What's wrong with our house 13 days no viewings

[Namechangetoshowhouse]

Help us out Please 🙏
We put our house on the market 13 days ago we have friends in the area who have put theirs on and been busy with viewings straight away but we've had nothing.

Three Estate agents said £375 so we started with that after no viewings at 9 days we dropped to £367
We know house is a bit bottom heavy a bit like me and doesn't look pretty but is well presented and has over 80 Sq m of downstairs living space. A huge Kitchen and lounge, 10 mins walk to most amenities as well.

We have seen a house that we love that won't come up again we've put in an offer for asking price but not sure we'll get it as they say they've had 6 offers already.

Anyway here it is do we drop the price some more or just wait a bit?
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-82594633.html

I wouldn’t view it purely because it’s incredibly ugly and that’s before you get to the issues of downstairs bathrooms and the size of the bedrooms . If it’s been priced as a 4 bed then the price needs a review because it’s a 2 bed and a boxroom in reality . The inside looks very cold and unloved in places .

I know you're supposed to strip your personality out of a house when you're selling, but you can go overboard.

The kitchen and bathrooms need stuff! Nice stuff, but make them look like they work! Especially the kitchen. You have bright stools. Echo that colour with utensils or storage pots that you'd use. All too bare. Towels in the bathroom too.

Agree with others re no of rooms and outside.

Selling is toughOP.

The photos are not good enough. The odd angles are not flattering and do suggest that something is being hidden. Your estate-agent sent a beginner round!

-Add a little warmth (colourful items here and there)

-planters/window boxes outside

-arrange furniture so that the narrow rooms look as wide as they really are. (Cupboards/bookcases along the long walls are giving a corridor effect.)

-it is really a 3 bed... so won't suit those who actually want 4 beds upstairs. However the separate office space downstairs might be a plus just now.

I don't often comment on these types of posts.

The house looks very clinical. For some this is great as a blank canvas, but for me makes it difficult to visualise as a home.

I also think the photos don't show the potential of the garden. It could do with having the table and chairs out in a more aesthetically pleasing position and seeing the rear garden.

Just to add, it would be a problem for me having the table so far away from the kitchen. With a kitchen that size I'd expect a table in it (not just a breakfast bar) so I'd be taking money off for a new kitchen. Not sure whether you can present it in a way which shows that a table can actually be in the kitchen? (if it can).

I wouldn't view it either I'm afraid for much the same reasons; the front looks in need of some decoration like planters, trellis etc. The inside is all a bit meh, the leopard print throw and cat's eye cushions are not very nice and it just looks bland and unwelcoming

I won't repeat what others have said OP (except to add kudos to Simon for his sterling research - there's someone who knows his way around Rightmove! 🤣).

I just wanted to add one thing in the OP's (kitchen stool) defence though. When my DB was selling his house last year, the estate agent / valuer told him to get some nice coordinating new bright towels, shower gel etc for his very very white bathroom. He did that, and then when the photographer arrived, the first thing he did was to remove them, because he said the strong colour just drew your attention to that, so that you didn't really notice how nice and bright the bathroom was 😂. Can't please all of the people all of the time right enough.

Best of luck OP.

I agree with the others.

1. Kerb appeal - you need something to distract from the very plain frontage.
2. It's not a 4 bed. People who are looking for 4 beds will expect at least 3 proper sized bedrooms, with the 4th potentially being smaller, in the main body of the house, and bathrooms to match. You should really be advertising it as a 3 bed with 2 reception rooms.
3. A lot of people will be put off by the downstairs bathroom and upstairs W/C.
4. The kitchen/diner needs dressed. It seems very odd to have bare counters and the only decor being the large portrait of granny.

I wouldn't view this because the bathroom is downstairs. That's a no-go for me. I don't want to be traipsing up and downstairs in a dressing gown - I want to be able to go from the bathroom to the bedroom easily to get ready. That's just my personal preference but I think there are a lot of people who would be put off by this.

Also, it's not a 4-bed house. It's a 3-bed house with an extension out the back which could potentially be used as a bedroom but would be much more suited to being used as a home office or a play room or second lounge or something like that. I would probably use it as a fabulous music room!
The question for many families might be "Who would use the 4th bedroom downstairs?" If I had kids, especially young kids, I wouldn't want a child sleeping downstairs. I wouldn't fancy that room as a bedroom for myself either. Someone with older teenagers might like it but you'd be looking at quite specific family set-ups and lots of people might be put off.
I'd be concerned that if I did buy it, it's now priced as a 4-bed house when it isn't really. When I came to sell it I also might experience difficulties marketing it as a 4-bed and getting a 4-bed price for it.

I think it's probably over-priced.

Another thing is that the photos do look almost too bland - eg. the white bathrooms and also the kitchen units with nothing on them - it needs some flowers or some utensils or something.
It doesn't look very lived in and while we don't want to see a complete tip buyers do need to be able to imagine living in it and I couldn't.

It does look clean, well-maintained and uncluttered, so I don't think there's an issue with how you've presented the house.

As others have said, it isn't a 4 bedroom house so the marketing isn't hitting the right audience- it needs to be advertised as 3 bedroom with 2 reception rooms. People who want a truly 4-bed house will just look at the layout and dismiss it. The layout is also unusual, which you obviously cant do anything about, but there are houses in your area in the same price bracket with a much more 'standard' layout and/or 4 genuine bedrooms, which may mean you need to look at the pricing more carefully.

The photos are not great, especially the garden and the extension.

I would consider:

• Increase the kerb appeal from the front by adding pots and planters with eye-catching plants and flowers- the front looks tidy but a bit plain. Get some new photos without the car parked on the drive.

• Have more photos of the garden, from better angles.

• The dining table looks a bit isolated- I would move the red chair to the other side of the fireplace and move the dining table along, and dress it so that it looks as if it's in-use.

• I think you could make more of the extension room- is there any way of slimming down the storage in there, perhaps storing some of the (presumably) toys etc? I think if you had low-level units for storage and showed it as more of a 'garden room' it might look more appealing.

The pictures are terrible it looks dark and the layout is bizarre, plus not 4 bedrooms. Also lounge area is tiny and not suitable for a 4 bedroomed house.

I think the photography is not great. Did the agent do the pics? Nothing to stop you taking better photos (or paying a professional to do so). It makes a LOT of difference when wanting to attract a buyer.

No upstairs bathroom? I see there is a toilet - but most folk don't want to go down for their shower/bath - it feels more private and relaxing in the area next to the bedrooms.

Furniture and accessories need tweaking. It looks a little bland, stark and not making the best of the space. Again - the photos aren't helping.

I'd market it as a 3 bedroom - unless you stage the room downstairs as an actual bedroom - or at least put in a daybed.

More plants. It looks okay, but needs a bit of softening. All that hard landscaping out the front looks hard, boring, and unpleasant to look at. Turf the front where the car is might help, at least put some more potplants about and some more planting, maybe grow something up the wall. People love hard landscaping for ease of use, but I'm afraid it just looks soulless and uninviting.

Interior looks okay, although - the green kitchen stools are way too much. Ditto the green rug in the sitting room. I'd put away the pic of your relative (nothing wrong with it, but it's too personal and that can stop people imagining themselves in the house). Also houseplants instantly make a house look inviting, lively and beautiful.

I agree that it is not a 4 bedroom house. Therefore people looking for 4 bedrooms are not going to view it.

TBH, it's barely a 3 bed house as the 3rd bedroom is indeed tiny.

Personally I wouldn't buy it for the following reasons:

The third bedroom is very small.
The extension in the garden is quite imposing making it look cramped.
The bathroom is downstairs.
I'm not keen on the exterior.
The local secondary school requires improvement which would worry me about the area.
It's not a 4 bed.

Sorry OP.

Definitely new photos needed too. I'd do a photo from the bottom corner of the garden.

I think its the bedroom thing - people looking for a three bed may not look at yours in detail ...those looking for a 4 bed will dismiss it.

It's more a 2.5 bed marketed as a 4 bed (only one really good sized bedroom looking at the floorplan), no upstairs bathroom. Not much you can do about that unfortunately! If the downstairs room was more clearly a bedroom that might help. The garden picture is a bit uninspiring, a different perspective prettied up would be better. You just need a few nice planters and some cheap but cheerful furniture. Same for the front of the house, could use any extra curb appeal.

Aside from the bedroom issues everyone has mentioned, the photos are quite strange. The downstairs living room photos seem claustrophobic as there’s so much ceiling in them. My eye just keeps getting led to the kitchen stools. They take over the photos.

I think the décor/presentation fine.
The front of the house does look a little bare but wouldn't put me off viewing.
Photos are fine.

It would be better to put 3 bedroom and then in the description (as you have) put about downstairs room could be and office or extra bedroom.

From a little google research its the price.

What makes it more than £50k better than this?

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-94908347.html

Iayout is a bit awkward and bottom heavy, if i needed a four bed house it wouldnt suit as its 3 beds upstairs and one is tiny. Also not having a full bathroom upstairs would out me off a bit but it does have upstairs loo so maybe thats not too bad.
The 2nd reception room should be better staged to give it purpose as either a home office or second lounge or dining room- it looks a bit messy from photo ( sorry!) Decor wise i think it looks good and seems in good condition . Also agree curb appeal is poor, need some planters, hanging baskets etc to soften it. Its still very early days good luck!

Poor OP

From the floor plan it is three beds so why is it being advertised as 4?

Where is bedroom 4?Is it the reception room off the utility room? It's not really a bedroom is it? Two of the three bedrooms are very small.

Not sure of position of garden but those huge trees over the back would put me off buying your house. Also I don't like the sink being on a sort of island? Hard to tell from photos.

Big photos of family members are a huge turn off, sorry.

I suspect you will have to drop the price OP, sorry. I hope you sell quickly though.

Those photos are bloody awful. Search for the best performing estate agent in your area here: www.getagent.co.uk
Tell your EA that unless they start making more of a bloody effort you're leaving for a competitor. You NEVER let EA sit on their laurels, you have to make them work for you, dont let them just stagnate- there should be action happening all the time.

I think the OP got scared away Although so many valid points, hopefully they’ll help the OP to remarket the house.