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.

Tau - I know how you feel. I've seen many a house go under offer when we were up for sale. Now that we're under off there's bugger all to buy (or rent). I keep telling myself that it's for a reason!

Good luck littlecrystal - let's hope the sunshine brings out the viewers (and in my case the sellers!). :)

Where are all the spring sellers? Come out, wherever you are - please [buwink]

Well, we've had another five viewings over the Easter weekend, lots of positivity, but no offers. Some asked for additional details. Hopefully someone is still mulling things over and will come back this week...

Been to look at two more - one was bee yoo ti ful, but living space too small. It was snapped up about half an hour after we viewed it (and we viewed it the day it went live). Realtor was hoping to have sold ours yesterday, as there is another property coming on the market today that she thinks is perfect for us (we have the first viewing as it's only live today) and she wanted us to be able to offer immediately if we liked it. Ho hum. It will go today, for sure.

We have two large smelly dogs and three kids. My life is a tightrope of scrubbing, wiping, polishing, and hiding living things in the car for an hour whilst I air the place!

Today I have to leave the kids and dogs unattended for 6 hours whilst I go to work. They are going to destroy the place, aren't they? And as soon as I leave, someone is going to call and request a short notice second look?

I can see it happening before my very eyes...

Ha. It would be the height of irony if my kids managed to sell the house with dirt and clutter, having failed to do it myself with floor polish and veiled threats about putting their crap away!

Now how do kids manage to trash the place in minutes when you've spent like 8 hours plus cleaning? It's just a mystery to me! I'm so glad I'm not on the market right now.

We've been talking about the overpriced bungalow again that we've seen twice and are wondering whether to put an offer in. What I really need to know (and I'll ask on here) is how much would it actually cost to raise the roofline to 45 degrees, add dormer windows and bedrooms and bathrooms. My guestimate is circa £80k which means we'd have to buy for a low price and I don't think the vendor is going to budge (he simply refuses to leave for viewings). The problem is that their neighbour did the whole roof thing and added 3 bedrooms and two bathrooms plus a refurb of the whole house and sold for £425k. This bungalow is already on at £415k. It would be much easier if I had more property to look at!

Talk kids to me... I have two, 5yo and 2.5yo. I am hoping they will sit nicely in the lounge watching Cebeebies while I do the viewings, however I am not so sure whether my expectations will be fulfilled.

CuddyMum do you think if no one else will buy that house, will the vendor finally budge?

Littlecrystal - we've already reduced our asking price (although the original price was just too high anyway)
At the price it is on now we would expect offers below asking price around the region that we can just about afford to accept...
We could lower the asking price of course, but we can not lower not the price that we will eventually accept, at least not without risking having to use up all our savings.
We won't be getting a mortgage. We own our current house outright, but our income is very low. If we'd use all our savings we'd have nothing to fall back on in case of emergency. Not sure if that is worth it -certainly not in the current economic climate! My partner thinks it is worth it, but we sort of disagree on that....

littlecrystal - teenagers are far worse and highly unpredictable. I'm sure your's will be little darlings for you :)

Will they budge - honestly, I don't think so. I think they'd rather sit it out and wait. I'll have the make the agent work for his money - although I think he's bored with me now I've sold.

Alwayslate... did kids and dogs destroy the place?

My dear son, aged 15, managed to smash his head open on a doorframe yesterday - I am not quite sure WHY he decided to jump on a chair right under the door opening, and neither is he, but yeah.. he did it.
Smears and splatters of blood on the floor, the walls, the door, the stairs, and the shower curtain, and of course no time to clean it up because we had to go to the A&E. Five stitches.

And that happened when I was home....
It was the first time in our house-selling adventure that I've been glad that we had no viewers!

Son is fine by the way - his dignity suffered the most severe injury.

Wow Tau! I thought my two were bad. Hope you got the blood out :)

Oh dear Tau, I bet you feel sorry and angry for your son at the same time. At least he has been treated and stitched.

I am hoping to see my house on Rightmove tomorrow... And now I really want that house I viewed which makes me both excited and sitting on needles. I am asking 220k and that house is on the market for 220k and I don't care which price I achieve as long as I can get that house for the same price.

That house is slightly unusual and does not have a central heating, so fingers crossed it will hold out for me.

I was thinking over and over for years whether to sell my house or not; now as I finally decided I feel so much better. Exciting times.

Sorry for only focusing on myself. Just needed to pour my heart out. I held it for so long.

Apart from our own houses it really seems like there's nothing out there to buy, doesn't it?

So I want to ask, how flexible are you all with viewings? We had lovely day out with kids today. thought we'd tire them out - bath - bed - G&T for us..nice. But no, EA calls at 4:30 asking for viewing at 6:15pm (we're still on train not yet home from lovely day out and house a total post-Easter pigsty). I just feel that I can't say no, although every bone in my body wants to! We had the viewing and they made all the right noises but I'm sure it will come to nothing. Do I just have to grit my teeth and bear these short-notice viewings? WWYD?

As you said littlecrystal at least the sun was shining!

I'm still in the agreeing to everything phase... But I can imagine it wears off.

Just got in from work, even later than expected, and haven't inspected house yet... But dh wasn't in full tirade, so I gather it can't have been that bad when he got in!!

Went and looked at another possibility today - it was very nice, but a bedroom short. Dh went and looked at it tonight, and he is already planning work arounds... it's nice, but not perfect. And tbh it will probably be sold in days, whilst we don't have an offer on ours anyway... It is cheap (!) which is why I suspect dh likes it... Going to look at another one on Friday, I think. Just on the market.

Tau, teenagers are quite the oddest. Hope his dignity repairs with the wound! My teen threw an entire maxi size can of puréed tomato all over the wall/ door/ microwave/ kitchen cupboards yesterday. It was like watching a juggling act but spraying everywhere... Fortunately our walls are red...

In my experience, the last minute viewers have always been timewasters (often not even on the marker). I've nearly given myself a heart attack running around trying to get the house ready in half an hour and then vacating with the dog! But, you always kid yourself that this could be the one and if you say no, they'll never come back.

Unfortunately we tend to be last minute viewers (usually 24hrs) as we are trying to juggle an awful lot of stuff including work rotas and sorting childcare (trying very hard not to view with our 4yo as he thinks every house is the one we are buying) and by the time we've managed to get hold of EAs (some of which seem to make viewing / buying as difficult as possible) it's often short notice.

We are keen though, so far we've seen something perfect but the location isn't right and we can't make it work. Lots that are odd layouts due to random extensions - 4th bedroom isn't useful if I've got to go through 3rd bedroom to get to it! And lots that are expensive but need expensive repair work doing so the sums don't add up.

Wonky - most of my timewasters are bored housewifes and probably just wanted something to do for the afternoon :)

We had another viewer yesterday. I was out so DH tidied up and did the viewing, seems to have gone well. EA says last viewers liked it and want a second viewing so that is promising.
Keeping the house tidy with all the kids home for the holidays is a complete nightmare. DD3 is ill and I have mountains of laundry - DH nearly resorted to putting the laundry basket in the car yesterday.

Movingtimes, we have driven round with the laundry before!

I've got DSs bike & a bag of random stuff I couldn't find homes for, in my car for the same reason

Eek! Am viewing a house later today. Not on the market yet but over our budget!

Hah - glad I'm not the only one! Hope the house is nice, Cuddy. Was saying to DH last night how much time we would have saved tramping round totally unsuitable properties if the internet had existed the first time we bought a house. (Or indeed the second.)

Well I'm viewing this one blind! Haven't seen any pictures or floor plan as they've not been done yet!

Can someone give me an advice please? My house is still not on the market today, but will be out tomorrow (my agent promises). I viewed a house few weeks ago and gave a horrible, horrible feedback about it, but now have changed my mind and hoping to offer on it. Do you think I should let the agency of that house know that I would be interested after I sell mine, or do I just hold on until I sell and am in a position to offer?

Littlecrystal, I'm intrigued by why you've changed your mind if you thought the house was horrible.
Honestly, the impression I'm getting from EAs is that they are not at all interested in hearing from you unless your house is already under offer. So I'd probably hold on. And if you weren't initially that keen on the house, perhaps something you like better will have come on the market by then.