Niche house for sale - no viewings

[Icantfindausername]

We are selling our 4 storey townhouse which probably doesn't appeal to a large audience as it's like a terraced with lots of stairs, albeit lovely and big.

Its been up for sale for 7 days now and no interest whatsoever.

We did out it up at the higher end of 3 valuations as we arent in a rush to sell because we havent seen anything we like in months. (Apart from 1 which sold within 5 days)

I just feel a little disheartened because people are selling so fast, having like 8 viewings in a few days and we've not had one.

Any thoughts? And I'm not brave enough to put a link up sorry!

We're in a similar position. Very nIche house. One viewing in 4 weeks had good feedback but they preferred another house nearby based on garden size (although ours is just under an acre) We can't understand why either so no advice to offer but just wondering if people are sticking to more regular housing due to uncertainty at this time.

It’s the price. Even you have said you put it on at the high end of the valuation. Did you get quotes from other estate agents and were they lower that the agent you went with? In other words if you chose the high end of the estate agent that gave the highest quote then the price is probably too high.

I think you've just got to give it more time. As you say, a townhouse is niche and your buyers will be more limited. You also say because you aren't in any hurry to move you put it on at the higher price range. Have you done your research to see how it compares with similar properties locally?

A week is no time at all, but if you're not getting interest, I would say it always comes down to price.

So we had 3 valuations all in similar pricing to be honest. We went with the o e who valued lowest, only 10k lower and asked if he would put it up as OIRO the 10k higher price which he agreed to do and review in 2 weeks.

I'm just gutted to not have had any interest.

If a house was only slightly about a price with OIRO I personally would still view it.

EA say it's getting a lot of interest on rightmove etc

Does the extra £10k take you up a pricing band on Rightmove etc? If so some people who would pay the lower valuation price won’t even be seeing it.

You can’t be not in a hurry to sell and then gutted when you don’t get viewings surely?
It will be the fact it’s niche coupled with the higher price. We struggled to sell for a while last year, dropped by £10k and then got a number of offers that same week. Leave it a few weeks more so you’ve really tested the price and then drop it.

OIRO is off putting. Try standard pricing.

How is a townhouse niche?

Agree about the OIRO being offputting, people like to know a price before falling in love with somewhere. Also a week isn't very long and people have been waiting to hear about possible new covid restrictions etc. I think you just need to give it more time, someone will want it for the same reasons you did when you chose it.

OIRO puts people off and often seems you are expecting more than the price advertised.

@Palavah

How is a townhouse niche?

A lot of people will be put off by 4 floors and lots of stairs.

Townhouses are less popular. You have to price them right.

I don't think a townhouse is niche either. Can we see a floor plan?

Aside from price, things that make instantly dismiss a house (especially a large one) are tiny garden, no parking, bathrooms nowhere near bedrooms, not enough toilets.

*make me

I'm also struggling to see why a town house is niche. We live in one and many have sold within days in our area (granted it is a very popular place). I think you might need to consider lowering the price, or be prepared to be very patient. Good luck with the sale!

Do you have a garden? A lot of town houses just have a small patio area which will be off putting for a lot of people with lockdown and wanting outside space.

I like town houses, but the gardens round here are too small for us.

Also OIRO is off putting to a lot of people. Depending on area and price you may be losing out on viewers that way. Have you told the agent you will take lower offers? We found some properties for 10-15k over our very top budget and then was totally honest with the agent when calling to book a viewing and saying if the vendor won't take an offer we don't want to waste everyone's time. Some agents were confused at our honesty, but most actually appreciated it and said that's great we will call the vendors and ask.

Is your house appealing inside? Anything will sell at a price. Maybe post a link?

OIRO makes it sound like the seller wants way more than asking price, or that they expect a bidding war.

A week is nothing. Only 1 weekend. If you don't want to post a link read through some threads where people have posted a link and look for applicable advice.

Its difficult to say without seeing a link TBH.(Although I understand your reasons for not putting one on!) Could be a number of reasons really: Price is no 1 ,also although houses on the same street can look similar ,all sorts of things can affect the price as well .Shady garden ,lots of stairs as you say ,not good for young families or older people either! Maybe reduce the price or speak to another Estate Agent maybe ? They may have more realistic prices or have an idea how to market it better? Good Luck!

It’s almost certainly over priced. Estate agents are basically just making a well educated guess about price and in this case they’ve got it wrong

I wouldn’t book a viewing with an OIRO price. I’d assume the seller was trying to get more than the house was worth, and would be at risk of gazumping etc. Others may feel differently though

4 storey townhouses do tend to go at the higher end of valuations because they’re often snapped up by landlords who then make them into seperate flats. Just keep your nerve - don’t reduce the price. It is still very early days

Hi OP, it’s too early to get disheartened yet! One week is absolutely nothing.
My house has been on since Feb, and still no offers. We’ve just reduced for a second time.
I think the problem at the moment is that there’s so much on offer, so many other houses on the market too, that your house really needs to stand out and be something quite special to go quickly.

Mine is quite niche too - really ugly from the outside, but loads of space (for the area) inside.

Others in the area that are going quickly are those that are ‘done’, ie open plan kitchen/dining with sky lights and bi-fold doors, loft rooms, big gardens etc that are priced well. Anything else is hanging about on the market for ages.