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

[InTheCludgie]

Hi everyone here is the new thread for those of us who are about to, or are currently trying to, sell our homes!

So we are now back on the market and have a viewing tomorrow morning, plus one for early next week. This week is a bit tricky as it's DS's birthday so have had to say no to a couple of suggested times for viewings.

How is everyone else getting on?

@FTStheFirstTimeSeller Oo thats hard. Its a good problem to have of course (several good offers to choose from) but I'd struggle with that too!

@FTStheFirstTimeSeller take emotions out of it and go with the cash buyer. You’d be mad not to in the current interest rate environment to be honest!

I know this will sound totally mental but I just have a feeling and so far my feelings were right in business, relocations etc, so hopefully this money transaction too... We agreed to accept the mortgage guys. They are incredibly keen and tried to up the bid even after best and final... As in INCREDIBLY keen. I am also not worried about valuation. Last year houses sold for like 7% more and these were leashold, we are freehold, so shouldn't have an issue. Either way, I am making it very clear to them, they will have to deal with it if it comes lower since we are taking them over cash buyer.

I know. Sounds crazy, but even with emotions out and looking at it realistically, these guys are also under time constraints with matching timeline, have to find somewhere now or wait few years and I believe they will complete no matter what.

I really wish everyone all the best luck. My area is up and coming so it's still really fast market. That's all there is to it. Maybe with addition of me spending 5 minutes on wall art and wallpapers I have😂

I will absolutely come back for "told you so, idiot🤦😂" if it goes belly up.

Good luck @FTStheFirstTimeSeller I hope this next phase goes smoothly and quickly for you.
I have had to deliver an ultimatum to my buyers. We have been ready to exchange since before Christmas but there has been delay after delay on their sale and they have not been up front about the issues. They even came for a pre-exchange visit at the weekend but there are new problems with their sale which only transpired after much digging by my EA. We are giving them until the end of next week to sort or I will need to go back on the market.
I accept the market has changed and don’t expect a choice of offers over after one day of viewing again. I’m prepared to price realistically (as in less than 6 months ago) but the house is in a very desirable NW area and looking at Rightmove, similar properties are still selling and mine is particularly nice due to a fab kitchen extension and landscaped garden.
I’m waiting for a call this morning from my agent who has spoken to the buyer. I’m still hoping for the best and that we can get the sale over the line but I’m preparing for the worst!

@Karmatime Gosh, that sounds hard, how disappointing to have got so far and the buyers still be messing you about. Hope that giving them a last chance to move forward will result in so.e positive action! 🙏

@FTStheFirstTimeSeller I think those are good dound reasons and sometimes you just have to go with your gut instinct on these things.

I'm still waiting for that illusive offer! No feedback from the second viewing at the weekend alas but more requests for viewings are trickling in which is positive, two tomorrow and two at the weekend so keeping fingers and toes crossed.

Sorry @Karmatime that sounds really frustrating. Hate how insecure the whole process is in England until exchange, hope you get it all worked out.

@Lemonandlimejelly thanks, it's so hard! glad you are getting some more viewings, we've only got one booked in this week. Our house is a 3 bed with lots of downstairs space/storage/land compared to others in the area but I've looked more closely at what's available in our area and I think in the current market we might have gone too high....we had three identical valuations and one higher though so we went with what was suggested!

Thanks @Lemonandlimejelly and @curcurbita - it’s just so frustrating, compounded by the fact that we have moved 250 miles away into a rental. I do feel for my buyers but the most frustrating thing is that they don’t keep me, my agent or my solicitor up to date with what’s happening. Even if they cannot give exact dates for getting information from management company etc. I just want to know what’s going on and how serious (or not) the issues are and that they are still proceedable and progressing.
I’m just so fed up with being told every week for 2 months that exchange is imminent when it isn’t!

Can someone help me on estate agent's terms and conditions? Mine says if our house ends up sold via another estate agent - after their sole agency period ends - then if its someone that looked round or even made a telephone enquiry with them, then they are legally due the commission, not the second agent. Is that true? I can't imagine the second agent going along with that? And how would I know? If I'm not doing the viewings, how would I know that Mr X had already made enquiries 2 months previous and is now back on the scene?

Has anyone heard of this before?

The EA sent us the names of everyone having a viewing when they confirmed times with us? So we'd have known from that if they were the same person.

when you finish the first sole agency make sure they give you a list of names that viewed it through them, give this to the new agent and tell them its up to them to make sure that they don’t sell to one of them or if one of the old viewers reappears they need to negotiate with the other agent on your behalf as you wont pay two lots of fees. Its only relevant for 6 months after termination of the original contract is my understanding.

We’ve been on for nearly 3 weeks now and only 1 viewing. Obviously reducing the price might help but the agent is telling me he cant get anyone through the door on most of his properties at all price ranges, its not specific to mine, people just aren’t looking. He’s not an agent that generally overdoes the price, there’s just no buyers right now (south west outer London). So frustrating.

@Tmto we had that issue with the EA giving the same rationale. Looking on Rightmove, it was and still is a very slow market where we are. However, we are quite eager to sell as our offer on a house has been accepted - so we've reduced our price on Monday and now have 4 viewings booked.

If you can wait it out, Spring is just around the corner and there may be more interest. But reducing the price did help for me... fingers crossed one of them turns into an offer!

Originally we were going to wait til the Spring but since seen a new build we’re interested in however it requires some negotiation. The numbers are tight so haven’t got very far we can move our asking price by but equally we have to have an offer to start a more serious the negotiation as its all been hypothetical with the developer to date, its a bit chicken and egg. I think we’ll hold out for another couple of weeks and keep everything crossed then see if a small reduction generates anything, otherwise will need to think again on the onward.

~ Apologies - rant incoming ~

Is anyone who’s in the supposed (but-I’ll-believe-it-when-I-bloody-see-it) pre-exchange phase getting soooo many questions from their buyer? Every day I get more bloody questions and it’s really starting to push me towards the edge… Like, either have a full list and send them all in one go and I’ll work through them and then that can be that, or just bloomin stop! It feels a bit like I’m being assessed, and each time I submit, although my answers are correct, they’re not quite good enough, so along come more questions, but on totally different things.

I put my house on the market just under 11 months ago and there has been so much time wasted and bad luck, and I feel just done with the whole process, I really do. My EA assures me that my buyer is still really keen, so why all these nit-picking questions that are like constant sharp little kicks to the nuts?

Have now found advice along the same lines on the Homeowners Alliance website so thank you very much @Tmto

Hi!

I’ve been reading the thread and getting excited about joining. We weren’t going to sell our house until next year but a property has come on close to us so we had a look around. I really didn’t think I’d like it as it needs gutting. My DP absolutely loved it and I liked it and after talking about options got really excited about it.
We went for 2 viewings with the EA. Put in an offer at the second viewing. One week ago… and have heard absolutely nothing🤨 The EA just won’t text or call us back. He said he would give the family (probate property) our offer and has just ignored us since. I just don’t get it. I’ve been stressing getting our house ready to sell but now I’m just deflated.

Has this happened to anyone else? The house has been on the market for over 2 months and absolutely everything needs doing to it. I know they have had a couple other people interested but none have sold their houses so all in same position.

I’m assuming your house hasn’t sold? If so then your offer is a bit meaningless as you aren’t in a position to proceed. Why don’t you try again when you’ve sold your house and they might be more receptive.

Had two week during the week and three back to back viewings today. One of the viewings today was a second viewing. We have another 3 viewings booked in for the next two weeks.
My husband really got his hopes up today. And now this evening after not hearing back he is extremely dissapointed, stressed and depressed. He thinks if the person who saw the house for a second time would have wanted to put an offer in, he would have done so today.
I told him and am clinging on to the thought that that isn't necessarily the case. Especially in a buyers market. But what has everybody else's experience been.
My husband really doesn't want to lower the price anymore. But he also doesn't want to rent the house out. Feel like he is acting a bit like a petulant child tonight.
Trying to remain almost, but he is stressing me out.

@Rapunzel91 sorry you are deflated. You need to get yours on the market and under offer unfortunately unless very lucky . It being on the market for a bit often doesn’t mean much with probate properties as people sometimes put them on whilst waiting for probate which is taking around 16 weeks apparently.

I’m involved in a family probate sale and we would have asked the agent to politely tell you to come back once you have an offer on yours.

Maybe not all is lost. 2 of mine put offer in the next day. I get it, it's weekend, they have some deinks and discuss, sleep on it and then hopefully you will have your offer! Fingers crossed!!!
Might wait til Monday, but keep positive

@FigandHoney I had 2 offers come in on a Monday afternoon after Saturday viewings and that was a few months ago when things were more competitive so don’t give up on today’s viewings yet. Keeping 🤞for you.

Hello, we are about to out our house up for sale so I wanted to join in to have people to chat to!

We only moved 2 years ago so it is all still quite fresh in our minds. We don’t like our new street, especially our neighbour, and now seems a good time to move.

I'm quite anxious about it all as we are on an extremely tight budget. We own our house outright and although we could get a mortgage for around £90k, we are aiming for around £50k as we have a fairly low income and want to be sensible.

We had 1 valuation last week at £225k. We are in a semi-detached at the moment but want a detached, so we're hoping going up to a maximum of around £280k will allow us something similar but not attached.

There are no houses for sale and we have the problem of whether to put the house on now or wait. A dream house came up last week, but obviously we missed out. It was lovely with a big garden and had been on the market a while but reduced into our budget last week.

We're quite fussy about the area and I want a nice garden and no tiny 3rd bedrooms. Other than that (and being detached) were flexible and would prefer a doer upper.

I hate this bit of waiting, it's so stressful. We have 2 more valuations this week so we'll see how it goes.

Hello all.

Agent chosen. Photos being done next week.

Have radically decluttered, thank goodness, so house has a minimalist air about it. Hope it will photograph well. Just a few bits of cleaning and touching up and I'm good to go.

Good luck everyone.

Good luck @AtLastDay the decluttering and cleaning is a killer but sounds like you have it sorted!

@OUB1974 the waiting is stressful but dou ds like you have given it a lot of thought 🙂hopefully the right house is just around the corner.

@FigandHoney waiting for the offer to come in is tortuous bug a second viewing is great news. I think people are taking a bit of time to think things over at the moment.

I've just accepted an offer 😃I had a flurry of viewings and had a good offer from a cash buyer (investor wanting to buy a property to rent out). Its a great offer and she's chain free. Very pleased but daredn't count my chicjens till they're hatched 😬

Whooop @Lemonandlimejelly ! Fingers crossed all goes well!

We have bank valuator coming tomorrow. So i am yet again super cleaning and obsessively checking everything 😂 hopefully they will actually look at last year's market and what houses like this sold for.