Is the London market dipping or is my house overpriced?

[Linkee]

Our house went on the market 2 weeks ago, 12ish viewings but no offers. The feedback from the agent seems really vague...the house is small apparently, but its identical to all the stock around here and finished nicely.

We have previously sold a house in a similar area last year and and 5 offers on the first day!

Market in our part of London has ground to a halt. My friends have had their house on the market for 3 months with no offers despite reducing price. Most of the houses for sale around here seem to have been on the market months. Our house was valued at £2.2 million a year ago and an identical house is on the market now for £2.0 million. It has not sold.

Doesn't seem to be cooling in my area (also East but not Barking).

I think it's a lovely house and am sure it's just a matter of time until it sells. Personally I would rule it out because I don't like houses with a very small third bedroom, but that's just me!

If you're getting viewings but no offers, either you're wildly over-priced (doesn't sound like it), there are lots of better alternatives out there (possible), or buyers are being cautious.

I think the run up to a General Election is always traditionally a quiet time anyway - there's always the risk that interest rates will shoot up in response to the outcome - that buyers are unlikely to commit unless they have to or they fall madly in love with a property

I think it looks lovely, you've only been on the market 2 weeks I'd relax.

Get the agent to get the historic open house details off the info though - it makes it look like loads of people have seen it and not been interested i.e. there's something wrong with it!

FWIW I'm selling in the Home Counties and after a couple of quiet weeks this week things have really picked up!

Can you write the description OP? It doesn't really sell the house and is c cursory.

Make more of the area, schools, transport links, access to shops/restaurants.

Market in Kensington & Chelsea has ground to a halt and only those willing to take large discounts are selling. This will ripple out l'm sure over the next few months. A crash on the horizon? What do people think? It's deadly quiet in the centre anyway.

I don't think 2 weeks is a long time, at the moment, to be on the market, even in London.
I would seriously get the photos redone after you've reprointed the corner crack in the garage and put some colourful plants in the garden.
In the house I'd remove one of the green arm chairs from the sitting room ( just for the photo ), remove the ironing board from the dining room ( you can see it in the conservatory photo) and put some colourful towels in the bathroom, it's too stark. The kitchen looks too dark and cluttered.
The conservatory photo just focuses on the fridge and the extended surface wiring under the French window. What's the rest of the room like, is it a pleasant sitting area where you can enjoy looking out into the garden? If not turn it into one with seating, cushions and plants.
Then look at the price, everything sells at the right price. Good luck.

Can you have the mentions of estate taken out of the description? I was a Londoner until recently (Haringey) so you say estate and Londoners will think concrete tower blocks.

Wow! Brilliant house given driveway, garage, garden and proximity to tube! I know where to look for my next move!

I don't even think it 'needs' a new kitchen or bathroom. How spoilt we all are.

But that's by the by.

In our area prices are stable, not dropping, but people are staying put, not biting at new properties.

On rightmove description I would take off that there was an open day 1st May. It is advertising that the house didn't sell in the open day so makes it seem less desirable.

Personally I don't like floor plans that don't give room sizes, though whether this would put any serious buyer off is debatable.

Pink kitchen units are not to everybody's taste - I think I'd be inclined to paint them a neutral colour, say cream. You can get special paint for kitchen cupboards and it's not a massive job. A dd and SiL painted some horrible brown ones in their 'new' house and the difference was huge.

But yours does look like a lovely house.

Prices in a London area I watch are definitely dipping, though I'm mostly watching 2 bed flats in SW 17, where prices have really gone mad. There are a lot of reductions, albeit from often very 'optimistic' prices. I am not familiar with the B and D market so can't comment on whether the price is right.

Unless the price reflects the fact it needs at least £50k work it's overpriced. That's what you'd end up spending by the time you've paid London prices to sort out the windows that need it, redo the bathroom and sort out the kitchen and the lean to in to a decent useable space.

What windows need 'sorting out'? I would be delighted that it has the original windows.

It's lovely. Having said that, some people don't look past the décor so it might be worth:

Replacing kitchen cupboard doors with white panels;
Removing end eye level kitchen cupboard temporarily - it makes the shelf unit on the back wall look very cramped and unusable because it is half covered by wall unit (this may be the angle of the photo though)
The outdoor pic back towards the house isn't a good one - as others have said fix the crack in the wall, and plant a mature climber on the trellis just to soften the expanse of concrete
Plant a few lavenders in your raised bed next to the fence;
Fridge freezer out of conservatory and buy/rent some furniture to put in there - it doesn't look like a proper room, and the lack of furniture suggests 'lean-to' rather than conservatory;
The main bedroom looks lovely - light, airy, fresh. Can you do similar with the second bedroom? It wouldn't take much, just white bedlinen and longer floaty curtains. And paint the radiator white.
Nursery is fine - maybe replace heavy sheepskin rug on floor with something lighter rug
A couple ofreally big pots of geraniums at the front door.
Fingers crossed - our place was on the market for 12 months a couple of years ago and we had 2 viewings so we're staying put! (house that will appeal to very specific buyers unfortunately!)

The description mostly refers to double glazed windows. There are a few references to single glazed ones but they don't seem to be in rooms where they are beautiful original windows but description could be misleading. People may well be pricing in the cost of replacing the single glazed unless they are lovely original stained glass or similar?

What the agent has told you doesn't sound right.

People do like to put their own stamp on things but they expect a discount if these things need doing.

The bathroom needs redoing as does the kitchen, preferably trying to incorporate the conservatory area. I'd be doing mental sums going round of what that would cost.

Our flat needed a new bathroom and kitchen. Agent valued at £360k with these things not done, or £380k if we did them ourselves first, but because people prefer to choose their own, we'd sell faster at £360. In the particulars it actually said, reduced by 20k to allow sellers margin to do the bathroom and kitchen.

Your agents seems to have said, people prefer to do things themselves but not discounted to take this into account.

Here are my thoughts (lovely house though):

Take out green rug from sitting room

Remove both green armchairs from sitting room

Clear a lot of the shelves in the sitting room. Put books stacked horizontally in the centre to make it look less cluttered. Get rid of the boxes.

Put a mirror over the fire if you have one

Completely clear the kitchen (and repaint neutrally if you can)

Agree with above posters regarding the spare room and baby's room.

The extension looks unused (although it may just be the photos), turn it into something? Put the green armchairs in there with a lamp and some books and it becomes a reading room or a study etc, it gives people something to work with!

I agree re the fridge too.

Might be worth re pointing that wall of the garage.

I also agree that while the house is lovely, there is quite a bit to do (and it's the most expensive bits that can't really be DIY'd) so maybe double check pricing.

Good luck!

I don't think it's always helpful to talk about the London market as a whole - what's happening in one corner isn't necessarily reflected in another. FWIW, round my way (SE) things are selling if priced realistically. They are not flying off the shelves in one weekend at 10% over asking as they were pre-Brexit.

(I appreciate "realistic" is subjective, but the market for £700k two bed garden flats in the rougher half of SE14 is... limited.)

We had a few comments on the windows from people viewing ours. They said it was a shame our original sash windows hadn't been replaced with double glazing!! I love our windows and I'd hate to think of someone ripping them out! It seems it does put some people off even in a character property where I would have assumed everyone understood why they hadn't been replaced. I just think our house isn't for them.

I love the stained glass windows in your sitting room. They are beautiful!

The things that stood out for me were the fridge in the conservatory. I know it's a pain, but can you get rid of it? It immediately tells me you don't have enough room in your kitchen for the basics.

The floor plan doesn't have much detail. I initially thought you didn't have a bathroom upstairs. Don't they usually mark the bath on the plan etc? Same with the downstairs loo - great you have one but I didn't notice it at first. I also agree with others that having the dimensions would help. I mainly looked at floor plans before photos when house hunting as the layout and space is more important to me than the decor.

We've just bought and sold in zone 2
All the agents we had round to value ours warned that the market is 'sluggish' but also said the buyers that are out there are fairly serious and well-informed (ie price savvy)

We sold in 2 weeks after 10 viewings but the house we bought, which needs work, had been on the market for 7 months. Others we saw at the same time were also on for 6+ months if they need work

Buyers seem to either want something in genuine turnkey condition, or they want to it priced to allow for a thorough refurb

We saw loads of houses which the agent said were in great condition but in reality, had laminate floors, cheap kitchens or shabby bathrooms, and the price didn't reflect that they needed work doing.

I think in up-and-coming areas, you get buyers who are looking for good value projects, so might be comparing apples and pears if they are seeing bigger places in bad condition vs yours in good condition but smaller but equally, they might not be willing to pay a premium for finishes that aren't to their tastes.
I would push the agents for more honest and detailed feedback to see which of these it is, and if it's the latter, you might need to think about dropping the price

It's dipping.

I've just bought a large 2 bed place in zone 2, lovely area, for £590k which was previously on for £630k. That seems quite normal where I am - the drop from around £625 to below £600.

OP I've just skimmed thru, your not in B&D are you?!
My parents sold their house in D for £235k-245k a couple years ago. 1930's terrace, 3 bed, kitchen in extension, big estate of v similar houses.

I think your house is lovely but I would be unwilling to pay 450k to live in Barking. That's just me though.

It looks great to me. Yes, the kitchen is a bit dinky and might want a refresh when budget allows but overall it is lovely. Nice original features and a spacious, airy feel. I don't prices in your area but it seems reasonable enough to me and I don't live in the SE