No viewings and I don't know why, it must be the price right?

[Scruffydoggy1]

House has been on the market for just under a month now.

Before the pictures were taken I did a lot of maintenance, redecorating cleaning and made sure the house was as immaculate as I could get it.

We live on a desirable street and we are classed as a new build as we are just under 10years.

Most of the houses in the area are terraced Victorian. Apart from part ownership and our development there are no new builds. Houses that have previously gone up for sale in our development have sold within a week.

The market has boomed round here and we found the estate agents were having a problem valuing our house and they have valued it at the top end of the market and price wise we are on par with the terrace houses. This is due to a few improvements we have made as these houses were basic starter homes. So far we have: added a garage conversion, added conservatory totally redecorated and put a high spec kitchen in. Plus we have ample parking and for round here lots of land.

Our decor is quite bight however it's modern and in keeping with the house.

We have recently put in a big kitchen have extended it by knocking out the wall. It's very modern and clean with granite worktops inbuilt appliances and a breakfast bar.

I'm gutted, before our house went on the agents were bargaining with me over % they all loved the house and said it will sell in no time.

But nothing, I had someone knock on the door Boxing Day asking questions and they never arranged a viewing.

The problem we now face is we are buying a new build off barratt. The foundations will be in within the next month then we have 28days to complete. If the house isn't sold we will need to apply for a mortgage and then rent this house out.

However I have another rental property, very basic ex authority 2 bed house and the rental price is fantastic for it. If we compare my current house to it, it doesn't compare and yet the rental income we are looking at will be lower.

So I'm getting a bit anxious to sell it now. This week I need to submit a lower price to the agents and I have no idea how much lower it needs to go to spark interest well a viewing as over 6000 people have viewed it online. And with the stamp duty prices changing our buyers will be saving about £7,000.

Any ideas?

You said that someone knocked on the door on Boxing Day asking questions.

What were the things they asked about? Had they seen the details online (and therefore the photos) or was it because they saw a For Sale board?

Of course they may have called on a whim but I wondered if you could gauge their reactions to a) your answers and b) to the glimpses inside they may have got.

Well... I think many people are being unnecessarily hard. The house is ok, the conversion looks well done. I don't like tiles but I think you can easily make the house look warmer by adding some plain rugs here and there.

Yeah, the bed is big but if there are big wardrobes in the room who cares? People are nowadays, much more educated when it comes to calculate sizes and not being totally put off or attracted by simple gimmicks.

I honestly believe this is just a matter of waiting for the market to pick up in spring.

if it has not been looked at by buy-to-let people than it is priced too high - and may never sell at that price.

Drop to £240k and it should sell tomorrow. First time buyers cannot generally afford those prices, and few people are chain free - for a quick sale you need to appeal to buy-to-let, and that is ALL about the price.

In all honesty it just depends where it is. I don't like it at all, to be brutally honest, but if it were in the area I live I would snap your hand off to buy it at £280k.

240k .Computer say's no, less much less

Where is this house? Hubby and I are looking for a place to buy in Guildford, but needs to be walking distance to the station as we both commute to London.

The market seems to be picking up now with new houses entering the market. I'm sure it will be a matter of time :)

Re buying a new build, a friend bought one on what she was told would be a very small estate on farmland. Originally there were going to be 500 houses. Now there are 3,000 houses and no farmland left.

Barratt's reputation for quality is crap - some of their properties may be stunning but will fall apart after a few years. Aren't there older houses in the village that you could buy?

As for your house, it looks like a bloke chose the furniture - all black leather, grey and red walls/floorings. I would put some in storage and rent/buy second hand sofas and bed. Lots of nice rugs, throws and cushions will also help.

It is impossible to comment accurately on the price without knowing where the property is.

SoupDragon

It is impossible to comment accurately on the price without knowing where the property is.

Agree.

On the assumption that the price for a house that size & style is appropriate for that area, then it must be the decor or time of year. If the price is wildly wrong then no amount of cosmetic styling will help.

No way for any of us to know, but hopefully the OP willbe able to do a process of elimination.

Y, I've never understood why people feel able to comment on the price without knowing the location, especially given how much prices have diverged in the last few years.

That's what I thought. How on earth can we know if the price is too high or not.

I would agree thought not all work carried out ads value.

I think there is some kind of formula though, where you can objectively calculate it.

People have made their price assumption based on the op's info -
*We have 5 estimates ranging from 250k - 290k and we are on for 280k

Other houses that are on for similar price are older houses with older fashion decor. The prices round here really vary. Plus a house identical to ours has never been on the market only 2 beds and town houses. The last town house 3 bed 3 story but smaller sold a year ago at £220k.*

The other houses are older (usually means bigger rooms, higher ceilings, more space generally) and going for a similar price. A 3 bed (same number of bedrooms!) modern house - smaller - actually sold for £220K but I'm guessing 60K difference between that and this is too much...

when you look on housing websites you see what other houses nearby have sold for - if I saw a modern 3 bed had sold for £220K recently, I would not look at a modern 3 bed for £280K.

nolongerjust
if I saw a modern 3 bed had sold for £220K recently, I would not look at a modern 3 bed for £280K

I kind of agree, but OP said the other 3 bed was smaller & on 3 storeys which isn't comparable. New 3 storey houses are often on smaller plots and have odd (at least I think so) layouts of kitchen on one floor & lounge/diner above. You do get a lot for your money with them but the layout can be a compromise too far for many people. me

In areas where such things matter, a semi would usually cost more than a town house where directly comparable. It doesn't always hold
Though

I would not pay SIXTY THOUSAND pounds more for one style of modern 3 bed house over another style of modern 3 bed house in the same area though - it would take it out of even bothering with a viewing price for me.

If you do not have full details, how can you possibly compare two "modern three bed" houses?

an area tends to "have its price".

In our street for instance we would not extend to provide an extra bedroom or downstairs room - even convert the garage as the costs would far outweigh the money we could ever get back.

the op bought less than 10 years ago and has extended, they view this as putting the house on a par with the Victorian houses. It is not.

It is an extended modern 3 bed which would probably sell a lot closer to the price that was originally paid for it than the op would like. Because "the price" for a modern 3 bed (a newbuild less than 10 years ago - usually gone for top whack) will not increase that much. It will be valued on this basis for mortgage purposes.

I have bought and sold houses as a private investor many times - and can say that whenever I have gone looking, the price is key, it has to fit the area.

NoLongerJustAShopGirl that's what I based my price on , the market has turned . Month by month it will deteriorate further .2013 minus 20%

As far as I can see the OP has not given any indication as to what her address is therefore anyone giving price information is talking out a hole in their arse.

Photos are dreadful.

You have been on a month - the agent should never have out the house on so close to chrsitmas. It should have come on last week instead.

Ask them to take it off. Get the photos redone properly and out back on. It will then hit rightmove as a brand new property.

I really don't rate your agent putting it on when they did.

Yy Bryony.

The pictures make it look like a rental house: very sparse, furniture out of proportion with rooms, no personal stuff. They usually sell for less than am owner/occupier house don't they? Maybe that is why people are passing it by. Can you perhaps put some kitchen equipment in the kitchen/cushions and rugs/personal touches in before the next photos are taken?

Apparently London property prices are up 9.21% from a year ago.

Ignore roneik. By all accounts your home won't be worth a first class stamp come the summer.

The photos are not dreadful, and you don't need to cram the space with junk to make it feel homely.
It is a modern home, and I think you have done a great job with the renovation work, it may not be to everybody's taste (no home ever is), but it seems like a perfect place to move in without the need of spending thousands removing ancient kitchens, horrible bathrooms or old carpets. It is just a matter of waiting for the right buyer.

And I'm telling you this as someone who hates new builds, love traditional (not dated) styles, and who has made a considerable amount of money renovating houses for re sale and staging show homes.