Page 10 | Why can't we sell our house?

stuntbubbles · 08/04/2022 10:27

@cupofdecaf

The other thing is a professional photographer can photoshop your photos a bit (they do round here all the time). So even if they don't take the pictures in a sunny day by the time it's online it's the most amazing weather on the photos. They can take bits out as long as it's not permanent stuff (they can remove bins but not a shed next door for example).

Ha, I rejected the agent who said they’d photoshop a sunny day and blue sky into our photos. 1, I felt I didn’t want to work with an agent who’d be dishonest from the start. Hiding clutter, yes. Fake blue sky, nah. 2. I work with photographers professionally and know good photoshop: and estate agent photoshop ain’t it. There are some really dodgy photos on Rightmove and at OP’s budget/fee for the agent they’re not going to be doing high-end work. It’ll be MS Paint.

Twinkletwinklelittletoes · 08/04/2022 10:44

OP the other issue you have is you're nowhere near a train station. 11 miles is really far when you're in such a built up area.

There's absolutely nothing she can do about that though?

XVGN · 08/04/2022 10:51

[quote Pentiumgold]Please see attached link, reduced by £20 last week but still no interest. What puts you off our house? I found this property on the Rightmove Android app and wanted you to see it: www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/121091351[/quote]
20K overpriced according to houseprice.io

Estate property where most houses are now selling below the current average increases (see the red/orange below)

houseprices.io/?q=Sandbourne+Avenue+bla

Jericha · 08/04/2022 10:55

When I search on Rightmove your house doesn't have a photo, they only display once I've selected your property.

VikingNorthUtsire · 08/04/2022 10:58

@girlmom21

OP the other issue you have is you're nowhere near a train station. 11 miles is really far when you're in such a built up area.

Welcome to Dorset 😂 if you're buying in this area you'll know which towns are on a train line and which aren't.

needhelp34 · 08/04/2022 11:04

It looks like a lovely house. The photos aren’t great and garden looks small. I think you’ve got an estate agent problem. If you have other options give notice to your current ones and shop around. Have a look on Rightmove and see which estate agent has the stand out photos. Definitely declutter before your next photos are done. Clear surfaces of ornaments and toys. Don’t have to do this for viewings but definitely do for photos.
Signing up with a new estate agent will mean your listing goes to the top

BridgetJonesDaiquiri · 08/04/2022 11:05

For me it's the first photo and the dirty looking render (what is going on with the black streaks down the front). I'd scroll on by I'm afraid

girlmom21 · 08/04/2022 11:10

@Twinkletwinklelittletoes

OP the other issue you have is you're nowhere near a train station. 11 miles is really far when you're in such a built up area.

There's absolutely nothing she can do about that though?

She's asked why her house isn't selling. There are lots of things she can't do anything about except lower the asking price.

MySecretHistory · 08/04/2022 11:26

Change the double beds for singles and redress the rooms
A double bedroom needs to be a minimum of 10 ft square and they are not which makes them look really small and cramped

MySecretHistory · 08/04/2022 11:28

Did you have planning for the garage? If so then say so- and get an estimate of how much it would cost to restore it

stuntbubbles · 08/04/2022 11:39

@MySecretHistory

Change the double beds for singles and redress the rooms A double bedroom needs to be a minimum of 10 ft square and they are not which makes them look really small and cramped

I read this kind of advice here a lot but realistically: those are kids’ bedrooms. They live there! Those are their beds.

And it costs time and money. What is OP to do: take annual leave to sort out a storage unit big enough for double beds, buy some single beds just for staging, and bedding, redo the rooms just for photos and viewings to that extent, all for what’s not a hugely expensive house (in the grand scheme). Moving is costly enough as it is with stamp duty and fees and movers and surveys; at this budget and with prices still rising for an ongoing purchase, the “single bed and storage unit” money is better spent on redoing the photos/moving costs.

It’s much easier to clear the kids’ clutter – toys and posters – just for the photos, get a decent photographer who can show off the room even with a double bed in it, and keep it neat for viewings.

Dumblebum · 08/04/2022 11:46

Op I can’t work out what the prevjous pics are, some of the missing rooms are there, but the furniture looks different Ie in the conservatory but others the same pics. Did you try to sell it before?

www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatching.html?prop=109327949&sale=40913028&country=england

Twinkletwinklelittletoes · 08/04/2022 12:21

I mean the fact you've got doubles in the kids rooms is good and i certainly wouldn't be rushing to replace them with singles. It shows you can get a double in there. If you had singles one might think that it wasn't possible to fit doubles in so this demonstrates that you've got double bedrooms, even if they are small.

KateMcCallister · 08/04/2022 13:32

The conservatory being open like that would mean I wouldn't even view it. Make the beds properly and iron the bedding when it's on the bed so it looks crisp and neat, that was almost as off putting as the conservatory and skeleton of what must be a gazebo or something in the garden?

I know you can't do anything about the conservatory but honestly the photos are terrible and you need to stage a bit. Put pet toys away, declutter kids rooms and depersonalise as much as you can for the photos.

Good luck!

Volterra · 08/04/2022 13:46

I'm not convinced about your agent. I drive up past Blandford on way to the station in Sherborne (dream of only 11 miles !!!) and I have noticed she isn't quick off the mark with her sales.

I think you are still a bit high price wise. If you don't sell in the couple of weeks it drags on a bit. I'd take it off and relist with new agent after making a few of the smaller changes suggested.

loobylou44 · 08/04/2022 14:04

My first thought is that the front of the house looks murky and not very inviting.
Downstairs photos are all dark and not very inviting. I like the look of the downstairs but the dullness of the photos don't do it any justice.
Upstairs looks a lot lighter but the beds look too big for the rooms and don't appear to leave much floor space.

poorlybaby · 08/04/2022 14:13

It looks like a lovely house!

My main comment would be the photos don't do it justice. They need 'brightening'. A simple edit would sort that out.

E.g. the one of the garden patio where you can see the shade just makes it looks dark and dreary not like somewhere I would picture sitting in the summer.

If you're not getting anyone viewing it mostly has to be down to the price. How many valuations did you get on it? When we put ours up a few months ago one agent valued at £50k more than the other! So some will massively overprice just to get you to sign with them.

Good luck - it looks like a lovely house and I imagine when you do get people through the door it will sell quickly! Could you do an open house maybe to get people in and viewing?

Alwayscheerful · 08/04/2022 15:23

It all looks great up to picture 8
And once I got to picture 9 I changed my mind.
The room with the sloped roof - remove the ivy / greenery , remove the window covering and put up a plain white roller blind . De clutter.

MySecretHistory · 08/04/2022 15:46

[quote Dumblebum]Op I can’t work out what the prevjous pics are, some of the missing rooms are there, but the furniture looks different Ie in the conservatory but others the same pics. Did you try to sell it before?

www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatching.html?prop=109327949&sale=40913028&country=england[/quote]
They are better pictures overall

MySecretHistory · 08/04/2022 15:46

@Twinkletwinklelittletoes

I mean the fact you've got doubles in the kids rooms is good and i certainly wouldn't be rushing to replace them with singles. It shows you can get a double in there. If you had singles one might think that it wasn't possible to fit doubles in so this demonstrates that you've got double bedrooms, even if they are small.

You cant get a double in there- that the point!

User748956 · 08/04/2022 16:52

House is he ok apart from the conservatory which needs doors putting on it from the house and the garden which I noticed is artificial grass, so the one bit of green there is is plastic.

Clevs · 08/04/2022 17:15

I'm going to go against the grain and say that the first picture isn't bad at all, and it would catch my eye if I was looking. We have been on Rightmove constantly in recent months looking for a new house, and decent parking was one of our priorities. Your first picture would make me click on it and look more because the driveway is so big.

I also don't have any issues with the rendering - I didn't even notice it until previous posters pointed it out.

As I scrolled through the pictures the first thing that stood out to me was how dark the kitchen looks even with the lights on.

A better view of the garden would be better if you can get one with all of the separate areas in.

Tidy up a bit, declutter and make the beds tidier. Even if you put all your clutter back after the photos are taken.

I can't believe the estate agent didn't ask you to move things or tidy up before they took the photos. When our estate agent took photos they were telling me what to move eg. take towels off the towel rail, remove the bin from the bathroom, move the toothbrushes out of sight etc.

I wasn't happy with some of the photos that were taken of my house, but I had an offer of the asking price before it even went on the market. If the sale fell though then I would be asking them to come back and take some more. They were taken with an iPhone which probably doesn't help and it was a winters day and getting dark. I actually had to remind her to go outside and take photos before it got dark. Then when she did the inside ones the lights needed to be in which didn't produce the best photos.

CottonSock · 08/04/2022 19:09

I can't quite believe people are put off by a rumpled duvet!

Waveifyouknowme · 08/04/2022 19:20

VikingNorthUtsire

girlmom21

OP the other issue you have is you're nowhere near a train station. 11 miles is really far when you're in such a built up area.

Welcome to Dorset 😂 if you're buying in this area you'll know which towns are on a train line and which aren't.

Wait until she finds out about the busses

WowIlikereallyhateyou · 08/04/2022 19:23

Looks very drab, needs patio needs a jet wash. Inside very grey. Liven it up a bit with some lighter colurs.