Why doesn’t anyone want our house?!

[noitsachicken]

Been on the market since January.
Dropped the price twice, recently switched agents.
Lots of viewings, generally positive feedback. People like the house, but no one wants to buy it!!

For me it’s the loss of garage when the neighbours houses have garages. Garages are storage nowadays and for that price I’d want a garage. My house is significantly less expansive than yours and I have a garage. Although I love your kitchen it’s very well done!

I couldn’t buy a house without a garage. And that closeness to a school is a problem. We are further away from the school and playground noise is a pain in the arse when I’m working from home.

Oh, and everyone gives nice feedback. Nobody wants to say they hated it.

The price is too high and the house is way too close to the neighbours. It might as well be a terraced house.

It’s only worth what someone is prepared to pay...

I always give honest feedback on a house.

There’s a huge amount of info about the terrible problems of leased solar panels on the internet. It’s harder to get a mortgage because you’ve leased the roof to a commercial company. It’s no longer a normal house purchase. Conveyancing costs will also be higher. You may be able to buy the lease but that could easily be 20k - and only if there’s a termination clause in the contract. You need all the appropriate insurance and all documentation at the very best. It’s probably one of the big mis- selling scandals of recent times- people didn’t understand what it would mean - they just thought about cheaper daytime electricity on a sunny day.

I like it, op. Love your lounge and all the storage!

Could you make the master bedroom more like a boudoir and less studenty? That might help. Good luck!

I like this house! A few flowers out the front might be nice, I do think it's a little bit pricey (300K I think would be fairer) I'd be inclined to modernise the bathroom but overall there's nothing wrong with it.

Op, it's a lovely home. The things I dislike about it would be reasons I wouldnt view it but nor are they things you can change.
Assuming it is reasonably priced, it will sell, it is well presented and well maintained.

If you want to sell, buy out the lease on the solar panels. Dropping to price to under £300k won’t make any difference. Dropping to £250k may tempt cash buyers so you might as well consider buying out the lease on the solar panels.

JBH316 re the black bath mat: because the mat is plain black viewers’ eyes are drawn to the large block of black colour. Having the pedestal mat in plain black as well just adds to it. No-one has pedestal mats any more! A nice new white bath mat placed on the side of the bath would look great and viewers would then look at the bathroom itself, instead of a block of black. Posh hand wash & matching hand cream sells a lifestyle, together with an upmarket posh bath towel or handtowel.

The 'flow' from the front door would put me off, from the front door you are faced with the stairs dead ahead, a cupboard and doors on each side. I find the layout claustrophobic. There is nothing you can do about this but I would probably be a buyer who would come and gave a look, say nice things (because it's not something you can change) and move on. You may need to drop the price. I would also not want to bother with leased solar panels, sorry

Get rid of yellow

Hanging baskets/pots in garden bit as someones drawing above. It looks soulless.

Investigate solar panel issues and address.

Good luck

I think that your house just doesn't seem very memorable. Here's my thoughts on things you can feasibly change...

Drop the price. I think that's probably the issue especially with the solar panels.

Lounge: either go much bigger with those photos on the wall (and hang them up aligned in some way) or replace with a set of prints that co-ordinate and link in with your green sofa. Remove the chair with the wooden arms (doesn't match anything else in the room). Consider putting your TV on a stand (where the wooden armed chair is?) and filling the bookshelf gap with books, I would be concerned our relatively small TV wouldn't fit in the gap and that we couldn't put it anywhere else. Show them you can put it somewhere else (even if you have to get extra plugs/sockets).

Master bedroom: Sorry, just really empty and lifeless. Consider some cheap redecorating, even just a tin of paint to bring some colour in above/below the dado. New, more fancy looking bedding (potentially in white, doesn't have to be expensive), longer curtains (potentially cheap fabric if you can sew a hem) and co-ordinate with a set of prints on the wall above the bed. Your bedroom is really out of kilter with your little girl's bedroom with cute bunting, shelving, colour etc.

Kids rooms: Are these full size single beds? If not, that might be a sticking point for anyone with older children or thinking they would live here for a while.

ooh MN put in that bedding link all by itself! sneaky!

It needs a little more greenery at the front (some potted plants), I would tone down the dark yellow in the bedroom. I would consider putting white bed linen on the bed instead of blue and maybe put a couple of pictures up. The walls look slightly bare. I absolutely love the light bright lounge and the book shelf. But the chairs, pushed to the edge make it look a little bare/stark. Perhaps also consider a rug in the lounge and put the chairs around it a little more. There is absolutely nothing wrong with your house. It's all spic and span and the back garden is immaculate. But it possibly needs just a bit more 'staging'. Remember that you will be up against new builds with in house interior designers to stage show homes. What can your house offer that they don't? Slightly larger garden? Slightly better value? Check out the competition. There's certainly nothing obvious or major to fix.

That’s so sneaky @PurpleCrazyHorse !!

You have a lovely house - not much clutter pretty clean and modern in the photos. I personally like the yellows - its a bit more interesting than the bland grey or mag. The issue for me is that the design feels back to front. The knock-through has created a big open space and probably helped the kitchen seem less isolated at the front. But we're more used to seeing a kitchen diner at the back where if you were cooking or entertaining you could spill into the garden or watch any children playing outside. Sorry - that's not an easy one to fix but a quick win would involve some planting or care to the outside areas for some wow factor - as others have said.

Is the estate agent being honest enough with feedback?

Are the photos true and not deceptive? A few years ago we had to tell our agent to correct our garden photos on the house details - their wide-angled shots made it look as though we had about an acre of land when it was a quarter of an acre. A cue for instant disappointment for anyone viewing. So as long as the agent keeps it real and highlights the potential if appropriate.

I'm also guessing you're looking to move OP, so what about the houses you're viewing do you like? What's in the description that's helpful/missing, what draws your eye in their photos?

Stoke Gifford is a lovely area so I am surprised you don't have a buyer especially with that lovely kitchen diner and large lounge.

Others have pointed out the drawbacks.

Solar panels may not be straightforward for people applying for a mortgage.
No downstairs toilet
No garage.
Kerb appeal.

Never underestimate the power of fresh flowers & green plants & sunny rooms in photographs. Use any container or vase you have - drinking glasses, pitchers, coffee cans, steins etc etc, it doesn’t matter. Be creative & use what you have & put the money into the flowers & greenery. You could also get a lively printed floral or other pretty top sheet & 2 cases & lay over the top of your existing bedding for the photos. Also get rid of ALL CLUTTER for the photos & arrange the bookshelves. If you have a pretty or interesting book - one with a pretty cover or a few - leave them facing forward. Add some fruit to a bowl & put it on your kitchen island - doesn’t have to be a big bowl. If you know when people are coming to view your home, make a pot of simmering water & cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg etc. The aroma will fill your home with a wonderful smell & it sets off the good things in the brain of “home”. You want each & every prospective buyer to think “home” the second they enter. Or bake cookies or bread. I hope you have better luck now after these many pages of suggestions - and good luck in your new home.

According to the sold price info when you bought OP, the photos are from 2008 but the sale completed in 2011.

You're getting viewings so changing the bath mat and painting probably aren't going to make much difference. I think it's down to something you can't change and price as much as anything.

Gorgeous lounge and reasonable sized kitchen diner which is nice. Bedrooms small but can make them more attractive with adding a few unique and quirky items here and there. Not sure if the pricing in your area but in my area that's a reasonable price for that size of house. Remember, certain times of year make buying and selling more difficult. Don't lose heart.