Anyone else in London finding it impossible to sell their flat?

[Lottapianos]

We're in East London, in a location with a lot going for it. I would say this I know, but it's a really nice flat that we have looked after and redecorated. We put our flat on the market last year between July and November, had a grand total of 4 viewings and no offers.

This year, we're back on, and flat has been on the market for about 6 weeks. We have had only one viewing. In this time, we have reduced the price twice, by a total of £50,000. The initial valuation was obviously completely crazy. The new price has been on for just a couple of days but zero interest so far. It's maddening because the area we want to move to (just outside London) has TONS of properties within our budget that we would be dying to view but we cannot seem to shift our place

Anyone else in a similar situation? Any thoughts / ideas / frustrations to share?

I'm afraid that when a property is struggling to attract interest it is almost always down to price. Somewhere between £0 and whatever price you are asking there will be a buyer for your property.

The market isn't great in many parts of the country right now, and as such to attract a buyer prices need to reflect the tougher selling conditions.

I know it's not what you want to hear, but it sounds like the asking price may still be too high.

It's a tough market out there at the moment, I think particularly for 2 bed flats of which there seems to be quite a few. Prices are dropping in most of London and sales are down, so yes, it's hard to sell at the moment.

After interest completely dropping after a few weeks we have actually come off the market for the moment and are waiting to see what happens over the next few months.

The only properties that seem to be selling quickly round here (SE London) are those that are priced noticeably low (so you immediately think 'that's a bargain!).

Problem for us doing this is that the houses we want to buy aren't lowering in price and are actually being removed from the market in some cases. So it's pointless for us to lower until the rest of the market follows suit.

If you know there are properties you want to buy and you are keen to move, maybe see whether you can afford to drop the price so you are lower than most others on in the area? That's the only way I can see to get immediate interest right now.

Otherwise it might just be a case of sitting it out until something (political or otherwise) happens to get the market moving again.

There have been quite a few threads about issues selling recently and it usually does come down to price. London market has been seemingly bombproof but in my opinion has been on a downwards track for 18 months. Flats suffering more than houses due to crack down on property as an investment. There will be someone along I'm sure to tell you that they've just sold for 10% above asking in 5 mins & to ignore the doom & gloom brigade. Market differs postcode to postcode though. Our area SW17 is pretty much on it's knees. 2 bed flats that sold for 690k last summer now on at 550k with no takers. Reductions less severe 10 mins up the road in SW16. Talk to your estate agent & ask for an honest appraisal of your local market & good luck.

'Talk to your estate agent & ask for an honest appraisal of your local market & good luck'

Forgive me if I reply with a hollow laugh I have absolutely no faith in any of them. They gave us a ridiculous valuation last year and this year (two different agencies) which meant we wasted several weeks at a price that was way too high.

No idea whether to wait until next year, when any potential election is hopefully out of the way, and the Brexit picture shitshow is looking a lot clearer one way or the other

Sorry to hear others are struggling too. The market just seems totally dead. We are trying to sell a 2 bed flat, and there are tons of them around apparently

Take your flat off the market and do your own research on price as if you were moving to the area and be tough on your expectations asking what do you think you could buy something similar for , talk to plenty of agents
Get some decent appraisals done and then relaunch your home at the correct price with the best agent
If its a falling market you need to get ahead of the curve either by price or what you have to offer

Look at comparable properties and see what you think is reasonable. I wouldn't try and catch a falling knife, I would reduce your price now otherwise you will be chasing the market down.

Agree with Kamma market round here (nappyvalley) particularly for flats has stagnated for the last few years & prices are getting reduced now.

An good estate agent should always be able to justify their price claims with evidence of recent comparable sales, not just pluck a figure out of thin air to flatter you.

Approach another new EA and ask them to visit you for a fresh opinion.

@FridayThirteenth
Problem for us doing this is that the houses we want to buy aren't lowering in price and are actually being removed from the market in some cases. So it's pointless for us to lower until the rest of the market follows suit.
I completely understand the point you're making, but if everyone shares that view nothing will ever happen. Someone has to be the first one to make a move.

@Mildura yes you are right, but we are not desperate to move and it's a move which needs to last us for the next 20 odd years to bring up our children, so there seems little point in doing it right now when there is just nothing on for us to buy.

We've also sold and bought in a sellers market, and whilst as a buyer it was a nightmare, there was at least a choice of properties to view!

It's dead as a dodo round here so I don't see much point dropping our pants on price to get a sale until there is some chance of us buying a suitable property.

I guess it depends on the market your moving too. Some friends have dropped 30k & are preparing to drop another 30k. Nothing is selling where they want to move to so they are going to sell theirs, rent & make a few offers.

We were looking at moving end of last year but as it would have been a short term move decided against it. It’s also really disconcerting as a buyer when you see properties reducing by 100k or more still on the market

Also another issue where properties are very similar to others in the area is if one drops (like my friends who have 300k equity so can take the hit) than others look expensive.

Plus with Brexit & potential interest rate rises I can’t see the market improving for some time.

I agree, I don't think things are going to improve. I think once we know what's going on with Brexit there will be more certainty either way (i.e hard Brexit, prices will slide, BINO then maybe they will stabilise and some confidence will return).

We want to upsize in the same area, so actually waiting until prices have dropped is probably better for us. We're in a good position in that we can overpay the mortgage and save a good amount each month, so if in a years time prices are 10% (or more) lower then we will actually be in a stronger position to buy a more expensive place as the price difference between the properties will have reduced, and the value of our cash in the bank as a % of a property price will have increased.

However, if you do need to move now then I think it might be sensible to do as suggested above. Take the flat off the market and then remarket after looking at the price as impartially as you can. No point in chasing the market down in smaller increments.

If you can't afford to do that, can you hang on for a year and save like mad to increase your deposit? Even if it's just London dropping at the moment, if this does carry on then the price reductions will ripple out (already seen in places like St Albans) so you might be in a stronger position by doing this.

'If you can't afford to do that, can you hang on for a year and save like mad to increase your deposit?'

Yes, we could. That may be the best option, as things are so uncertain at the moment.

It’s so hard to get on the ladder now with everywhere seemingly gentrified on paper that I also think the days of doubling your money in 3 years have gone.

Agreed mcqueencar and that's not a bad thing!

It would be altogether healthier if equity was achieved by paying down a mortgage and saving rather than by the market ever increasing year on year.

Doesn't really help anyone other than those trying to make a quick buck.

Indeed, I looked at a property in 2015 that needed work (mainly cosmetic), a developer snagged it for 750k, 2 years later back on with back extension & loft etc 1.6m. My wages hadn’t increased at all in those 2 years.

NC as don't want this on my normal NN

But agree with Kamma, we are SW16 and sold recently. The viewers were mainly coming from SW17, SW2 etc that were just priced out. We are also near the border of CR0 which keeps our prices low but with a London postcode.

Our area has improved so much in the last 5 years since 'money' has moved in and recently I've noticed quite a few sellers putting their houses identical to ours on for £50k more than we accepted which at this price bracket is a lot.

I'll be watching RM though as I don't believe houses here are worth that and think we got a really good price as it is.

I'd agree with pp about paying down your mortgage and save as much as you can. We did this and it's meant we have a huge amount of equity and savings to move on.

We are thinking of buying a property in the UK (we live abroad) but are waiting because prices are going down and look like they will fall further.

OP I think you should reduce your price and get a quick sale then move to the area you like and rent and wait to buy. That way you can learn exactly where you want to be (best schools, vibe etc.) and still keep saving more for a deposit. It would make no sense to save 5k over another year if your flat drops by 10k. That way you should be safe either way.

1.) Prices where you want to live tick up slightly or stay the same: you have no chain and a decent deposit so are in a strong negotiating position.

2.) Prices continue to go down: your deposit will get you more house.

I would definitely get out of London to the area you want to live in for 20 yrs so you are ready to pounce on the right property. If you keep asking too much for your flat you will chase the market down and lose money. One thing is for sure, interest rates are going up so if you don't want to stay in London sell up because higher interest rates will definitely case prices to stabilize and/or decrease.

Thanks all. Selling and renting is not an option. Can't face two moves in a short space of time. Prices where we want to move are dropping too so we should be fine. Will do a bit more serious research about prices in the area where we are selling, and then either reduce to a realistic price, or stay put

If you really need to move I would suggest selling at a bargain price and renting until you can buy something suitable. Things are only going to get worse for sellers in London until brexit is over and the threat of a corbyn government passes. I doubt at this point that interest rates will actually rise though.

We’ve under offer in N London, but at £55k less than our initial January asking price (and we were about £10k lower than comparators in the first place).

It needs price reductions to sell in most parts of London at the moment.

FarewellSW16 Have you moved Croydon way?

If I was a FTB in today’s market I would try & skip the flat stage. Better to future proof & buy a house for 500-600k further out (Crossrail offering new markets) then pay that for a new build flat further in. Stamp duty at today prices makes moving too £££

mcqueencar No, a lot further away

Oops, nc fail! Lucky I just came up with a new one. Now to nc again