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Honest opinions needed please!

55 replies

Slowlybutsurely · 02/05/2015 20:12

Desperately trying to sell our house and need some honest advice. How can we gain more viewings- and obviously an offer? We have had viewings with very vague feedback- never anything we can do anything about.
Not sure if I'm brave enough to do this but would anyone be able to look at the link and offer some honest advice?
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?searchType=SALE&locationIdentifier=POSTCODE%5E163182&insId=1&radius=0.0&minPrice=&maxPrice=&minBedrooms=&maxBedrooms=&displayPropertyType=&maxDaysSinceAdded=&_includeSSTC=on&sortByPriceDescending=&primaryDisplayPropertyType=&secondaryDisplayPropertyType=&oldDisplayPropertyType=&oldPrimaryDisplayPropertyType=&newHome=&auction=false

OP posts:
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CarcerDun · 03/05/2015 00:11

repaint

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CarcerDun · 03/05/2015 00:11

Sorry, meant 'repaint' not repoint.

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Variousrandomthings · 03/05/2015 06:41

Fantastic! No clutter and nicely decorated. Plus tasteful bathroom. Nice trees behind. Redo the photos as follows

Have the dining room as the first photo instead of the house front. It's a great room. Stylish and with nice garden access/aspect

Second photo should be a dining room/kitchen shot. However this photo needs to be retaken as the present one is rather bleak/dark

Then Kitchen photo. Consider accessorising with lots of red items (flowers?) as it's rather monochrome and looks dull.

Then new photo of garden (taken from first floor to get in the trees behind your garden)

Front house shot

Your bedroom - painting needed above your bed

Bathroom shot

Child's room - get rid of awful cramped second photo

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Variousrandomthings · 03/05/2015 06:48

Exterior - really do paint the fence. It's awful. Paint it a natural neutral stone colour or a light grey.

Also I've just looked on the map and you are surrounded by greenery!! You need lots of views from first floor windows to show off the views.

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Variousrandomthings · 03/05/2015 06:48

Also the lounge and kitchen could both have a rug to give a splash of colour

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Kitsmummy · 03/05/2015 06:49

I thnk it's really well decorated and I can see no reason why it wouldnt sell (unless the price is out) however a couple of things struck me and I see they've already been mentioned...dining table to be central and the kitchen to have a bit more colour/not quite so stark.

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Variousrandomthings · 03/05/2015 06:51

If the views are amazing, you might want a photo of them as your opening shot instead of house front. Your house front is actually bit bland sorry but a few pots of bright flowers would help

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Variousrandomthings · 03/05/2015 06:54

In your shoes, I'd make all the changes needed and then get your estate agent to redo the photos (with clear direction). Then request the estate agents change the photo order so people may think its new on and take a look

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honeyandfizz · 03/05/2015 06:57

I agree with kitsmummy that its really well decorated - is it the price? Are houses selling in your area? Although the fence panels aren't to my taste it certainly wouldn't put me off buying the house. I can see that you have done a lot of work on it compared to the pictures of when you bought it and you've done a lovely job

The one thing that would put me off though is the 'offers in excess of' so it may be worth saying offers in the region of.

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paxtecum · 03/05/2015 06:57

Is your estate agent only an online one?
Would it be worth going for a High St agent?

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BikeRunSki · 03/05/2015 06:59

It is very neat and tidy, but eith so little "stuff" seems a little soulless. Except for your little girl's room which needs a tidy.

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doublechocchip · 03/05/2015 07:09

Looks really lovely and you live on the road I grew up on!

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Slowlybutsurely · 03/05/2015 08:36

Small world doublechocchip! Thanks for comments. Lots to get on with. May take off market and sort, re launch with new photos? Re fence colour, do you think it will paint back to brown wood colour or should I go for pale, neutral colour?

OP posts:
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SpecificOcean · 03/05/2015 08:44

I think you house is presented really well.
Agree that a few nicer photos would help.
I just get the feeling that the furniture could be positioned a bit better, a bit more homely- things are shoved back to the wall - dining table, sofa and chair and the bed looks all wrong in the main bedroom.

Do you have to have the "offers over" note after the price tag ? or could you just stick to the price? I found that off putting when we were looking.

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DinkyDye · 03/05/2015 08:52

As said the photos dont seem to do it justice but l think it looks lovely and very uncluttered!

Am a bit Shock at the price (used to London prices so that seems a bargain!)

If you're close/in negative equity could you stay put for a bit longer and chuck more money on the mortgage?

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Popchik9 · 03/05/2015 09:11

Agree with other comments that the photos aren't great and don't do your house justice. The house is lovely, clean and uncluttered. I would hang pictures above the bed and in the hall. Have been in negative equity once when selling a house and it was heartbreaking but then the house we bought was also less in that market and things did work out for us in the end. Good luck!

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PigletJohn · 03/05/2015 11:30

if the fence was treated with a fence stain, which leaves a waxy tinted coating, you can restain it provided it has weathered. If you throw a bucket of water at it, does the water form beads and run off without wetting the surface? If so, new stain will not adhere well. However if you can borrow a power washer, the jet will take fence stain off, back to bare timber, and after letting it dry, you can treat it again. I prefer brown stains but it is a personal choice. You would need a dark one to hide that colour.

If you feel like it, you can paint the concrete fence posts with dark brown masonry paint to make them blend in with the timber. Paint them after cleaning, and before applying fence stain.

You might also redefine the price as "offers in the region of" which will tease out the market value from potential buyers.

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ragged · 03/05/2015 11:38

I hate the silver-grey sofas & the first almost empty bedroom, sorry. I usually never comment on that kind of thing (I'm not buying your furniture). They're so jarring they would make it harder for me to imagine the house as mine. Even just some colourful throws would make them more appealing. The rest was ok with me.

Are you sure that similar properties in your area are selling easily?

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NorahDentressangle · 03/05/2015 11:40

It looks great imo. Clean, ready to move into.

Only thing is the rooms look a bit cool, might be the colour or light. But that wouldn't put me off, and painting a garden fence, though I don't mind it, wouldn't take a day.

A tasteful vase of flowers with some blue that matched the curtains would be nice on the dining table. But not worth re photoing for.

Is there car parking?

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Variousrandomthings · 03/05/2015 11:42

Funnily enough I love the sofas and bedroom

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DownWithThisTypeOfThing · 03/05/2015 11:44

Bedroom is a bit bland. Could you put a picture above the bed.

Hall is also a bit bland. I'd put a big mirror in there.

But there's nothing that would actively put me off - it's nicely decorated, obviously well maintained, the amount of space is what you'd expect from the external picture so I'm thinking it must be price.

And despite it seeming very reasonably priced for the Wirral, it's one of those funny places where prices fluctuate wildly in really small distances.

My friend recently struggled to sell her house. I can guarantee if she'd posted it on here people would've been amazed. But I knew the road and knew she'd never get that price for that road no matter how attractive her house was.

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SolomanDaisy · 03/05/2015 11:46

The photos aren't brilliant, but tbh they aren't dire and I really don't think they are bad enough to put people off viewing. It has to be the price. Do you need to move?

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DownWithThisTypeOfThing · 03/05/2015 11:46

Oh yes, and open the blind in the main bedroom - at first glance I thought you had a very small window in there.

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EnriqueTheRingBearingLizard · 03/05/2015 12:57

I'm pretty much in accord with almost everyone else OP. You have a lovely home.

For an advertising critique though the first photo of the exterior front is not well shot. All the blinds should be up and the house shot from the opposite angle which, as an end terrace will make it look bigger and remove the shadow. Not sure if you want to remove the toys from the garden just while it's photographed, but I would do that and also have a look how the garden appears if the shot's taken from one of the upstairs windows. It may give a better look.

Your furnishings are mostly grey and neutral colours, but you have quite a bit of pink and turquoise blue, so I'd go with only those shades and change your sofa cushions, towels and toiletries to match. This leads the eye through the house with a sense of flow and continuity. Introduce some of those colours to your main bedroom and also the hall. I'm not talking about a lot, just some subtle touches. The hall could be made to look more attractive and welcoming rather than functional.
Outside the front I'd plant a climber by the trellis and put a nice pot of pink flowers to go with the interior pink, by the side gate.
All in all, those ideas are not difficult and nowhere near as much work or expense as it might sound.

Can I ask why the stamp duty is going to be paid? It amounts to £400.
It makes you look a bit desperate to move and so I wouldn't do that, I'd remove the 'offers in excess of' remove the stamp duty incentive, put the price up by £1,000 or £1,500 if your market would stand that and then be prepared to drop to a lower sale price for a purchaser who could proceed.

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VolumniaDedlock · 03/05/2015 13:13

no advice, but i like the wall colour in your sitting room and dining room - which paint did you use?

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