Support thread for house sellers

[Spirael]

Just what it says on the tin, really! I'm sure there must be other stressed house sellers out there? Hopefully we can band together and get some small joy of (hopefully?) seeing our houses sell so we can get a move on!

This is a thread of hand holding and mutual support for the EA dealings, weeks of silence, frantic house tidying, no-show viewings, silly offers and tough decisions. This is not for house bashing and price slating. There are plenty of other threads for that!

I've been trying to sell for a year now. Had a surge of viewings earlier in the summer making the right noises, but all has gone quiet for the last few weeks.

However, we have a viewing booked for later this afternoon from someone who has sold their house and is able to proceed - wanting to move before Christmas. Currently swinging between pessimistic and optimistic, while trying not to look at the house we want to buy!

Anyone else out there? :)

The plumming in the house we're buying has been drained and we've not seen the taps running or been able to flush the toilets or anything, bentneckwine. Didn't worry us particularly, but it is a new build under warranty.

Did you hear anything from your stealth viewer, CuddyMum??

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you moving before Christmas if you'll do the same for me, marshmallowpies. We're running pretty much simultaneously at the moment, I think. Our paperwork went to the solicitors for the end of last week, as did all the mortgage documents to the bank.

Currently waiting for the mortgage offer so the solicitor can give us an estimated exchange/completion date! DH is under instructions to chase them today.

Heard nothing back regarding the survey done on our property. It's been over a week now, that means everything must have been fine right?? [neurotic]

Visited our hopefully future home on Saturday... My existing curtains will fit, yay! Saw so many more things I love about it, really can't wait to move!

All sounds like it's going well for you Spirael and Toomuchtea. Heard nothing from the EA today - I reckon the stealth viewer is a bored housewife and the husband has probably said he doesn't want to move but we shall see. I wonder if anyone will seriously consider looking at houses as we approach Christmas.

And everything seems to be progressing nicely with you too Marshmallow. I would definitely insist on the house you are buying coming off Rightmove or to at least say STC. You could always get someone to enquire about the house if you think they may still be taking viewings.

Viewing on Friday afternoon from people in rented. So people are still out there after all. I haven't asked if they have kids or whether they are giants as what will be will be :)

Will be keeping my fingers firmly crossed for you on Friday, CuddyMum! :) Really hope you get a buyer before Christmas.

Nothing to report here. Silence all around... I hope that means everything is just quietly progressing! [chews nails] [packs boxes]

Well I'm quite literally being stalked - well the house is. Two old women have been outside my house pointing up and talking for 15 minutes. I'm busy shuffling about tidying up but having to limbo under the windows. Very odd.

I was tempted to go and speak to them but was worried in case they wanted to come in as I haven't tackled the explosion in the girls' rooms yet!

Putting our house up for sale next year, gulp keep reading this thread in horrified fascination, thanks for all the tips.

CuddyMum Six bedrooms sounds lovely and big do you use them as bedrooms or playroom, study etc? I ask because a friend selling a large property down south with 7 bedrooms found she did better for viewings describing a 5th as "upstairs living room with fabulous views" and a 6th and 7th as "au pair's suite"!

Along with "dressing" the house and racing to get it shipshape before viewings it's all extra stress and in a fair world people should use their imagination to see themselves happily installed and recognise a lovely home when they see it, anyway good luck everybody.

Hello everyone. I was on this thread a few weeks back thinking about putting our house on the market and we've finally taken the plunge. I feel a bit sick about it really as I can just foresee stress ahead. I'm also a bit worried now that we won't find something we like even if we do sell as not much is coming on the market. We've put ours on with the same EA as the house we would like to buy but at 95% of asking and he told me today that the owner had rejected 98% of asking offer . We can't go above the stamp duty barrier so feeling sure we are not going to get anywhere with it. I really don't want to leave our village but may have to if we want more space.
This is without even thinking about keeping everything clean and tidy. I just had the photos taken and while the rooms look lovely and decluttered the hallways are piled high with junk! Going to have to sort it all out before the weekend.

Good luck everyone else and glad to see there have been some sales on this thread.
Cuddymummy - must be wierd people stalking your house. I almost don't want a for sale sign as I hate people knowing my business. Glad I am mostly out during the day and can ignore it to some extent. By the way, would it be normal to go around and tell the neighbours? We don't have much contact with them but they are friendly.

Donkeys - we use one room as a gym (EA calls it the snug), one is a guest room and another as a dressing/ironing room. We have a study downstairs but this could also be used as a family room and the ironing room could be a study. We sold our last six bed house to a women on her own in her sixties! We are in a market town so I don't think advertising a room as an au pair suite would go down very well as a lot of mums stay at home.

Sunset - we don't have a for sale sign and I wouldn't really bother telling the neighbours unless you are friendly with them. It is exhausting keeping the house clean!

Good point CuddyMum about slanting ad to suit local market. Perhaps one of the nosy pedestrians will book a proper viewing, fingers crossed.

We haven't had much luck with elderly viewers - they get here, look around for an hour and then announce that the house is to big for them as they are getting on!!

Too much time on their hands and the inability to read and understand the details and floor plan in the brochure me thinks.

I have viewed three houses (because I was told by the EA that one of my viewers had said she wanted my house but hadn't sold her own). The first was a complete shithole, the second had a man slobbing on the sofa, his wife in the kitchen, a teenage boy in a bedroom and more teenagers sunbathing in the garden and finally the last house (which we would like to buy) was tidy ish but not that clean. I wonder why I bother really.

All these untidy stories are making me feel better. My usual tactic with visitors is to tidy as much as I can and then say,"Sorry it's such a mess" as I never get it as tidy as I want to. I won't be around for viewers (if we got any) to apologise!
I'm really nervous about the house going on tomorrow. Feel like I am exposing myself to the world and am surprised how emotional I feel about the prospect of moving. Also worrying if it's really such a good idea. We do need the extra space but we would be taking on a bigger mortgage and the plan is to try for a second baby next year. I have looked at all the figures but there is not much room for error.

Sunset my kids keep telling me that I'm an anal nest freak now!

Toomuchtea - I know what you mean. I just wouldn't feel comfortable allowing a viewing if it wasn't tidy.

Neat freak even!

Gutted! The house we were interesting in has just gone under offer. I had a strange feeling and just checked Rightmove.