Can anyone help why my house isn't selling

[midgetem]

Hello all, we've been on the market for nearly 3 months, house still hasn't sold. We're getting quite regular viewings but I don't know if we should be getting more. So we're getting 2/3 viewings a week. Always get the same comment on garden being awkward shape but they love the house. Obviously they don't love the house enough to overcome the garden shape. Which I will admit the garden isn't the biggest. If I sent the rightmove link to some people would they be willing to view the listing and let me know if they can think of any improvements we can make? All we get told by the agent is its not the price as getting viewings we just need to find the right buyer 🙁 but that feels like a long process!

A Rightmove link will definitely help people give advice but I also just want to say don't give up hope. We were on the market for 3 months and were considering taking it off the market and then suddenly got our buyer so it can happen!

You got me interested. Happy to have a look and share my view.

Is there anything you can do to the garden to make it look more regular shaped ? I don't know, haven't seen the link

Post the link!

Ill have a look if you wish...

Let us have look and see if we can help.

Thanks all (will pm the rightmove links to you) don't want to post up incase get too much traffic and it skews the estate agents figures etc.

@Pepperwand thanks for the hope. I will keep my fingers crossed

Unfortunately don't think can do much to shape, we're on a corner so it's triangle shape if that makes sense and then at top it goes behind shed. We could get rid of shed but would then struggle for storage!

I’ve just had a look and think it probably is the price.

Have you looked at what’s under offer within 0.25 miles of your house? I saw one listed for the same price, similar condition but a decent garden and a separate utility room. Another house was listed for 5k less but near/higher specification kitchen and bathrooms + a landscaped garden.

I think your house should be a bit cheaper to reflect the compromises buyers would need to make.

*near=newer

Happy to have a look! We're currently looking so can see if it's something we would go for

@JoJoSM2

I’ve just had a look and think it probably is the price.

Have you looked at what’s under offer within 0.25 miles of your house? I saw one listed for the same price, similar condition but a decent garden and a separate utility room. Another house was listed for 5k less but near/higher specification kitchen and bathrooms + a landscaped garden.

I think your house should be a bit cheaper to reflect the compromises buyers would need to make.

Thanks are they the properties on Newport Road? If. So when I discussed with the agent they commented that as the properties are mid terraced, over 3 floors (and have smaller lounge and kitchens) and on a major road they should be priced lower but will feedback to the agent and see what they say, thank you!

No. The houses I’m comparing to are semis on quiet roads, Warwick Ave and Churston.

I’ll have a look too if you like. I always wanted to be an estate agent.

Op, it looks clean and tidy. The garden is an odd shape and I think the house, maybe as it’s painted magnolia throughout, lacks some character, it looks quite clinical. I think. It just seems a bit cold and soulless.

Other than trying to add some softer muted paint colours in, to try to warm it up, I think it’s the price.

It looks reasonably priced but it’s not shifting. Everything shifts for the right price.

If your handy with a paint tin I’d spend fifty quid and give the kitchen living room and maybe the master bedroom a lick of paint.

So your floorpan is a little strange, it doesn't actually show where the front door is. I know you can tell that from the photos but it's still odd and I had to think. As you have a non-standard shaped house I don't think that helps. There's also no dimensions of the garden so I can't really get a sense of how big that is.

Yes, it's magnolia but I wouldn't personally see decor as an issue, it's a blank canvas for anyone moving in.

I’d also say the offers in excess of puts people off. Is there any way to borrow some garden furniture or just something to put in the back garden so it’s not so empty? Maybe some pots?

I’d also get rid of the red table cloth and the sofa is a real statement in turquoise leather and looks too big for the room, but I don’t think there is another way to organise it, the room looks too narrow to have the sofa across the back?

I think the black furniture with the turquoise sofa and the magnolia walls makes it looks quite cold. I’d seriously think about painting it a warm soft colour to differentiate it from the rest of the house.

The kitchen I’d paint something warm also maybe a nice sage green. There is no point replacing the blinds but grey vertical blinds are always office like.

Overall I think it’s immaculate but it’s just not very homely. Which is likely what is putting people off.

Another offer here to have a look if you're still after opinions

Thanks all, yes lounge is awkward because it's 21ft by 11ft so it is a long room and looks thinner being longer. We have played around in the past with furniture such as putting the 2 seater at an angle but we didn't like it and had less room than leaving it straight.

Ironically since photos have been taken we have a new table, removed the booster seat and table cloth, will spk to the agents if a new photo is appropriate for that area

I take on board your comments on paint, and will speak to my husband to check he is OK to paint (I have a bad reaction to paint fumes swell up etc and can't be in that space for 48 hours) as a result we tend to avoid painting.

Will speak to the estate agent further on that point as when I speak to them, all feedback is always how lovely the house, and it's ready to move into but buyers think garden is a funny shape. Garden isn't that big, main lawn area, I.e between patio and shed is 2m at its narrowest, but in length is close to 6m of lawn.

You can paint quite quickly and cheaply. I painted the living room and downstairs loo at the weekend, I colour matched two farrow and ball colours in the matt valspar 700, took me a day and a bit. Spent about seventy quid in paint. And I needed a lot less than I thought so could have spent much less.

Wouldn’t take long to give your kitchen and living room a lick of paint. You could get it done in a weekend, thr difference it makes is huge though.

Sorry cross posted,

Buyers just give a reason because they need to say something, surely the point of posting is to get opinions and hear what the folks viewing don’t wish to say, because I guess you don’t wish to drop the price. Which means you need to do something else.

It's always price.

@Bluntness100 I do take on board your comments however as mentioned because of my reaction to fumes I would have to move out for 48 hours as can't be in the kitchen or lounge etc after paint. It's the fumes that affect me (even if room ventilated) so unfortunately paint is usually a last resort option

Unfortunately price cannot be dropped any further as we need enough equity to have a high enough deposit etc to borrow. Yes you may tell us to take the hit but we start new jobs in the new year and are moving to London so need enough equity with mortgage to get a property down there (and unfortunately unlikely to be enough to get us anywhere close to what we have now)

Right seen the garden now. I would not paint indoors it's quite neutral, you are getting viewers and can do new pics with a few tweaks others suggested, removing any strong colours on beds/lampshades ( sofas excluded as that's too tricky) . Buyers love white, grey, neutral boring stuff they can imagine putting their own stamp on.

I'd save the painting money and relay the patio as the garden is the area the viewers dislike. It looks like my new build, so the slab are probably only laid on sand, so you can take them up and relay the same ones. Join the skinny path in and just make it more conventional patio shape as much as you can with a weird shape garden. You need a balance of grass too, so might need less patio.
What is at the end of the garden ? Some chicken sheds? If not yours maybe add some trellis above the fence to cover. It will cost something, but would help.

One other thing is the kitchen lacks a focus point above that sink, but I'm not sure if it would help you sell putting something there. One of those big clocks maybe ?

How old is the house ? Looks quite new. I love the look, I'm in a quirky new build.

@ohhwoooooooooooooo that'd a good point, the end is the neighbours shed. So maybe the trellis will give more privacy to help. We have a few spare slabs so will ask my uncle around to help with changing patio shape etc and putting in path to shed.

Hmm never thought that about the kitchen, will look to see if can pick up a cheap picture or clock maybe to give a focal point.

Yes it is quite new (2013) and unfortunately that doesn't help as Gardens are small quite typically in that area! It's hard as we fell in love as soon as we walked in, mainly because the shape gives you a big hallway, storage cupboard room for a pram etc and then the rooms being dual aspect meant so much light in the house!

Thank you all for your help. We are going to take on board your comments and speak to agent about changes etc