Property: Price reduced VS time on market

[Abmaj]

Hi all,

We decided to sell our 3-bed property 3 months ago and had it valued from a few agents. It (now) seems like they inflated the price and we havent been able to sell yet. We reduced the price after one month, then again after the second month, and now the agent is recommending reducing it again. In hindsight, we should have priced the property to about £5k less than the price the agent is now recommending we reduce to.

My question is that if we reduce it for the 3rd time in three months, does this look bad to potential buyers? Or is the concern not on reductions but on how long a property has been up for sale, which in our case isn't that bad (I think).

Any advice would be welcome!

How big are the price reductions each time? If it's just 5k at a time, then quite frankly it's a waste of time unless it tips it into the next price bracket on Rightmove etc. That's when more people will be looking.

Some people are suspicious if it's been on a while, but I'd usually assume it's because it's been overpriced originally or something else that puts people off (e.g. near a train line, heavily overlooked, high crime area - these are all examples of ones I've avoided).

The first reduction was by £10k but didnt move us into a new bracket. The second reduction was £15k and did move us to 475-500k bracket. The next reduction would still keep us in this bracket.

Although I have read numerous times that if a property isn’t selling it is usually down to price, I don't believe that is always the case.

Be brutally honest with yourself about presentation, your agent and the pictures on Rightmove. All three contribute.

If an agent valued originally, had already persuaded me to drop £25k and still hadn’t sold my property in this market, I would probably be looking to change Agent.

Did you have any viewings, OP?
If not, I'd say the agent is no good for overpricing THAT much.

It does look bad if the area is otherwise very fast-moving with sales, but if not, three months is ok.

I would not assume that there was something amiss. I’d assume that the owners were greedy or that they had been misled by their agent.

I’m your case (a poor agent) I’d take it off the market and relist at a sensible price with a new agent when the 28 days (or whatever the contract with the current agent says) have passed.

I went through this with my flat in London years ago. The first agent was ridiculously ambitious and it led to disappointment and unnecessary delay.

I would just assume the vendors were overoptimistic, and it wouldn't put me off.

There's a house I'm currently looking at that was originally put on at £735k in April. It's priced at about £70k more than what the last house in close proximity sold for. Whilst this property is one of only 2 detached with the other 248 being semis, the garden is minuscule, the 3rd bedroom is like a cupboard, and there's not really space to extend, so they should have valued accordingly.

They've recently reduced the asking price to £700k, and I suspect a third cut to £675k will be required before it finally shifts. I offered £670k a month or so ago, which was rejected, however if they come back to me, I will offer £650k, as I think it'll be tricky to sell again above that. Your house will sell, but the asking price has to be realistic.

I think this is fine. I live near a property that’s just sold at £125k less than the original asking price. It was seriously overpriced to start with and has now sold at what it should have been marketed at in the first place.