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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Just how hard is it to get a "proceedable" viewer?

53 replies

CuddyMum · 17/07/2012 12:54

Is anyone else struggling to get "proceedable" viewers through the door? I feel that I do the "big clean and prepare" for people to view who are not on the market or have houses to sell etc. It's so frustrating!

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Original poster

CuddyMum · 17/07/2012 12:56

Don't what happened with my title there!

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Dillydollydaydream · 17/07/2012 13:02

I hate selling! We ha what we thought was an offer from a FTB. Found out today that actually they have put in offers on 3 other houses and they're still making appointments to view other houses instead of "putting all their eggs into one basket". It would never occur to me to do this but apparently it's common now

Good luck, it's so frustrating isn't it?

Original poster

CuddyMum · 17/07/2012 13:06

Very frustrating, especially when I have identified a couple of houses I would like to view again and I am prepared to rent too. I am holding off on second viewing houses as I don't want to build my hopes up and waste their time cleaning up.

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Dillydollydaydream · 17/07/2012 13:11

Yes we viewed several houses at the weekend stupidly thinking we had a good buyer for ours and we're deciding on second viewings for a couple now I feel like a time waster. We do have another FTB viewing Thursday but it's so much hassle keeping the house spotless with 3 dc!

Original poster

CuddyMum · 17/07/2012 13:23

It's impossible to keep the house spotless (I have two teenage girls) and it's a big house to clean from top to bottom. It's my day off today and it's the first time I've not cleaned. I feel on edge in case we get a phone call to book a viewing in.

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Nellybell · 17/07/2012 14:47

It is frustrating. I had 9 viewings before the one and a few of those were people whose houses weren't on the market. I did feel irritated when I'd done a big clean for them and they had a good old nose around and it just seemed pointless. Bizarrely the one that I didn't do much cleaning for because I was in a rush to get to work, was the one that put in an offer.

Original poster

CuddyMum · 17/07/2012 15:29

I am totally obsessed with checking Rightmove to see if the properties we like are still available!

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Dillydollydaydream · 17/07/2012 15:38

I daren't look!
I really liked one we viewed and were going to go back to measure if certain furniture items would fit where we wanted them.
Actually that house was the least tidy out of the ones we saw, it wa spotlessly clean but it had personality so there might be something to be said for not over tidying!?

Rhubarbgarden · 17/07/2012 16:56

Don't necessarily discount viewers who have yet to put their houses on the market. We viewed properties when we weren't proceedable because we knew our house would sell quickly. Once we'd found somewhere we wanted to buy, we put our house on the market that day and the first viewer through the door made us an offer that we have accepted. I'm not saying this to show off; just to make the point that not all unproceedable viewers are timewasters.

notsomanicnow · 17/07/2012 17:05

and ditto our buyer, they were the first people to view, their house was not on market, they made an offer there and then (without a second viewing!) we continued to market but they had their house under offer about 5 weeks later, due to exchange next week.

kensingtonkat · 17/07/2012 17:06

I do feel your pain but the market is biting on both sides, at the moment.

We are very proceedable - but our local vendors don't seem to realise that asking 15% more for your house than it was worth in 2007 may not result in a quick sale.

Oh, and 2.99% mortgage rates make the news because they're so unusual, and the actual rates we've been offered (with a 30% deposit) are closer to 5% than they are to the base rate or headline rates.

Original poster

CuddyMum · 17/07/2012 19:32

You're right Rhubarb. The agent felt that the last couple were really interested - they were my Goldilocks viewers who came with the kids and mother in law - and then they backed out as they got cold feet about the upheaval of moving etc. The actual moving bit is a piece of cake. It's the selling that I'm finding hard.

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StiffyByng · 17/07/2012 20:57

Just because I feel like getting some (retrospective) sympathy, we were on the market for five months, had 60 viewings and were in a two bedroom flat with two kids and a baby. Keeping that place in a viewable state was exhausting.

We did get a lovely proceedable and committed buyer though.

Original poster

CuddyMum · 17/07/2012 21:19

You have my retrospective sympathy. I am glad you were able to sell :) I am trying to keep a three floor house tidy that two girls seem to be able to trash in a matter of minutes!

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tawse57 · 18/07/2012 10:55

Have an open day one Saturday between 10 and 1. Get the EA to advertise it.

bumbez · 18/07/2012 14:02

Now that we're under offer our house very quickly deteriorated into a mahoosive mess, and the garden an overgrown jungle due to all the rain.

Then our buyers decided they wanted a third look, couldn't have picked a worse time, thankfully they still love it.

I hated viewings the most esp last minute cancellations. If it all falls through we are bloody staying put.

Hang in there Cuddy it's taken us almost a year to find a buyer and like Rhubarb we weren't on the market when we first viewed the house we are in the process of buying. :)

Spirael · 18/07/2012 14:47

Can I join in? Open days aren't always the solution to stop this... We're due to be having an Open Day this Saturday. On Monday we had a call that a woman who was, apparently, ready to proceed couldn't wait until Saturday and wanted to view our house on Tuesday.

So we spent a manic evening of getting everything perfect ahead of the viewing, and now it turns out she wasn't ready to proceed after all and is still in the process of trying to sell her house.

Why couldn't she have waited until Saturday then? Argh!

I've always been up front about our situation! Is it a case of people lying? Or are the EA's messing everyone around?

solittletimeandsomuchtodo · 18/07/2012 15:07

I'm all for open house viewings. Second viewings by appointment.
Why does this country make things soooo hard all the time.

noddyholder · 18/07/2012 15:09

I always say no to open days and say once the open day is over if the house hasn't sold get in touch. Every Monday we get the call as they usually don't sell. It is a marketing ploy which is pointless in a falling market.

Original poster

CuddyMum · 18/07/2012 15:20

I don't think an open day would work where I live. The owners of houses for sale in the next bracket down are not looking to upsize as they are either separating, emigrating or downsizing.

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bumbez · 18/07/2012 17:00

That's annoying spirael, did she like your house though ?

kensingtonkat · 18/07/2012 18:17

Identical experience to Noddy

I detest the way EAs try to pretend persuade you there's a feeding frenzy. I'll be spending the next 25 years paying off this house, I'm not going make a decision in the next ten minutes.

Spirael · 19/07/2012 09:44

Apparently she really loved the kitchen (no surprise, it's brand new!) but thought the upstairs needed some work doing (it's sound, but the bathroom is the rather outdated peachy shell type affair.) and they wanted somewhere that was perfect immediately.

You have my sympathies over trying to keep the house tidy, CuddyMum! Though I've found it is getting easier as we've decluttered our possessions so much now we barely have anything left to tidy. At least if/when we ever get to move it should be easy!

Original poster

CuddyMum · 19/07/2012 10:07

I given up my cleaning strike just in case we have a viewer this weekend! In two days my daughters have trashed their rooms so off upstairs with a bin bag I go. The kids call me a neat freak now!

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tawse57 · 20/07/2012 01:05

Have an open day one Saturday between 10 and 1. Get the EA to advertise it.

If ANYONE wishes to come beforehand remind them when the open day is. This market is choc a bloc full of idiots making offers on houses who have not yet marketed their own house.

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