No offers on our house

[housetales]

Our house has been on the market for 2 months - launching as the school holidays started which I think was a huge mistake - with what I'd describe as a handful of viewings (mostly right as it went live).

The price it's been listed at was the agent's price, not ours, and when compared with others locally, doesn't seem OTT. All the agents who came round gave similar valuations too. No viewers have said upon viewing it that it is overpriced either.

We had only one bit of negative feedback and it was only from a couple of viewers, not all - that we are overlooked from the side of our property - so we purchased some 10ft trees to allay that concern.

I'm putting myself out there with a link to see what you guys think so be gentle! Should we stay on the market or take it off for now? I should say we only went on the market as we fancied a project for our forever home and were told there was a massive opportunity in our price range as there is such limited supply.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/110082437#/?channel=RES_BUY

@flibberyjibbery8

That price for Birmingham seems INSANE. Sorry.

So what do you think of the £3m homes for sale in Sutton Coldfield then? Mine isn't close to the top of the market round here.

It's a perfectly nice house but at that price point 1.35 mil I would expect luxury fittings the other comparable homes nearby are 3000 plus square feet and have new kitchens and bathrooms.

@Dixiechickonhols

Different price point as I’m up north but this is a high end exclusive development like yours.

www.pringlehomes.co.uk/gallery/

If you scroll down you can see some of the styling. Yours could easily be that with a few tweaks.

Eg The fully or mostly grey painted bannisters look a lot more modern.

I personally don’t think garden an issue - people who like new builds generally like composite decking and hot tubs.

My God those are seriously vile. OP’s is much nicer, if dated.

Please people understand: grey is the new avocado. Do not slather your houses in grey paint. It doesn’t make them look sophisticated, it makes them look very provincial and it will date horribly.

@Dixiechickonhols

Different price point as I’m up north but this is a high end exclusive development like yours.

www.pringlehomes.co.uk/gallery/

If you scroll down you can see some of the styling. Yours could easily be that with a few tweaks.

Eg The fully or mostly grey painted bannisters look a lot more modern.

I personally don’t think garden an issue - people who like new builds generally like composite decking and hot tubs.

Love a lot of that styling. Thank you for sharing the inspo!

Sorry for the sniping sound of my comment OP. Maybe I overdid it. My apologies for that. Your house could be a dream house for me - in terms of size and layout it already is. It's fantastic. I hope you get a buyer soon.

Please can I suggest that if you are going to make some tweaks to the decor that a trip to Neptune might be a good place to find some inspiration. Their room sets are the sort of look and feel I would love in a house in this price range.
Also you have been so lovely with people's comments on this thread, I take my hat off to you x

We recently sold a house in a similar ballpark to this. The feedback we had seemed to suggest a lot of people wanted wow kitchens and bathrooms.

I haven’t read the whole thread but a couple of thoughts.
The kitchen - they look like wooden painted units. Lots of houses seem to be styling kitchens in darker colours (navy/ dark green /gray) - and many people seem to get wooden doors professionally re-sprayed with Farrow and Ball or similar types of paints. I wonder if this approach could add some drama to your kitchen and give it more of a wow factor at a lower cost than anything more extensive.

The garden - if you are trying to draw attention away from the perimeter properties, sometimes planting or landscaping in the foreground can be a really easy way of creating depth and giving the eye something else to look at that distracts from the perimeter.

@Flowers500 - yes the target is different, but in that price bracket people have a certain "look"that they want and that is what people who are linking houses are trying to show the OP. The other poster who linked to the new build estate in her area was trying to help the OP too - what you need to do when selling a house like this at the top price point for your house, is to mimic the colours and styling (and kitchen) of a high end new build or a top end luxury refurb.

It will save the OP a lot of time on Pinterest and Instagram if she looks at those two links, gets an Interior Designer and says - please copy this look in my house.

I love interiors and have decorated / refurbished lots of houses (period and new build) and I saw lots of areas where the OP needs to redecorate if she is to attain her price. But, it is easier sometimes to see the changes than to describe them, and so some people have been very helpful to the OP by showing her houses she can use as inspiration for colours / kitchens / bathrooms / furnishings, in order to appeal to the most people in her target market.

Good luck OP, and I think you are correct to take it off and redo the areas that need to be done. I am in the process of deciding whether to stay and extend or to buy an already extended / larger house - and I know that if we do sell, I will have to do some work on my house in order to maximise the sale price (which might sway me towards doing the extension here in the end!!).

@Shadedog

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/110918093#/?channel=RES_BUY

This is the house I mentioned linked a few days ago OP, it’s obviously massive and gorgeous and period but I think it’s a really good example of being neutral and uncluttered but still having something about it. It’s luxurious without being overbearing. Minimal without looking unloved.

I’m really sorry you are finding this hard and if my comments have upset you. Inviting strangers into your home so you can look at it through their eyes is brave of you. Most people would have waited through 3 pages of “link please, OP” and “if you share the link we can help” before putting it right out there. It’s almost as outing as a hobby.

Some of the things done so succsssfully with the styling here:

Sitting room: expensive intentiknally mismatched is the new suite. Metal, velvet, the rug—luxury through texture overload. Big dramatic moment with the lighting. The cool colours are very now and very hotel. Use of very ultra stylish furniture that you could imagine in a fancy bar to create Instagram worthy moments.

Entrance hall: unashamed use of rich bling like F&M, although overall they gone down the drama due to the incredible architecture—you’ll need to do opposite and pump up glam in this space.

They do use quite a bit of industrial in places—this is a purposeful contrast to the historic property, I wouldn’t use it in a modern build home the way they have as it works so well contrasting with grand historic spaces. So slightly wrong style l’language for your house.

The LED loop lights are super now, they are the 2021 lights. Means people who look at Instagram will instantly see this house as being in the latest style.

Actually don’t love the bedroom—it probably works in person due to the style, space and architecture of the room but would be plain and relaxing in most other spaces, rather than grand. Likewise their bathroom is great but plays up the history, would look dated in a modern home.

Other bedrooms are nice but not as well styles as sitting room.

Outside styling is chef’s kiss.

I would actually guess from this they might have had sitting room, kitchen, dining, outdoors professionally done and did bathroom/bedrooms themselves?

@flibberyjibbery8

That price for Birmingham seems INSANE. Sorry.

Then you don't know anything - and it isn't Birmingham.

I’ve been blunt about the interior’s impact on the price.

However, it’s a good house, with a decent sized garden in a good location for Birmingham. It just needs refurbishment.

As I said to the OP I would stay put, extend and refurbish. You’d save around 95k in stamp duty on a 1.5m house purchase, and the extra 200k to upsize.

The one thing that would put me off is that you only have one sitting room. Could you change the office into a snug and a bedroom into an office? Or put comfy sofas in the dining end of the kitchen so it becomes more of a family room. A corner sofa and smaller table and chairs maybe?
I don’t think the kitchen needs extending, just a better layout.
Good luck, I hope you get to buy your dream house sooner rather than later.

I just wanted to add that your house is really beautiful OP! Definitely a dream house. You have been brave posting it on here.

Take no notice of the wankers - there's a lot of envy on MN.

I actually really like the kitchen! Yes, the units are a little dated, but I like the lay-out. I'm not a fan of cavernous kitchens and shiny, shiny islands. - yours is homely and welcoming. I also love how light the house is generally.

However - sorry OP but you did ask - I hate the garden. It reminds me of military quarters' gardens, which never have any plants in them because everyone moves on after 2 years. I'm not a huge gardener - I don't want high maintenance - but I don't want a sterile lawn with nothing else, either. I would see your garden and think that it's going to take me a decade to get some decent-sized plants and trees grown. Anything you can do to soften it would be helpful. A landscaper is a good idea - it's amazing what they can do in a short time.

A couple of other thoughts: the window treatments are rather old-fashioned. And I would lose the picture of the hot tub, because they are so Marmite. A lot of people associate them with noisy neigbours, and might worry that everyone else in your street has got one too.

Please don’t take it to heart OP, remember we’re comparing your lovely house as it is to a ‘perfect’ version of what it could be - not an ‘average’ house. Hardly anybody has 100% made the best of the house they live in.

Just wanted to say good luck with your proposed renovations OP.

I definitely think it's the right decision.

The house has got a lot going for it and I'm sure you'll do a great job in upgrading it.

Itsa very nice house. I prefer older style houses but plenty of folk prefer newer more modern style houses. . Not overkeen on the sloping ceilings in the bedrooms. Its a big budget house. I agree its the price.

Hey OP bit late to the thread but just wanted to say you have a lovely home, I can't comment on the price but the fact that three agents all gave you the same price would indicate it was about right? Did they bring some evidence as to why they think that's the right price? I would imagine in that price bracket the pool of buyers is smaller.

Why don't you have a chat with your agent?

@TatianaBis

I’ve been blunt about the interior’s impact on the price.

However, it’s a good house, with a decent sized garden in a good location for Birmingham. It just needs refurbishment.

As I said to the OP I would stay put, extend and refurbish. You’d save around 95k in stamp duty on a 1.5m house purchase, and the extra 200k to upsize.

Agree. Unless you are dead-set on a massive renovation, I’d stay put. Your house has so much untapped potential, you obviously love it and you love the location. There’s plenty of work to get your teeth into but it’s cosmetic, so you won’t spend years on a building site with small children (not fun).

As for selling, I agree re the ‘dated’ sentiments and tbh, the private road might well be off putting for some buyers due to the costs and responsibilities of maintenance and management.

Your house is lovely and I can't see any general issue with the interior decor. As a buyer (not in that price range) I can see a blank canvas and how my furnishing will fit.

For that kind of budget I would expect a more luxurious kitchen and bathrooms. Looks like what it was fitted with 16 years ago? Especially the kitchen, I'd expect granite tops for example. Squared tiles on the floor in both kitchen/bathrooms feels dated.

I'm sure if you make some interior changes you'll sell no problem. It's just about cracking it up to have a wow factor in the key areas.

@Dontwanttobeatwat

I'd buy it if I had £1.3 mil but unfortunately our budget was up to £300k Don't think there's much you can do apart from wait, not many buyers with that kind of budget. The house looks nicely decorated, homely but not too much clutter

I wouldn't. It looks like one of those awful new build estate houses, just bigger.

Mindblowing. Absolutely mindblowing to me that people have this kind of money.

It's beautiful. Sit tight. Your buyer will come along x

@BlackTee40 Thank you for such a thoughtful and sensitive comment. So glad you took the time to share your wisdom here.

@BlackTee40 but a lot of people do want that.