trying to sell house - why isn't anyone buying ?

[binker]

Am becoming increasingly despondent about ever moving ! Our house has been on the market for about 8-9 weeks,which I know isn't really very long, but I was assured by the agents that it would go fairly quickly as it is,though I say it myself,a very desirable property with bags of features and charm, very well presented (I 've watched the programmes !) and on one of the nicest roads in our area,which I am also assured is up and coming...so where are the viewers and when they come why are they being so hesitant in making offers ? Am I too impatient ? We've seen several houses that we'd love to put an offer on, but we can't proceed as we haven't a buyer - grrr ! We're in West London by the way - any mumsnetters got any ideas ?

ks, we just sold our house for 96% of the original asking price. We had to lower the original asking price, but then got an offer at our new asking price. We have now exchanged with this buyer, but did have an earlier one at a slightly higher price fall through just before signing contracts.

I guess, all of that is to say that 92.5 % sounds not bad in this market. Also, getting sold up and out in time to start your ds in a new school at the beginning of the school year must be worth quite a bit. Why don't you put a requirement on the sale that it has to happen within a certain period of time or it doesn't happen.

Message withdrawn

ks we got 90% of our original asking price (which I thought was way ott) 94% of our reduced price.

KS, have you found another house yet? My only experience of selling was in '92, when the market was dead. We also got a lower offer, which we originally turned down. Then we found a lovely house we couldn't afford, put a v. low offer in and it was accepted! We then went back & sold our house at the low price, because it meant we could get the 'bargain'. I Suppose what I'm trying to say is, if you are moving up, its more the difference between what you sell & what you buy for thats important, not the actual figures. Most of the people you want to buy from will be in the same position.
Anyway, lots of luck for everyone with the moves.

Berries, that is exactly what happened with us!

I have just had a call from a friend asking me if I'm still selling my house as he wants to buy it. My timing is all up the chute at the moment!

Anyone know how much it costs to buy out of a sale once you've exchanged? I suppose it depends on the contract, but anyone ever done it? Our friend is prepared to pay to buy us out if it's not too much! It would give me so much pleasure as the bloke buying our house is a vile worm and I would like to see him wriggle!!

sambo, you would lose your deposit (usually 10%)

SamboM: We are doing are own conveyancing (selling). If you refuse to complete the sale, you could be liable for all sorts of damages -- not a good idea! Like if your buyer has already exchanged themselves, you could end up paying for them to live in rented accomodation until they find a place to live in.

KS: We are selling for 98% of the asking price, but one estate agent suggested an asking price £10-£15k higher than we offered, so maybe we're only getting 89% of true value. The buyer obviously thinks he's getting a good deal. But hometrack says the avg. price in our area, in May 2003, for this kind of property, was well below what we are selling for, and I didn't think we were in an above avg. property. The average sale I think is supposed to be about 94% of asking price (can't remember where I read that).

We accepted the offer 2 weeks ago, but the Building Soc. hasn't sent around a chap to do the survey (I know the survey was paid for Monday of last week). How soon do they usually get a house surveyed?

Sorry if this is too late ks but I would say no. I wouldn't trust them and it might just be a ploy to get someone new round. Do you have the new agents' sign outside your house? If the woman's really keen, she'll see it and inquire with them.

Not quite the same but we have had agent we didn't choose to market house call and say they have a couple of 'really keen' buyers. Maybe they do but they probably don't! No offence to any reading, but I don't really trust estate agents!

I know I may be a bit late, but I would be really careful what your contracts with the old and new agents state. If you sell to the person from the first agency you would be liable to pay commission to them, but you may also be liable to pay commission to your new agency. I've just read a Which report on estate agents & contracts, and it makes scary reading.

you may also be liable to pay them commission

Oops, bad editing.

Am beginning to despair - the house we really,really liked and had put an offer on and which would have been perfect in so many ways, has now gone. (we are still waiting for a buyer - in fact a viewer would be a good start !) We just seem to be stuck - this particular house would have solved so many problems for us- I knew it wouldn't wait around for us indefinitely, but I was secretly hoping it might ! obviously not meant to be.

we've exchanged on our new property .....yes it really can happen Completion 8 August . Hurrah

(Now just got to sell or rent our current house!)

well done MABS - it's encouraging to hear that it can be done !!
Ks - thanks for all your good advice - I think the problem (and I spoke to our agent this morning) is that the prices of houses here in Brentford are pretty similar to those in neighbouring Ealing and people generally would prefer to live in Ealing...our house is being advertised in newspapers and property mags as well as on Fish4 and rightmove - and it is a very desirable property- in good nick etc, original features etc etc...we were prepared to drop our price right down if we could be sure of selling and at the same time buying our favoured house, but once it's dropped you can't really raise it again and we really would be in big trouble and not be able to afford the kind of house we'd like.There are other complications too tiresome to go into, so I won't bore you all with them. I think that perhaps it's not the right time for us to go !

MABS, great news. We were meant to exchange on selling and buying last week with an August 8 completion - until the buyer pulled out. That is now the second time we have lost a buyer - how I wish we had the Scottish system in England. The people selling the house we wish to buy have offered us a five month completion period if we exchange now. We were very very tempted but everyone has advised us against it. If we didn't manage to sell in that period we would be seriously in debt. So very depressing. Meanwhile the flat is on the market AGAIN. Aaaaarrgh.

Actually, BIL has bought & sold several times in Scotland and says it's a complete myth about being committed to the sale as soon as offer is accepted. There's no definite commitment early on the way the English press make out (he tells us).

Now, in California, both sides sign a real contract within a few days of offer acceptance ... There are still ways to get out, though, especially for buyer.

We just exchanged today; eeeeekkk!!! Got until mid-October to find somewhere to live, thank goodness.

It's true Zebra, about Scotland, as dh and I have personally experienced. People can make an offer subject to various conditions, maybe the survey, getting a mortgage or anything, really, which gives them a get-out clause. And in any case, unless you are well-off enough to be able to sue the other party, there isn't much you can do if a buyer reneges on their offer.

last week some people came to see our house (and liked it !) and someone else is coming on Monday - fingers crossed that maybe things are looking up !

We have exchanged contracts... and now the buyer has lost his mortgage. We were supposed to complete end of next week, and now I don't know if we are coming or going! [Quite literally]

The thing is, buyer lives 4 doors away, has 5 children. I view him as basically "honest working man" who probably thought he'd bend the rules a bit to get the mortgage (& got caught out).

Legally we could sue him for 10% of the purchase price (107k). He has only paid a £5000 deposit, and we are thinking to get our hands on that, then discharge the contract. And if we can sell the house for better than £107k (seems very likely), we will give him most of the £5000 back (minus some of our expenses). Luckily, we were only going to stay with friends, so we don't have to move, don't have another house purchase riding on this sale. But the £107k was going to pay for us to rent elsewhere until we were ready to buy.

But what if there is bad feeling on the road while we hold onto his £5000 and we/he wait for us to sell again? I have never had bad relations with a neighbour, don't want to start now! I feel like we've built a little bridge between us white folk & the local Bengali community & don't want to burn it now... Should we move or stay? What would you do?