Why aren't I getting more viewings

[ArtistMumE2]

Hi all, I am relocating and selling my beloved 3 bedroom home for the last 14 years. It is in Victoria Park East London and overlooks the Regents Canal. But I am not getting viewers! What am I doing wrong? Any thoughts/ideas/help welcome. Thanks!
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-44572866.html

To me you are leading with the wrong photo entirely. Remove the one from over th canal looking at your property altogether (though I'm not local - so may be missing a trick there!).

Lead with the one looking out to over the canal or the lovely kitchen one maybe.

Some people are so rude, it's not that bad and for £850k do people really care if the washing machine sticks out or whetever? i presume your buyers can afford a new one...

Anyway, the outside is a problem. I used to live beside a canal in almost the same sort of set up but the canal was much cleaner looking. I get why you have shown the canal in your photos to illustrate the location but it's not beautiful and the outside of your property is really not as nice as the inside.

For me, the decor is boring but fine, it's the layout that's the problem. Having your living room and kitchen on different floors and your bedrooms on different floors is not for everyone. I wouldn't want to sleep on a different floor to two young children for example. Nothing you can do about it obviously but it will put some people off.

The price also seems eye-watering to me but I'm in scotland where you could buy a 10 bed mansion for that kind of money, and I assume the price is reflective of the market in London so can't comment on that.

I really appreciate it may not fit in with expectations for many, but in London in zone 2 it really is a great place and I just want to try to get the right buyers interested.
But you have all had lots to say on it so thanks for your time and thoughts!

Is the white wall in the garden yours? I think it would benefit from some trellis and tubs to plat climbers. Not that they will do much growing now! Can you jetwash the slabs and move th plant pots from the upper layer down?

I am afraid that people are just holding off because they don't know what is going to happen with Brexit and everyone is fearing the worst and another down turn. I am not saying that will happen but it is the fear of the unknown. If there is no urgency to move maybe remarket after article 50 is triggered.

As regards the pics the bathroom one looks at bit stark so perhaps "dress" it with some colorful accessories ( we just did that in a flat we owned) pic attached. People really can't see for themselves as they say in all the property shows!

I don't think price is the issue (I know the area well, having just moved from there) however... Even though that's the going rate, I think it needs to feel more... Aspirational? I appreciate that sounds really wanky, but do you get what I mean? Your buyers could get a lovely big period house in Leyon/Walthamstow/Forest Gate for that, and a lot of people are taking that option now. So you need to think are carefully about who you buyers are, why they want to be in that area, what their lifestyles are like, and dress the house accordingly.

For me, the "study room" is off putting, as it suggests there's really just the kitchen downstairs. I'm wondering if it could be repurposed as a dining room, could it? That would make the downstairs work much better as entertaining space, which the house currently seems to be missing...

There also aren't pictures of all off the bedrooms which is a bit off-putting. More and better pictures generally would be a good idea.

I'd also maybe look and changing agent, if the one you're with isn't getting you viewing or offering any useful advice.

(We used Keatons in Hackney to sell out flat near Victoria Park and they were really good.)

I don't think it's your decor.

Yes you can do things to improve: the photos are competent but not amazing (look at the Cluttons website for wide perspective photos and a warm, bright tone), in particular, why the eff are they taken at the height of a 6-year old!? You could do with some lovely bedspreads, cushions, a bit lived-in and not so 'lined-up'.

I disagree that there are too many photos. Our agent said (and I agree) that you need enough to lure them in, but not so much that they feel they can make a judgement call on it from the website. I don't need to see the bathroom if it's not BEAUTIFUL.

Take out all the photos externally apart from one JUST of the house (not the canal, which looks a bit mucky), on a bright cloudy day.

Unless you're going to invest significantly in your garden, don't include it in the photos.

However, that said, most london buyers are immune to little things like that. It's a cut throat market and they can see past the aesthetics. Especially for a home like this which feels like a family starter home.

I suspect it's the current uncertain economic climate and possibly the price. Also, the layout is unusual (kitchen not on same floor as living room) and this will put off some people/young families.

I think the interior photos look nice - perhaps as other posters have already said, add one or two colourful items (towels?) into the bathroom is it is VERY white! I thought the rest of the rooms looked lovely though.

You do need a better pic of the front of the house - again others have already said that it isn't obvious which house is the one for sale, and I'd get rid of the final pic (canal + houseboat) altogether as it doesn't really add anything and does make it look a bit like you are selling the boat!

I'm not currently looking to move, but colleagues that are have been saying that viewing numbers are low at the moment as people are thinking that if they buy now, they won't be in their new house in time for Christmas, so many are holding off till the new year. Hope that helps!

Waking up to this view every day is why I love my house!

What a fabulous location! And a lovely house actually, fantastic sized rooms.

My first thoughts are that the front garden area looks a bit unloved. Can you replace some of the tatty window boxes and put some bright flowers in? If you could replace/paint the fence too, I think it would look altogether tidier. At the moment it sort of screams 'the front garden is really difficult to look after'.

Also the bathroom picture is a bit depressing. Pop some warm-coloured towels over the rusty towel rail, a posh-looking bottle of hand soap on the sink (TK Maxx or somewhere is good), get a new shower curtain, and if you have the budget for it, replace the floor and side panel of the bath - should cost no more than £100-£150 in total.

Kitchen is lovely but a big vase of flowers on the table would be nice. Also try and unplug whatever it is on top of the cupboard which is hanging down over the cooker - looks a bit dangerous!

I'd get rid of as many bookcases as possible throughout, as they tend to make a room look smaller than it is, especially when there's more than one in a room. The lounge would look brighter and airier without the two shelves around the sofa, as it is it looks a little cramped for space.

Most of the houses in your area in that price bracket have much 'trendier' interiors - not necessarily minimalist, expensive or even particularly tidy, but they have an edgier kind of vibe. This one, for example, which has small rooms but a lovely feel about it from the photos.

I don't think price is the issue (I know the area well, having just moved from there) however... Even though that's the going rate, I think it needs to feel more... Aspirational?

Agree with this. I also know the area, location is lovely. Decor could do with and update.

It's a lovely house, photos are crap. Think you need to have another chat to the agent or change agents. Don't just go for the cheapest ones, photo quality is what the cheap agents skimp on.

We are post-Brexit, pre-Christmas, the market will be slow. That's no reason to panic unless you're desperate to move in which case you will just have to drop the price.

We definitely can't afford new furniture etc. but will try to re-do garden, add more of our things back into the rooms and some plants and get a photographer to take better lit and angled photos. Lots of helpful ideas there people.

And try and take some shots that show the park as well as the canal. That would be a big selling point for me

Good luck OP

Can the rear garden be photographed from a slight height so you can see the seating area and a hint of the canal - not as high as the photo you've posted which I assume is from the first floor but from the height of a chair of something.

I would get the agent to label the photos so you can say fantastic view from living room or whatever.

Out of interest, do you not get loads of mozzies? That would be the thing that would completely put me off living by a canal!

Actually very few mosquitoes as we are by the weir on a lock so the canal is moving and not stagnant RiverTam

I like it. But agree - redo the photos. I'd do them yourself tbh. Kitchen looks good. Reception room and bedrooms, I'd clear the tops of the bookcases. Im not 100% sure what's up there but it makes it look a bit cluttered (perhaps leading people to think about storage?) I'd also hide the fans. See if you can pick up a throw or two at a charity shop, for the reception room/bedrooms to add a splash of colour?

Agree pick up some thing for the outdoor area to brighten it up. There may be sales on at garden centres this time of year? (I don't know I'm terrible with plants!) get rid of weeds and empty planters/pots if you can't fill them with something pretty.

The bathroom actually looks fine to me too, get some warm coloured towels on show, some candles? Maybe a different shower curtain so it doesn't look so plain?

But nothing major tbh, good luck!

Phew! Still, it's north London, I'd probably get a nosebleed if I moved there .

I think I will take my own photos too. I have a Canon SLR and the annoying Summer algae bloom has left the canal so water looks clearer.

So to recap;
1-tidier yet more cosy and lived in
2-flowers in kitchen & plants in veg patch at front
3- some cushions (!) & more towels in bathroom
4 -a photo of front of house that somehow makes it look lovely even though it is not a pretty house
5 - better worded description
6- better photos and more of them
7 - new agent!

Definitely lead with the kitchen, it really does look rather grotty from that canal picture, a bit rundown and small even which doesnt match up with the inside pics.
I think the inside pics have been taken with a slightly odd camera lense, the ceiling and floor seem to meet in quite a sharp point which gives the rooms the feeling of being very low. I bet if you took a photo with just your camera phone youd see a difference in the perspective of the rooms.

concrete paint for the patio it looks grey and sad. or ikea outdoor floor tiles.

get ready made plants to pot in the beds.

use the pic of table overlooking canal but cover with nice cloth put offeee cup and saucer on it and a croissant...style it..

I've only skimmed the thread, but my first impression was that it was rather soulless. I think you have decluttered to the extent that it isn't selling a potential buyer a lifestyle and it needs to. The photos are poor - the agents need to re-take them.

There isn't a single picture on the walls and a bathroom with empty towel rails looks odd. Have a look at the competition locally and see how that is being presented.

Our neighbours who bought the house opposite ours were sold on the idea of the fantastic views, so I think you need more shots of views from the house.

I must admit that, living in South Yorkshire, I find the price eye wateringly high. Our neighbours paid £300k for a 4 bed detached with beautiful, west facing views over a rural valley, so my first thought would be price.

The other main thing that stands out for me is the laminate floors everywhere. It makes the house look like rented accommodation for students.

I agree that the functional looking bathroom needs tarting up a bit as well.

And what is so off putting about looking over a canal? That would really appeal to me.