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Original poster

Why would a property not sell in this market?

37 replies

Redcart21 · 06/08/2021 10:00

We have found a house in a location we like and has lots of potential for us to renovate over the years. It is quite run down and needs renovating throughout but it’s been on the market all year. Houses in this area get snapped up in a day. I asked the EA of any searches or surveys had been done and if they revealed anything and they said no offers have been made yet. It’s is chain free. The house has been reduced by £50k and it’s not overly priced for the area anymore (although would be more reasonable about £25k cheaper). Other houses in the area that need renovating sell quickly too. What could I be missing? I’m worried to put in an offer because it’s been sat around so long and may have something wrong with it that I’ve not noticed?

OP posts:

TyrionsNextWife · 06/08/2021 10:03

Maybe major structural issues, or legal problems with the deeds or boundary issues? Could also be 2 parties selling and one doesn’t want to so is making everything as difficult as possible.

TyrionsNextWife · 06/08/2021 10:04

I wouldn’t trust the EA about other offers or surveys etc!

BarkingUpTheWrongRoseBush · 06/08/2021 10:06

maybe too expensive for someone to refurb and sell so no takers from that market.

might be difficult to extend.

planning for something awful granted nearby.

can you take a builder round...?

PanamaPattie · 06/08/2021 10:07

It's overpriced and needs a lot of work. Many families want a house to be "move in ready" and haven't got the time or money or skills to renovate.

Popetthetreehugger · 06/08/2021 10:11

Do not trust EA ! A family member bought a house , EA spun story , truth was house across road had a guy who had driven off every other owner . Speak to people in area , speak to police . May seam OTT but this guy had a crossbow to kill my family members…. Really prob damp !

Lockdowndramaqueen · 06/08/2021 10:11

Agree with the two parties selling possibility - we met this when we were buying and they would not budge. It stayed on for over a year before they finally understood its true market value and accepted an offer identical to the one we had made a year earlier.

bilbodog · 06/08/2021 10:20

Also dont underestimate the costs of renovating - building wirjs have increased hugely over the past year due to brexit and covid so what would have cost £150k 2 years ago might cost £300k now so it might be over priced taking that in to account.

Original poster

Redcart21 · 06/08/2021 10:20

@TyrionsNextWife if I asked the EA if there are any of these known issues, are they legally obliged to tell me the truth or can they just lie? It will be frustrating paying for a survey to reveal issues as obviously there’s something deterring people with this house. Maybe it is the renovation work but other similar properties get snapped up. Maybe it’s not worth it…

OP posts:

Original poster

Redcart21 · 06/08/2021 10:22

Thanks everyone, lots of reasons here to consider. We may drive around there and sit in our car on the road for a while to see if anything seems abnormal

OP posts:

TyrionsNextWife · 06/08/2021 10:24

I don’t know if it’s illegal to lie about a survey, but I don’t think they have to straight up about other offers - it’s a pretty common tactic to hear that there’s other interested buyers and stuff when they’re trying to rush you into an offer or paying more.

WhatAWasteOfOranges · 06/08/2021 10:26

Have you viewed the house? Or live close to it? There might be something obvious if your local that is putting people off that not obvious from pics. There is a house near us that is on a great road but been on the market for ages - looks great on right move but as soon as someone would view it you’d see how exposed the garden and front of the house is to a traffic light that has cars queuing outside the window all day long.

longtompot · 06/08/2021 10:32

Could it be a probate sale? They can take ages to go through, especially if probate is contested for whatever reason.

SisforSarah · 06/08/2021 10:36

Don’t believe anything the EA says.
There are a couple of houses near us that are languishing on the market- one for over 2 years. We didn’t view it and at the time told the EA it was insanely overpriced. He agreed but said that the vendor insisted it went on at that price. It hasn’t been reduced and it still hasn’t sold. The garden is a bit small which might put some off but It’s in a prime spot in one of the most exclusive villages in our area. Nothing else wrong with it. Still overpriced.
The other house is being sold by the NCA, a sale has just fallen through, it has a lot of illegal activity associated with it. I think it will be a nightmare to sell and a nightmare to become the new owner.

larkstar · 06/08/2021 10:49

A relative died in Jan 2020 - he house has only just this week gone on the market - I am one of two executors - it has taken over a year to get probate application completed and granted - we have also found it hard work, get all the other finances sorted out.

In my area - mining is sometimes a factor.

ThanksIGotItInMorrisons · 06/08/2021 10:52

Check your move for how often the house has changed hands .... if it’s very often then the neighbours may be the issue. I always check this - some gorgeous houses but they are sold every year /two years and some are sold at a loss. That’s all I need to know to walk away.

emmathedilemma · 06/08/2021 11:13

Subsidence or previous history of.
Non-standard construction meaning you can't get a mortgage on it.
Pylon in the back garden.
Probate sale

SecretOfChange · 06/08/2021 11:30

I bought a house like that and am happy with my choice. In my case it was initially overpriced and I offered 17% less, we eventually agreed on 11% less than asking price after 4 months of negotiating. I think main reason for the house being on the market for so long (almost 2 years) was the initial high price plus the cost of renovation (over 20% on top of the house price) so many people couldn't afford it, whereas for developers it wasn't enough of a bargain. There were other things that could have been an issue for other people but weren't issues for me. I have asked for info from the council about a particular house/neighbour prior to purchase as well. I viewed the house several times and took trusted tradesmen with me to help me evaluate the cost of renovation, and spoke to multiple neighbours. I think you need much more info than you have to make a decision.

DogsSausages · 06/08/2021 11:34

It could be a divorce, probate sale, the sellers might not have anything to buy.

user1471538283 · 10/08/2021 17:51

The amount of work has put people off. Or there has been buyers but the buyers or sellers withdrew.

Starseeking · 10/08/2021 21:05

I saw a lovely project house that needs £100k of work to be habitable. Unfortunately it's right at the top of my budget, and I don't have that sort of cash readily available. While I'm not looking for top of the range, I need to be able to move straight in. Others may be in a similar position.

It could also be due to probate; it would be worth asking the agent. I understand probate is taking much longer than the usual long time it takes, with Covid being cited as the reason.

Look at the history of the price drops as well. If it's only gone down once on a year, and you feel it should reduce again, it's likely still overpriced, but the owners refuse to budge.

So in summary, could be one of the above, or none, as there are any number of reasons!

Byheckythump · 10/08/2021 21:17

Check for planning applications in the area. You can do this on the local council's website. Also have a look at crime statistics, just in case. It might just be the amount of work that needs doing that puts people off. I would be asking the neighbours.

BlueMongoose · 10/08/2021 23:05

@TyrionsNextWife

Maybe major structural issues, or legal problems with the deeds or boundary issues? Could also be 2 parties selling and one doesn’t want to so is making everything as difficult as possible.

Ask about the sellers. It could be that it is a probate sale and other people were put off because it hadn't been granted or executors couldn't agree to accept an offer. It could be an 'acrimonious divorce' sale, as above. Both those things could account for it being run down.

Even in a mad year like this, some people don't want to buy a run-down house, but with tradespeople and materials hard to get and very much more expensive than a year ago due to both covid and brexit, doer-uppers may not have been what people were looking for when rushing to buy before the stamp duty deadline, or even now. Could be why there hasn't been an offer.
Most houses sell eventually, so few things are absolute obstacles, but if there is something lurking in the woodshed you need to know a.s.a.p. so you can decide if it would put you off or not.

thisgardenlife · 11/08/2021 00:24

Is it possible that you and you alone are the only people who can see past the grot to its potential?

So many people can't see past what is really just old fashioned or shabby decor or bad layout and often dismiss a property from awful pictures alone, without even viewing.

If the bones of the house seem ok, and you can see potential, I wouldn't let the fact that it's not sold for a year put you off.

Our bungalow was dire, and the photos reflected that. It was on the market for over a year, dropping in price every few months, until one day we realised that if they were now to take a 'cheeky offer' it might be worth going to view. We viewed it and offered low, and they accepted. I think ours was the only offer they had over the whole year.

We knocked a wall down to open it up and change the layout and a window to a door, re-roofed the conservatory (previously had a plastic roof) and put in new windows throughout and a new bathroom and kitchen and now it is lovely. We landscaped the garden ourselves and it is now unrecognisable from when we moved in. And worth a great deal more.

I'm sure people thought we were mad but we could see the potential and it was in the location we wanted. No regrets.

Original poster

Redcart21 · 11/08/2021 13:45

Thanks everyone for the things we should consider. So we sat in the car a few doors down from the property for 2 hours whilst eating our lunch to see what it may be like. It’s not overly busy at all, no traffic queues, a pretty quietish lane, we saw a few neighbours come in and out who all kept to themselves at the time. I don’t think the road is an issue. Neighbours- so far we can’t see an issue but not ruled out that fully yet.
It seems the property itself could be the issue. I’m thinking it’s because of the works required. I’m going to book another viewing and take a builder in with us (if we can get hold of one!)

OP posts:

Bluntness100 · 11/08/2021 13:48

Generally if a house doesn’t sell it’s the price, so whatever it is it’s over priced op.

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