Please can someone tell me why my flat isn't selling?!

[Puffykins]

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-84873916.html

Price-wise, it's appropriate - even cheap - for the area. I know that it hasn't got it's own garden, but there is a huge communal garden which, in central-ish London, I'd argue is better than a tiny garden.

Admittedly I don't like the estate agents pictures much. It's really light in real life, but they always seem obsessed with turning on all the lights.

Anyway, any tips would be hugely appreciated. Thank you!

@combatbarbie

Well I think it looks cosy, homely. But apparently clutter is a no no but then if you have nothing out, then MN says it doesn't look inviting.... I don't get it

Reading the initial comments before clicking on the link I was expecting a hoarders hovel to be honest!

I love the German concept of washing machine in bathroom!! Pic 9 remove. The bathroom has child appeal and I think it's lovely but paint it white or magnolia.

I think it looks really inviting. I'd love to go visit the OP. It looks like the home of a person who is friendly and uncompetitive. The sort of place can easily relax in.

But the pictures are showing just that, the OP's cosy home, it hers and not a living space ready to be adapted to become someone else's living space

You need mostly empty spaces, clear surfaces the buyer can image their belongings there.

OP, maybe aim for a more uptight clinical look. Have it to look like you are regimented and would freak out if there the mail lies on the doormat for more than two minutes. Instagram should give you ideas for that look.

I think it is lovely op.

Why are people obsessed by storage? I have never, ever wondered about it while looking for a place to live.

People seem to think that property programmes on TV tell you everything you need to know about buying or selling any kind of house anywhere.

People buy houses if they can imagine themselves living there and there is always an aspirational element to their imagination. You may not believe this but the OPs home IS an aspirational style for the kind of person who wants to live in that area. I know that doesn't fit what you have seen on TV or the high street but the OP actively on purpose decided to make her home look like that, she didn't stumble into it with a bin liner of tat. Similarly there are many people who are actively looking to live in a place that looks like this.

As a Londoner I would be looking for better photos of the outside spaces. I would also move the towels off the back of the bathroom door. But that's it.

Previous poster - "The balcony photo appears to have been taken at knee-height". 😂
You do have to wonder what they were thinking. If there were awards for the most bizarre estate agent photos, this would be a contender.

I'm sure 25 pages of comments have given you all you need, but FWIW I think it's lovely. I think you should hire a storage unit and pack away everything on surfaces and in piles, and possibly remove a couple of bookshelves. Also remove books from kitchen and bathroom. You'd still have plenty to make it feel "bookish" without them dominating quite so much. Put some gaps in remaining bookshelves so they don't look stuffed.

I'd leave the bathroom alone personally.

But apparently clutter is a no no but then if you have nothing out, then MN says it doesn't look inviting.... I don't get it

There is a middle way, which is the OP’s flat minus about 800 books.

I really like your flat and also like brutalism so the outside as well....but when selling you need to think of whose likely to buy..

Maybe thinking of it as a set may help...a young couple first flat? Professional sharers as 2bed?

Not many I would think would be people with kids...and even less with no balcony/outdoor space...maybe more likely to need desk space to wfh ....how do people use the communal space is it to look at or can they chill out there...

Empty everything I would suggest maybe the dc have a box of stuff each under the bed that you can change the contents of..paint it all white and maybe 'urban' with a bit of boho....or mid century or something to suit the brutalism...

The point is that exactly. Many folks will see it as cluttered and be distracted by it. It is very much the ops home and a particular taste. You can achieve the look the op has without having your artwork laying around on the floor or still have enough kitchen work surface to actually prep a meal. More like Sarah Jessica Parker’s that a pp posted.

If the property was much bigger with more space it would work well, but right now there is so much stuff in it it’s the first and only thing many people are seeing.

The op can easily keep her style, but she does need to declutter, clear the floors of stuff, make her kitchen work surfaces usable, even use the bathroom shelving for toiletries and not another book store.

No many people are saying change the style, what is being said is remove the excess.

At that kind of price point, you’re appealing to younger millennials who are first home buyers who tend to prefer the more minimalist Instagram aesthetic.

The clutter has to go. If you can’t bare to part with it, put it in storage. Initially I thought it was an elderly person’s home as the clutter was so dense but obviously the toddlers’ room gives that away. The saddle is possibly pointless unless it’s purely sentimental as saddles need to be fitted to the animal, it’s not one size fits all! Wrap it in plastic and put in storage.

The bathroom is awful and not doing you any favours. The fact the kitchen splash backs aren’t finished would make me wonder what other shortcuts have been made.

I would honestly halve your artwork, put the books in storage, and get cracking with a neutral wall paint.

Unfortunately flats without private outdoor space are not selling well in London so presenting an unconventional decor really won’t help the sale.

I’m a property investor and managing agent just a mile down the road.

Anyone coming to view is not bothered by the exterior, or the price. They come indoors and can’t think, can’t imagine themselves living there, and can’t see beyond all the stuff, which is bordering on squalor (the two toddler beds for children clearly old enough to read is really depressing).

Lazy agents probably thought it would sell on price alone. I’d venture they’re more experienced at selling much more expensive properties and the commission on yours is chickenfeed so they can’t be arsed with yours, which is atypical for the area and quite a hard sell (short lease, presentation etc). Especially as you’re not buying onwards locally.

PPs have already told you what to do. You need to concentrate on appealing to your potential audience:

Single men or a couple, probably in their 30s
Highly paid creative professionals, doctors or lawyers
Native Londoners or committed city dwellers from overseas - kill the cottage decor!
Or Investors looking to install the above type of people.

Agree with the previous poster who said think Barbican.

I like they style of your flat, it’s cosy and interesting. But as a prospective buyer, I shouldn’t be spending more time looking at your book titles than sizing up the bedroom, or wondering why there are framed pictures propped up on the floor. It does not need to be grey/magnolia and completely bland - that’s going to the other extreme. There’s a balance. The decor and furnishings need to present the property in the best way, but not be too noticeable in themselves (as they will be going with you).

which is bordering on squalor (the two toddler beds for children clearly old enough to read is really depressing).

That is rude, unnecessary and absurdly untrue.

bordering on squalor

Nonsense.

I LOVE your home just as it is. It looks so comfortable and inviting.

I think it’s sad that it is now more or less universally accepted that you need to present your home as a neutral bland space in order to sell it.

Of course it’s rude.

This is the internet and I’m telling you anonymously what your potential buyers are thinking but are too polite to say.

I work in the area and, unlike most of the people posting on this thread, work in the industry. I do know what I’m talking about.

Completely bizarre that so many people are thinking the only alternative to cottagey shabby shic is soulless white (grey) box.

Have a look at the work of Sophie Ashby or Maria Speake. That’s the sort of property your potential buyers want to own.

They come indoors and can’t think, can’t imagine themselves living there, and can’t see beyond all the stuff, which is bordering on squalor aaand we have a winner for the most ridiculous comment of the day award!

I’m obviously in the minority but I love it! I love the fact it’s ‘cluttered’ it looks like a real home and I can imagine living in it. And weirdly I also think it looks BIGGER for having more stuff in it because it looks like you can fit loads of stuff in it. The trouble is, I’m saying all this, because our house is similar (you’re very brave putting this on here, I wouldn’t dare), my house is also on the market and is very similar to yours and.... it’s not sold. It’s been on the market now 5 months and not a whiff of a buyer. In the end we have moved out and it’s now Empty. But I’m reducing end reducing it to try end get rid of it. We should have massively decluttere and stuck stuff in storage before we put it on the market.

@martysouth

which is bordering on squalor (the two toddler beds for children clearly old enough to read is really depressing).

That is rude, unnecessary and absurdly untrue.

My eldest could read fluently when he was 2. He was still of the size for a toddler bed. Plus you do realise that you can read books to children? So can read books with them that they can’t read on thier own?!

@Bluntness100

Those who do not see this beautiful flat for what it truly is, must gravitate naturally to the Next school of interior design: a surfeit of grey, bought-in wooden floors, puffy leather sofas, an absence of books, prints as opposed to art and matchy matchy to the nth degree

Well no, I live in an old listed building with exposed original oak floor boards, Chesterfield style fabric sofas, lots of original art on the walls, rugs on the floors, some funky wallpaper in keeping with the property, books on several surfaces, no grey anywhere, it’s predominantly muted shades of green, and many antiques dotted around. There is nothing from dunelm or next.

However that doesn’t mean I don’t think the ops is overly cluttered, with books on every surface inc the bed, so much art it’s just sitting on the floor, no kitchen work surface visible, etc.

The op is trying to sell it. The approach of “it’s fabulous and I’ll attack anyone who says otherwise “ isn’t going to help her shift it.

I also live in a listed house but that doesn’t prevent me from seeing the style that is popular with many Mumsnet posters.

I am aware the owner is attempting to sell which is why earlier I suggested they should probably store some of their possessions - as a temporary measure.

What I find most interesting is that many posters on this thread have talked about “clutter” - including you. I don’t accept that possessions which are carefully brought together and which have clearly evolved, amount to clutter. I love the presence of so many books, for instance.

This is an aspirational abode. It’s fabulous and the look of the block of flats in which the OP lives adds to that impression due to contrast. Architecture that is worth preserving comes in many forms.

Incidentally, art looks great on the floor, propped against a wall. Not everything has to be hung conventionally; in fact the juxtaposition of formal and informal works well.

Clutter
Get some large black plastic bags and declutter very room. Too much going on
Tidy up the balcony, get new plants.

To say “ bordering on squalor” shows you up for what you are, I’m afraid. Some people are more discerning.

If this is genuine, then you seriously need to de-clutter. I wouldn't even want to go to a viewing in its current state. I'm guessing this is a piss take though.

The people looking to buy this kind of flat are not going to have literate two year olds.

I work in the field and in the area. Do you not think I’m probably going to better informed than you?

Some of the comments are awful. Its a beautiful flat!