is interested in buying it at that price and it's been on the market a considerable while then that might be your only option. Reducing house prices is a normal thing in the UK. If you look on Rightmove you will see a fair percentage of houses have been reduced.

You could also consider asking the solicitor to change the estate agent if you feel the agent isn't working hard enough to sell the house.

Is the house on the market with an actual high street agent or someone on line like Purple Bricks? If it's an on line estate agent they have a terrible reputation and a local agent might have more success.

have you looked on rightmove to see similar properties in the area, their state and asking price? That would give you pretty good idea if what you’re asking for is reasonable.

I might be cynical but i would be a teeny bit suspicious that estate agent is trying to get a quick sale purely so that they can get their commission…

I’m sorry for your loss, however long ago.

websites like zoopla shows you current listings for comparable and also recent sales and will give you a greater indication vs AI. The housing market is so specific by region etc.

ask to see the estate agent listings? - not all agents are equal and there’s lots of info on selling property threads including getting decent photos etc. the solicitors should be acting to support a sale and it’s worth exploring those routes first.

I guess my qn is is it worth more for this to be resolved quickly to you than having ongoing admin etc? If it’s an elderly person home in need of refurb then bear in mind £350k might attract interest but the additional costs of making it habitable will be top of buyers mind… it’s hard to say what’s a ‘fair’ price for it