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Original poster

So where is this flood of houses on the market??

30 replies

artyjools · 02/08/2010 11:21

We are looking to buy a good sized 4/5 bed house in the St John's / Knaphill area of Woking. The papers would have us believe that there is a flood of houses on the market but where the heck are they? There are a few overpriced ones that have been on the market for ages but hardly a trickle of new ones appearing.

Are other househunters finding this - or am I being unreasonable about what I want for my money ?

OP posts:
countydurhamlass · 02/08/2010 11:41

my house has been on the market since October and havent had anyone to view it as no one can get a mortgage. in this time we have looked at four houses we have considered moving to but that is it, hardly anyone is selling their house because banks are still not giving out decent mortgages or offering money to first time buyes (we have a terraced house which is the sort of house that a first time buyer would buy in my area)

bronze · 02/08/2010 11:43

Mines been on since october.

We had our first and only second viewing last weekend. We were hoping for an offer but no such luck

lalalonglegs · 02/08/2010 11:47

There are quite a few on around me (SW London) - but generally at pretty ridiculous optimistic prices and they aren't being snapped up as they were even a couple of months ago.

expatinscotland · 02/08/2010 11:53

Plenty here. All wanting too much money so very few are selling.

Original poster
artyjools · 02/08/2010 12:14

I guess what needs to happen is for the ones at the top to reduce in price and then the trickle down effect would make houses in every bracket more affordable.

OP posts:
mintyfresh · 02/08/2010 13:06

Lots on near me but very few family houses - either large and expensive properties or small first time buyer houses. Nothing really shifting in my village either although when family houses at a 'reasonable' price come on they go within days!

Fiddledee · 02/08/2010 16:42

Its the beginning of August. Me like probably loads of people are planning to put their house on the market in mid/late September when schools start again. It would be madness to put it on now, my area is completely deserted they must have all gone to Cornwall...

If you want a family house they tend to come on September/October and March/April - first to move in time for primary/secondary school allocation, the spring date to move before the start of the new school year.

Be patient the flood will be here soon I hope

OrmRenewed · 02/08/2010 16:43

There has been round here. But most of them are coming on much too high IMO. No-one wants to accept that prices have fallen.

expatinscotland · 02/08/2010 17:03

It's nost just buyers being cheeky, either, or wanting to rip off vendors.

Our former HV, who is still working as a FT HV elsewhere and her spouse who is an electrician, are unable to borrow the amount most are wanting for a family house.

They simply cannot pay what vendors round here want and the vendors, mostly older people with no mortgage, are unwilling to lower the price to a more reasonable level.

So the house stays on the market.

castlesintheair · 02/08/2010 17:06

There has been a flood of 'reduction in asking price' around here (at the slightly more affordable end of the market) but otherwise it is quiet though I agree with Fiddledee that it is probably because it's summer.

MizZan · 02/08/2010 23:16

no flood of properties here (v. expensive university town) but certainly a lot more than were coming on a few months ago. however many are from buy-to-letters trying to sell up but these are mainly small houses/flats not necessarily suitable for families.

same situation others have mentioned here re older vendors (bought 25-39 years ago and making an unbelievable return no matter what price they sell at now), as well as families looking to upgrade, putting family-sized homes on at unrealistic prices and they are just sitting and sitting. A very few of these that are exceptional (beautiful old house, city centre location) are selling quickly, which is being talked up massively by desperate estate agents, but nothing is going to bidding wars any more the way it was 6 or 7 months back, and the number of actual sales must be really low from what we can tell.

the market has clearly turned in terms of buyers' perception of what they can afford - I know we have been looking for a while and are a lot more conservative now about what we'd be prepared to pay than we were a year ago, and I can imagine that's true of others as well, though in this town there are definitely people for whom money is no object, which skews expectations among vendors of even the most ordinary houses. meanwhile we are renting a lovely house we could never afford to buy from a good landlord for a very reasonable rent (lowered last year, despite lots of media handwringing about lack of rental properties and rents going up - hmm). I'm not expecting big price drops but certainly not expecting any rises, so just waiting for the right place to come along from a vendor prepared to be reasonable.

NonnoMum · 02/08/2010 23:20

OK - so if I can hijack this thread a bit.

If buying, is it reasonable to go under £500k for houses that are £550 or £575 or even more?

lalalonglegs · 03/08/2010 10:12

There are two pieces of perceived wisdom, NonnoMum. 1) How long has the house been on the market and how desperate are the owners to sell? This will have a huge impact on the price that they will accept. 2) Why not offer low - they can only say no.

Fiddledee · 03/08/2010 10:39

there is a stamp duty threshold at £500k so worth a try at £499k for that reason alone especially on £550k properties and below. But yes depends on how desperate they are to sell and how long it has been on the market. You have nothing to lose. If you are chain free/cash buyer you would be in a stronger position to make such an offer. If you haven't got a buyer yet for your home don't bother making such an offer IMO.

Fizzylemonade · 03/08/2010 10:50

NonnoMum, I agree with lalalonglegs, and the property has to be priced way over the stamp duty band to warrant paying the stamp duty, but at that price I would offer under £500k too.

Fizzylemonade · 03/08/2010 10:54

Meant to add, there is a flood of houses round here, lots are still hanging around with unrealistic prices (some have been up for 3 years) and then the lower priced ones that have just come on.

We sold ours in about 8 weeks last year because we wanted out and accepted a lower offer from a cash buyer.

Original poster
artyjools · 03/08/2010 14:19

Thank you. Looks as if my perception about what is going on is about right- although where are you, Fizzy?

Anyway, I'll wait and see what happens after the summer hols are out of the way.

OP posts:
OrmRenewed · 03/08/2010 16:47

We have run into a bit of a problem with out purchase so I had a speculative look on some property websites. In our price range there are the same old houses that were for sale a few months ago. Widen the criteria to include properties 20-30k more and there are loads of them. No bigger or better. Just more stupidly optimistic vendors. They will just waste 6m or so refusing 'cheeky' offers before they have to drop the asking price.

jonicomelately · 03/08/2010 16:49

We have sold. I've noticed in the past 6-8 months barely anything has gone onto the market. It's incrediably quiet.

expatinscotland · 03/08/2010 16:51

a friend has just sold two flats in edinburgh. both 2-bed flats with reasonable price tags.

cece · 03/08/2010 18:19

YOu can buy mine if you like. What's your budget?

ReshapeWhileDamp · 03/08/2010 22:28

No flood here. We could do with more choice. Mind you, we might be about to contribute towards, if not a flood, then a piddle, since it looks as if our sale is about to fall through owing to buyers not able to secure a mortgage.

ohdearwhathappened · 03/08/2010 22:45

lots more on round here at widely optimistic prices.
have 2 friends trying to sell both dropped asking price by 10% and nothing
one I'm watching (which need to drop price by 15%) has just dropped price by wait for it

1%

why bother?
do you think they are trying to send out a sign?

NonnoMum · 04/08/2010 00:00

Yes, 1% - why bother? Think some people need to face reality... And think most of those people are older, mortgage-free and a bit deluded...

IMHO

Eurostar · 04/08/2010 00:31

countydurhamlass - it's not that banks aren't offering mortgages, they have just gone back to sensible lending levels so that people might actually be able to pay off the capital (as well as the interest) during the lifetime of their mortgage through their earnings rather than hoping that the bubble in prices will continue and mean that the price of their house will have gone up so much they will be able to sell and cover the outstanding mortgage sum one day. You can get a mortgage for 85% at 3x your salary quite easily (a provable salary, not one made up on a self-cert bit of paper) which is a sensible lending amount. Let's face it, if people can't afford to save up 15% of the price, they're never going to be able to pay off a massive mortgage unless young and in a profession known for steep salary rises or expecting a large inheritance.
The problem is, as we know, there were no such controls over the past ten-ish years so houses sold for ever more ridiculous prices. We now have a big stalemate - on the seller side we have many who either need to sell for bubble prices to cover their mortgage and have some left over for a new deposit or others who stubbornly won't reduce even though they could afford to as they want to downsize and have a nest egg on top (maybe because sadly their pensions have amounted to nothing). On the buyer side we mostly have people who can now only borrow a realistic amount.
Who knows what will happen...