Selling tactic: move out or stay and keep tidy?

[EdlessAllenPoe]

Please settle a 'discussion' between self and Dh..

One of us believes it is better to stay in the house because it might take a while to sell, but just keep it tidy and nip out with dog and children when EA wants to bring someone for viewings. This means keeping the house in a perpetual state of readiness, though not fully 'staged' as we'll still need things like dog beds (ours are smart looking ones made from wicker) and wellingtons for everyday life, and DD2s cot in the DDs bedroom, keeping the small table in the 'dining' bit of the kitchen/ diner to leave room for the DDs low chair.

pros: we can be more patient about selling
cons: it will mean near constant tidying, cleaning and re-touching of paintwork

One of us thinks it would be better to move out - either into a one bed bungalow we can borrow, (would be doable though pokey to say the least!) or into the middle storey of my parents house (4 rooms and a bathroom) and hope for a quicker sale, leaving the house fully staged (ie, no sign there ever was a dog in the house, no extra cot in the girls bedroom (just the single bed and her writing desk where the cot is) flowers, dining table set up with place settings..etc)

pros: would just need to pick up post and dust, and mow the lawn in terms of maintenance.
cons: more pressure to get sold so that normal life can resume, streeses of whichever alternative accomodation we choose.

which do you think is the better tactic?

I hope i haven't slanted my favoured option too much!

Sorry if this is the wrong answer... I think stay in the house. In this market it could take a while and is disruptive to you all, and in my view when you look around an empty house it always feels a bit sad and neglected, even if tidy and beautiful.

People living there bring a warmth and buyers can imagine their "lifestyle" in that house. When it is empty you have to imagine that.

Why don't you just move some of your clutter, or toys etc to the bungalow so that it appears even tidier than usual.

Personally I think it's easier to view and imagine living in a fully furnished but tidy and clean home than an empty one (although maybe you mean leave the furniture behind even if you move out? But even so, houses can feel cold and damp if not lived in, not welcoming!)

For me, moving and resettling children twice would be far too much effort.

But declutter as best you can and enjoy your life now rather than putting things on hold for a move that may or may not be on the horizon. See how easy it is to get a buyer and save the decamping option for if you haven't sold after a few months.

Can you tell I've been "on the move" for months? We had buyers in first week so it wasn't the selling that was the problem for us, it was finding the right house and getting the onward chain sorted then vendors took house of the market after 7 months. I would be very miserable by now if I was camped out in a non-home, making do but with everything resting on the move.

Best of luck (on winning the argument as well as on selling the house)

that's "off" the market, not "of"!

We did both - when the house first went up for sale we kept it really, really tidy, when EA brought viewers DH took the dogs out and I put the dog beds in the summerhouse (big wickers ones) to make the kitchen look bigger, then, when the house we wanted became available we moved into it and sold the other house empty.
We did go back to check there was no post, tidy the garden, make sure house was secure etc.

I dont think it makes a difference wether the house is empty or lived in, viewers have to look past your furniture/possessions etc and imagine what thier stuff would look like in it.

It is a bit of a faff keep going back and the security is a constant niggle at the back of your mind.

You also have to tell the insurance and mortage people if you intend leaving the house empty.

the 'move out' plan would mean leaving house staged with all the things necessary to look 'furnished'. that is enough things so the purpose of each space can be seen, but not so much it looks over-personal.

One of us believes some people would be put off by presence of dog beds and says 'we are selling our house not our dog' and that the DDs room looks too full for selling purposes with the two beds in it.

one of us argues that it shows you can have two children here, and most people viewing the house would own a dog (that kind of area).

i think i posted six weeks ago it wouldn't take long to get to market, and since then we have been up to our necks in DIY and tidying.... the house i wanted to buy has gone off the market since then, but it could always come back i suppose..and we need to move anyway.

long period of selling would be very undesirable any which way.

Our attic is now loaded with neatly stacked storage boxes with toys and surplus crap in it. I have never loved plastic boxes so much!

As someone who has had to fight with my not-yet 2yo's news to get EVERY toy, crayons & item of clothing out when a viewer is due since the summer, & hated having to worry about doing the laundry between viewings (can't leave airers up obviously!) I would have said moving out would be easier.But that only workday if you're not going to be cramped & miserable, because you will come to resent the EA/people that dismiss your house for no 'good' reason either way, so better to be comfortable doing it!!!

It would also depend on the type of house. Is it a family home or a first time buyers house? Is it standard in design or a hit quirky? You have to 'style' it to your audience; first time buyers want space & a luxurious modern lifestyle, maybe dogs but not much child clutter and so on...

Good luck selling, its a miserable experience but hopefully worth it in the end!! Fingers crossed.

^Need not news, works not workday, bit not hit, stupid fone... I need to check my posts more closely clear!!!

house is a 2 bed bungalow that would be absolutely amazing for a couple starting their family or a fit retired couple or single person (backs onto South Downs) It is up a steep hill so slightly out of the elderly market, and has decent size gardens. Good primary catchment, crap secondary.

the area is full of near-identical houses with various extensions and modifications.

so: first time buyers, retirees

Oh no no no no no, you DO NOT want to move twice!!

I much prefer looking around lived-in houses to empty ones (even if they are a little bit untidy, or infact even if they are very untidy).

I would stay, declutter as much as possible and have a tidy up before viewings

If you are leaving behind furniture which shows how the rooms are used I would move out.

We moved 2 years ago, DCs were 7 and 4, and it was hard work keeping the place tidy and clean. Much easier not to live in it and just dust and hoover before a viewing.

We were lucky that we only had 2 couples interested, so 4 viewings from that, then it turns out that the couple who wanted it were the ones who would be living in it but the parents were buying it as an investment property so another viewing, then a viewing after the survey had come back.

6 viewings in total, I blitzed the house each time, DH took boys out for the day to the park, and I got on with tidying. The mother was so impressed with how I kept my shower sparkling clean (only for viewings ) that she made me write down what I used!

We had already de-cluttered and hired a storage unit. For the sake of getting the house sold we also moved into a hotel for 3 weeks as we couldn't get our completion days to match. So technically I moved twice in 3 weeks and we lived in one room at the hotel.

There is only so much stuff you can hide when people view a property as they have every right to open all cupboards and wardrobes unless freestanding and not coming with the house.

I think "almost empty" with no personal belongings looks better, and is easier to keep clean. You can leave enough basic items to be comfortable there, make tea and toast, use it as a refuge, go in and do the garden, have a bath. Potential buyers can picture filling it with their stuff without having to edit out all of yours.

The insurers will probably not mind you calling it your "second home" if you go in there at least once a month and protect against burst pipes etc.

I would fit at least a simple DIY burglar alarm that can phone you. you can take it to your new house when you move.

they are usually available at DIY sheds but this is the cheapest reliable supplier I know

I would stay actually. I never liked looking round empty houses and my DC are freaked out by the move as it is and that's with them having been at home for the six months it took us to exchange with our buyers. We are having to go into rented accommodation for the very short term and I am dreading it frankly

When we were selling, we put ds in a travel cot in our bedroom that I took down for viewings as our room looked too cluttered with his normal cot - so if you stay put you could do that.

hmm..thanks for responses

my perspective was : move out - have been having a tough time doing the necessary painting as well as tidying/hoovering to keep things good and all the housework i would normally do.

Dh is gratified though...he didn't want the hassle of leaving the house in advance!

as a long term 'house doctor' etc addict i want the house really lovely to attract the best price, and that does seem really hard to achieve with our everyday stuff in it (rather than the stuff i would put in it to sell)

generally if i looked at an untidy house i thought it would put other people off so was pleased!