Would you try and sell house when due in 4 weeks?

[HZizzle]

I’m 36 weeks pregnant with first baby and am planning on 10 months mat leave with DH taking month one and month 4 and/or 5 off as well (lucky!). We know we want to move out of our London flat in the next two years max for somewhere bigger. With Stamp Duty currently on holiday (at least someone is???) and a post-COVID recession / Brexit on the cards, we have spoken to estate agents and are pretty sure it’s likely we’ll get a quicker sale and better price if we take the plunge now. Or at least, likely enough that we’d not even be hesitating we’re it not for the impending arrival.

Are we mad to be considering trying to sell with a newborn on the scene?

(Not to be rude, but I’m looking for advice on what it’s like to try and sell with a newborn not predictions on the economy or COVID advice )

You can try but i think i would wait until baby is a few months old. You wont want viewings in the first few weeks with broken nights, feeding and changing baby regularly every few hours!

Not tried with a newborn but finding it pretty stressful even with older chn, especially when you get the house ready and rude people don’t show up 😡
Also stressful to trying to keep the house tidy all the time, just in case.
If you’re in an area where your property will sell quickly it might not be so bad, especially if your husband is round to help.

I would be fussy with viewings. Set a day and go to your parents for the day. Estate agents can do all the viewings that day. Do the next viewings 2 weeks later.
When it comes to moving, get the full package including packing.

I would do it. if the choice is between doing it pregnant, with a newborn or doing it with an active older baby or toddler. Definitely with a newborn would be the best time for me.

May as well, it's probs going to take over 6 months to complete anyways so get csacking

May as well, it's probs going to take over 6 months to complete anyways so get cracking

Thanks for your replies everyone! It’s the viewing I am most stressed about ... I’m not tidy at the best of times . Ideally we’d just move out for a few weeks and leave it in show home condition but I’m not keen on using money that way. Any other experiences / tips welcome!

Yep I'd say do it with the newborn. I've viewed a few houses where there's been a new baby and you do make allowances. They are more portable and the mess is more containable than when they get a bit bigger or (oh God) start weaning. We sold our London flat with an 8 month old and 4 yr old last year and was definitely easier to tidy around the baby than the preschooler, and would've been easier still before he was mobile.

Have an absolutely ruthless declutter of non-baby stuff before he/she arrives (put things in storage if necessary) to minimise the amount of mess that can be made, and have a nice-looking baby 'box' in every room that you can just chuck everything in before a viewing. If you can afford it, get a cleaner to come in once a week.

Above all, give yourself permission to change your mind. Adapting to motherhood might be a breeze, or you might find it tricker than you anticipate. You might have an easy or difficult birth. If you decide you want to press pause, that is absolutely allowed. Make sure your agents understand this too. Good luck!

I would do it now. House prices are going to fall off a cliff when the stamp duty holiday ends and redundacies kick in. We didn't find there was much mess associated with a newborn. If you can afford it hire a cleaner to keep the housework under control.

Yep, I think demand is really high so You will hey a good price and a lot of viewers can look past the tidiness of a house. Try and get the EA to do a bunch of people in one day and I’d insist on strict Covid measures tho and only let serious buyers in. EAs here ask for people to send AIPs etc in and only allow viewers whose house is on market (I.e not browsers)

These are great tips thanks everyone! We are getting it valued tomorrow and deciding on a final EA, then hope to have at least the pictures done before baby makes an appearance so we can get it on the market. Any other tips also welcome