Our holiday home is for sale. Lettings agent blocking viewings by prospective buyers.

[MillyMollyMama]

We have been trying to sell our holiday house. Someone wants to view it on Tuesday but the Agent has told us the holiday tenant is not agreeable to this. The Agent has known for months that the property is for sale and this is the second time a viewing has been blocked. I know it can be difficult to get tenants to agree to viewings when it is their home, but this is someone renting my house for a week's holiday and it is not their home.

The agent was miffed because we instructed another agent to sell the house for us. There were sound reasons for this. Our letting agent, for the past 4 years, is also an estate agent but they quoted the highest percentage for selling and do not use national coverage advertising, or even much locally. They are also closed at weekends. This made us go to a more dynamic agent.

Can the tenant refuse to accommodate our request for a viewing? Can we say to the letting agent that, if the tenant will not accommodate this request, then we will not make the house available to the tenant that week? I have offered a discount of 10% off the rent if they allow the viewing. We need to sell but we need to keep the income stream coming in too. Our letting agent told me they always accommodate viewings, but obviously this meant only if they came through them at an extortionate selling fee! Any advice would be very much appreciated.

I'm not seeing the dislike of landlords. I have posted here and have both rented and been a landlord (the latter more recently than the former).

My Agent never asks for tenants to pay for breakages and never checks inventory so I have to replace things. Tourism is a major industry in Cornwall and necessary for the economy of the region

I know. And reputable letting agents in tourism areas provide an inventory, checking in/out service, hold a damage deposit and ensure the holiday let is always in top condition.

I know it's not what you're asking, but it does annoy me that people trot out the "tourism is a major industry in Cornwall" line. Cornwall is one of the poorest counties in the country, and has the largest gap between houseprices and wages anywhere in the country. Tourism really isn't giving us that much of a major benefit, unfortunately. What Cornwall needs is investment in infrastructure (like I don't know, a motorway, or at least a proper dual carriage way) that would bring industry to the region.

However, I do think you have been unlucky. With all the awful weather and flooding we have had this winter, I can imagine it has been hard to get people to view. In particular if you are selling somewhere on the coast, people may well be discouraged as they are worried about future flooding issues. Maybe the damage to the railway has also inconvenienced prospective viewers?

Hopefully when we have a had a few months of decent weather and tourism has picked up for the "season" then people may be more interested. I can imagine the weather this winter has put some people off buying a holiday home in Cornwall (or elsewhere).

We actually live close to the proposed HS2. I would dearly love Cornwall to get that money!

In Cornwall, buyers are just so thin on the ground I am not sure an open day would work. People tend to view when they are on holiday themselves so I am not sure we could do all viewings over one weekend. I will discuss this with the Agent though.

People working in rural areas, years ago, had mostly rented houses. Ordinary working people were never on a property ladder, my parents definitely weren't. This began to change after WW2 and then with Maggie T. Cornwall has not been prosperous for a long time hence other people buying the local housing stock. Lots of people who live there though seem to like its remoteness and lack of a good road and railway. I have read so many times that Cornwall needs the tourism industry, but I apologise if that offends. It does employ people after all and keep businesses going. Poor areas need all the employment they can get. Let's start a campaign for HS2 to be re routed to Cornwall! My local small town at home is going to be utterly ruined as HS2 flies across it's southern environs on a viaduct! Also our house prices are way more than in Cornwall and not everyone earns London salaries.