The decluttering, cleaning, vacating, pandering, nailbiting antics of the stressed out house sellers

[Spirael]

Starting a new thread, since our old one was almost full!

Anyone suffering the stresses of trying to sell a house is welcome to join us; anyone here to tell us our houses are crap and/or overpriced is not.

Well done, Tau, it looks a lot better, here's hoping it turns into viewings and offers for you!

Much brighter (and I guess you had a lovely sunny day) and more cheery too. Well done Tau.

Just had the EA from a different branch round as she's conducting the viewing on Saturday and she was lovely and she loved the house too. Here's hoping that the viewer will think the same. Shame the dog let me down by getting over excited and farting, which reminds me exactly why we all vacate the house for viewings!

How's your rental Toomuchtea? Is it somewhere you could buy?

We've absolutely nothing to look at anymore in Harrold or Sharnbrook but the EA tells me he has 7 valuations booked in for Harrold next week.

Cuddymum- there is nothing in Sharnbrook- we've looked too!

Ooh - Augusta - we could view together if anything comes on :)

Did you hear anything further re your rejected offer at all? What other areas are you looking in? We are looking for the Sharnbrook catchment ideally.

Good idea but what if we ended up liking the same one?! We'd both be on AIBU!
Our offer was rejected again as vendor wants at most £5k under asking.
Agent called to tell me on Tuesday and was quite persuasive about increasing. So I promptly found three houses in next village and arranged viewings.
Agent called again today to see his things stood and he was persuasive again.
I've never had an agent call me to increase offer before... Wonder if it means anything?
Loved the house I saw yesterday and seeing one more tomorrow.
And I've gone off the one we offered on as a result!

Isn't if funny how you can go off something? Perhaps there is some truth when people say, "what will be, will be" and all that.

The vendor sounds a little greedy and the EA a little desperate.

Good luck with your viewing tomorrow - it sounds like they may have done you a favour!

My MIL and FIL have now expressed their opinions and generally I will do the opposite of what some people tell me. I think they want us to stay down the road from them but other houses are a ten minute drive away! That's all!

There's no way I would live in spitting distance of my in laws and I would always do the exact opposite! :)

Now...
We've had a leaflet delivered from a local estate agent, suggesting that we could go to them if we are not happy with our current estate agent.
An hour later, that same local agent called. They said they've been keeping an eye on our house since it has been up for sale and they would love a chance to have a chat and discuss marketing our home. They said they are very keen on our kind of property and location, that is it a popular kind of house with their clients, and they were surprised that we had decreased the asking price and that we have had only one viewing so far.
They are also the agent who has recently sold a nearby house that is very similar to ours - in one month.
So, I agreed for them to come over on Tuesday to have a chat. (I figured it's not a bad idea to wait at least a long weekend and give our new details a chance).
This is the first time we are selling a house, so we have no idea if this is what normally happens. Is this usually the way that EAs get clients? Does it mean that there is a good chance they will sell our house - preferably for the asking price?

I always get calls asking me to go with their agency. When they're round try and get a deal on their agency fee. Traditional agents spend a lot of time ringing round trying to drum up viewings and generally being persuasive. I don't think this would be a bad idea for you - it would work in your favour. What are their brochures and photos like? Do they have a good website? View a house with them and see what their technique is like.

Well, they did sell that other house quickly, but I have also heard from someone else that they were not very uninvolved for her. But that was a very different house to ours, and they have advertised after that recent sale for 'similar properties required'... so I hope they have some potential buyer lurking in their files...

But you say it is possible to try and get a 'deal' on their fees? Mind you, if they manage to sell our house for the asking price we'd probably be okay paying the fee. I'm just worried that we'd have to go lower AND pay a fee!

'not very uninvolved' should of course be 'not very involved'

I guess if their usual fee is say 2%, say you'll be happy with 1% and they may agree on 1.5%. Remember there is VAT on top of this. Do you have to give notice to your online agent?

I'm not sure. I'd think they ought to give notice to us, as we've been doing all the work...
But we'll see.

Hi everyone. Still here.

The couple who came yesterday have been back for a second viewing so looking hopeful.I will be nice about them now. We are viewing at least 4 houses in the next couple of days. Seems there is more houses coming as we get nearer to easter.

Oh the joys of renting Toomuchtea!

Fingers crossed then Sailorsgal!

Hello, can I join in? Feel fed up today as our EA was convinced we were going to get an offer, but its not happened and they are now apparently looking at another house. And the house we really like and wanted to offer on has gone under offer today. Feel like we have just missed out :(

Hi sweks... how disappointing!
But you never know; an even nicer house may come up just as you are ready to buy!

Now we have lowered our price and put up more sensible pics and details. Still nothing.
Just did a rightmove search with the name of my town, for 3-bedroom houses up to £150000.
I got only ten hits - two were the same house, so nine houses in total. That means 8 competitors in this town - one of which is a holiday home, so not for living, and another is a flat. So WHY are we not getting viewings? Surely people who are looking for that kind of house in this town would try and view all of those??

Toomuchtea, your rental sounds a bit challenging... although a rainroom is a very unusual feature. ;-)

I seem to have accepted an offer [all digits firmly placed on wood, oh sod it that's just veneer, does it count]
Tuesday's viewer No 1 - a dreamer.
Tuesday viewer No 2 - very serious.
Wednesday am - an offer of 330.
I phone EA at 4pm to accept 330 and he says don't accept till tomorrow and by the way can I send these viewers at 6pm tonight. OK I sigh but once I've accepted that offer I won't have any more viewers round.
Viewers come at 6pm, leave at 6.43pm and EA rings me at 6.55pm with an offer of 335. Surely this won't stick?
He says they have nothing to sell, a 20% deposit, and he has seen paperwork and spoken to the mortgage broker so knows they are good for the rest. And they are a lovely little family with 3 children and a tiny one of 3mths - this house needs babies again.
So I am going to look at two bungalows near Tenterden tomorrow. Looking at the lowest price one we think might suit and the highest price one. Slowly working our way to the middle price range, as we need to try and hang this out till July!

Wow springlamb! Result!

Well our viewers for Saturday have chickened out and they won't be coming. No more lined up either :(