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Original poster

About to put our house up for sale.. anyone else?

995 replies

DomusAurea · 14/03/2022 08:24

We are taking the plunge and it's happening - we are selling our house (and relocating 200 miles away but that's another thread I guess) - anyone else? I could do with a collective handhold!

This is where we are now:

  • finishing the last small jobs such as painting a ceiling
  • having meets with estate agents for valuation
  • nervously searching rightmove for possible houses in our relocation area (there isn't a lot!)

Are you going for sale soon? Tell me how it's going!

(we are in the South East)

OP posts:
Thread gallery
8
ThisMustBeMyDream · 03/04/2022 19:22

They were quite clear in that they had a total of £210k with deposit of 40k and mortgage of £170k, so no real reason to go in lower that I can see. 🤯
It's a mystery!

ThisMustBeMyDream · 03/04/2022 19:22

I'd have thought they would have matched the offer if they had really wanted it, as a minimum.

BeryltheMenaceneePeril · 03/04/2022 20:01

Perhaps they simply cannot match the offer but are being honest in telling you their position. They might hope to be the tortoise if they cannot be the hare IYSWIM.

Monty27 · 04/04/2022 03:12

For those of us that have had viewers on Saturday. Good luck with your feedback today. And breathe.

TheLadyDIdGood · 04/04/2022 05:06

Thank you. We had about 8 viewings on the Sat just gone, so it'll be interesting to hear feedback today. Even if I don't get an ffer from it, I can use the feedback to make small improvements. For example, I know that the paintwork is tired in my son's room so I was going to paint it anyway. I have some magnolia left over from last year so I'll just go over it with that one evening.

ThisMustBeMyDream · 04/04/2022 11:54

I have accepted an offer! Omg it's real now! The second couple upped their offer but only slightly above the other offer, and there really wasn't much in it to decide who to go with. I've gone with them as although their deposit is smaller, the other couples maximum mortgage is much lower and they are using closer to their full funds to fiance. I felt the second couple had a little more flexibility. They are also with parents, where as the others were in rented.
Now to find what I want!

Doubleraspberry · 04/04/2022 12:48

Congrats, @ThisMustBeMyDream!

I emailed my agent to ask whether there was any feedback on the second viewing from Friday, or Saturday’s viewings. She said she was planning to call the Friday people today. And that another agent will be in touch re Saturday.

I spoke to the other local agent who said 40 viewings with no offers at all suggests they just aren’t making any effort to proactively sell. Which is very much the vibe I get. Am going to talk to them about releasing us from our contract early.

WildOnce · 04/04/2022 13:21

Can I join? House had 3 viewing Saturday which we are waiting for feedback from. Launched online today and we have a few viewings booked in for the week.

It is bloody hard park keeping it in order with a baby and a toddler!

WildOnce · 04/04/2022 13:21

Hard work*

BeryltheMenaceneePeril · 04/04/2022 13:59

@ThisMustBeMyDream.
Well done. Start repeating the thread mantra.

Foxglovesandlilacs86 · 04/04/2022 14:02

@ThisMustBeMyDream congrats Smile it must be a nice feeling knowing the viewings are over. On to the most exciting part now! Hope you find your perfect house.

Volterra · 04/04/2022 14:29

Congratulations ThisMustBeMyDream, how exiting !
Doubleraspberry I would definitely do that with your agent after that number of viewings.

Found awful smell in spare room this morning and realised I had put broccoli and chicken in an upstairs freezer for DD , forgot then turned it off. Had just cleaned it and had 4 mins before I was taking DS to GP appointment and then to station an hour away.

Agent rang, could we do a second viewing this morning in 1 hr 20 mins time. Had to agree and warm of smell and leave DH who was working to try and sort house which usually takes me 2 hours. He then had to leave for an hour with the dog. We have 2 first viewings late afternoon and he needs to catch up so late finish for him today.

Be a miracle of second viewing produces an offer.

Original poster
DomusAurea · 04/04/2022 14:50

Congrats to @ThisMustBeMyDream!!

My feedback shows a few people vaguely interested, one person really interested, some people going missing, and others stating quite obv feedback from plans/etc

  • my 'favourite' is from those who "don't like modern" when it's clear from every picture that it's a modern house - the (much smaller) 1930s (still modern but the right kind of modern I guess whereas we are 1960) in the street parallel to us are going for 2x price of ours - you can't have your cake and eat it, buyers! Ok, rant over.
OP posts:
Original poster
DomusAurea · 04/04/2022 14:53

Oh and the amount of hotel chocolate selectors I am stress eating is unreal.

OP posts:
stuntbubbles · 04/04/2022 15:23

Had our first offer… 4.5% under asking which sounds like nothing but actually translates to quite a lot. And is barely more than the terrible house across the road got – and they had no upstairs loo, a concrete yard and other issues. So no qualms turning it down but our other second viewers lucked out with a different house coming back on the market and falling into their lap, so nothing else as of yet.

Bricking it while we wait to hear if they’ll up their offer, or if anyone else throws their hat in the ring. On the plus side average time from advert to SSTC in our area is 16 weeks and we’re at 2 weeks with one offer in the bag, so have no doubt we’ll sell – it’s how much for! Everyone hates the road… 😭

Original poster
DomusAurea · 04/04/2022 15:29

Here Stunt, have a chocolate or 20 Flowers

OP posts:
Doubleraspberry · 04/04/2022 16:44

Oh, @stuntbubbles. And @DomusAurea, you'll get there too.

I emailed our agents saying we were thinking of coming off the market and waiting - knowing that would galvanise them. I was rewarded with an immediate call. So almost all the viewings are coming from their ring rounds - very few from the online portals. I did point it it's barely been on the portals but also asked in that case what they were thinking of doing - nothing it turned out. So we discussed the photos and the wording. Also various elements of the house and its deficits, and it turned out she HAD managed not to show them the second bathroom on last week's viewing.

But they continue to be as mystified as us by the lack of offers, and suggested we reduced the price. I got quite cross as I had pleaded with them for a realistic valuation AND we've already reduced by 5% from that, which was the first 'soft viewing' so I don't want to be the house that's reduced immediately. I did everything I could to avoid that. We're not greedy at all - we have gone for a selling point well below the highest valuation, but the price is really reasonable for everything about our house, and she said herself that people would usually make low offers if they liked it but thought it was on too high.

I'd consider reducing it if it felt like anything other than the only suggestion she could make, so let's see if the rocket today makes a difference. She was shocked to find out that no one has ever shared round the details of our house, and that we weren't routinely getting any sort of feedback after days with multiple viewings, so no doubt we will now be the vendors that the whole office hates but might sell the house of before we strop off with our commission to someone else.

stuntbubbles · 04/04/2022 17:12

SOLD! ::bangs gavel:: Our buyers who offered this morning did a big tactical leap and we happily accepted on the basis that (a) it’s enough to get us where we need to be and (b) I don’t want to tidy the house any more, especially not before our holiday this week and also I want to hold my daughter’s birthday party here in a fortnight, not in the park. Solid, solid reasoning.

So now the next horror begins, the house hunt!

@DomusAurea I will nonetheless accept a chocolate.

@Doubleraspberry Your agents sound so shocking. Any chance they’ll reduce their fee since they’ve been so useless? Not showing a whole second bathroom is really poor, as is failing on feedback. Have you posted a link in this thread that we can be of any help on, or are you happy with just the camaraderie?

Doubleraspberry · 04/04/2022 17:17

Congrats, @stuntbubbles!

Camaraderie is all I need. The listing is clearly crap but as there are tenants in the house there's a limit to what can be changed. I genuinely AM tempted to wait till the tenants leave and then relaunch with a new agent but that would take us well beyond the spring rush and I don't really want to assume the market won't plunge given world events, not to mention going beyond the school year timing and bankrupting ourselves with months of double costs.

Volterra · 04/04/2022 17:19

Excellent Stuntbubble!!
Doubleraspberry I would be so cross with the agent, you poor thing 💐

We managed to arrive back just as last viewers of the day had come out onto driveway. DH said this morning he got a call to come back so did only to realise agent was still in the garden with the guy. He hid upstairs so hopefully they didn’t notice. This evening’s one certainly did !!

TheLadyDIdGood · 04/04/2022 22:56

Had 6 viewings instead of 8 on Sat and none offered. The feedback from the agent was that they were all a bunch of delusional tossers! Grin One said the house was too small look at the floor plan next time & another was freaked out by gard floors Hmm Couldn't understand why we didn't have carpets instead of hard floors. The photos clearly showed hard floors instead of carpets. I couldn't understand why they bothered to view if carpets were important to them.

Twiglets1 · 05/04/2022 09:21

@Doubleraspberry

Congrats, *@stuntbubbles*!

Camaraderie is all I need. The listing is clearly crap but as there are tenants in the house there's a limit to what can be changed. I genuinely AM tempted to wait till the tenants leave and then relaunch with a new agent but that would take us well beyond the spring rush and I don't really want to assume the market won't plunge given world events, not to mention going beyond the school year timing and bankrupting ourselves with months of double costs.

@Doubleraspberry it is highly likely that your tenants are part of the reason you are not selling quickly. My daughter recently offered on a flat with tenants in. This was only because it was the perfect flat for her but the tenants made both her viewings uncomfortable. I attended the second viewing with her and it was honestly so much worse than a viewing without tenants. Firstly, they were very difficult about what time they would accept viewings and showed no flexibility. Secondly, they were present in the flat (despite knowing there were multiple viewings that Saturday afternoon because it was one of the only times they allowed viewings). They followed us round from room to room in a very uncomfortable fashion. Yet could answer no questions helpfully. The place was fairly tidy but they hadn’t gone to the same efforts a seller would go to, obviously.

I don’t doubt that you would find it easier to sell if you waited til after the tenants have moved out, but I understand that has financial implications in terms of lost rent.

Volterra · 05/04/2022 09:37

I think it’s the tenants too Doubleraspberry. I see where you are coming from though, such a difficult decision.

Have just answered questions from our second viewing yesterday. One of the first viewings from the afternoon liked it and went home to talk. The other first viewing is coming back for second viewing later.

Doubleraspberry · 05/04/2022 11:29

Thanks for thoughts. The tenants are never present for viewings and the agents are (apparently) explaining that they are very short term (both to explain the very minimal amount of stuff there and also that they are not a threat to a vacant possession) but undoubtedly not being able to stage the house more nicely, or have it empty, is not optimal. It’s something we just have to live with though and they are a professional couple with a child, so aren’t totally living like students. One agent is very fixed on why they have chosen one room over another to use as a study which is possibly not something many viewers are preoccupied by, but it’s leading her to describe a bedroom as a study as it’s where she herself would put a desk - even though it’s a decent sized bedroom. Sigh.

Volterra · 05/04/2022 12:22

How much longer do you have left with them DoubleRaspberry? I am finding giving notice is focusing the mind of our agents - first thing he said this morning was that he is hopeful we won’t need a second agent at end of the week,