Viewing a house that has been on the market for a year

[Cathbach]

What questions should I ask? How much do agents have to disclose?

When I asked the agent on the phone they were just quite breezy and said a couple of sales had fallen through. But it seems a long time? Or is it normal?

I’m a first time buyer, I know nothing about buying property and it’s all so daunting!

The house I live in now was on the market for a year or so. I believe a couple of sales had fallen through. We did ask ourselves what’s wrong with it, why hasn’t it been snapped up (great location- properties rarely come onto the market, good price etc).

We have been here a few years now and there’s nothing wrong with it all. We’ve done lots of work to it and it’s lovely.

I know a couple whose house was on the market for almost fourteen years,the husband was keen to reduce the asking price but the wife refused.

They eventually sold to a couple who were moving from a much more expensive part of the country,by then the asking price was about average for that type of property and the buyers considered it a bit of a bargain.

One in three house sales collapse in England.. our house has been on the market for 10 months now, two offers, both times the chain collapsed.. our home is definitely not overpriced, as per 3 estate agents.. when a chain is involved, invariably there will be issues.
Basically nothing sinister.. just the luck of the draw.

I think more expensive houses often take longer to sell, as do houses that require renovation- because a smaller portion of people can afford that price level or are prepared to take on the work. But they often do sell for near the asking price, it just takes longer. I’m about to put ours on the market, we’re moving into an inherited house. I won’t be dropping the price for several mouths. The house needs a fair bit of work but it’s priced to reflect that. It would be worth a lot more if the work was done. We don’t have a mortgage and we’re not in a selling chain so we’ve no rush. Even if it sits there several months we will only pay a few thousand in council tax and bills, which is less than what we’d lose dropping the price… So I’d rather wait a while. Other houses in the area have done this and sold 12-18 months later. But they’re 250 year old rural properties- so it’s a bit different to a run of the mill house.

We’ve had three sales fall through over the past 10 months.

We’ve also had loads of offers from unproceedable buyers, or buyers who were planning to finance the purchase by weird and wonderful means that were not actually practical.

In this market I’d say it’s more normal than not.

A house locally was for sale a while whilst a chain was built up, and then collapsed because the buyers at the bottom of the chain (not the buyer of that house at all) pulled out on the day of exchange. Nothing whatsoever to do with the house in question at all.
Ask why it's been for sale for a while and see what they say.

Normal in the current market. Both the house we sold and the house we bought were on the market for over a year. Nothing wrong with either of them, just a slow market. We had a couple of offers from buyers who then went on to lose their buyer. We were in a horrible long chain too, but got there in the end. Have now found out the roof leaks, despite having a level 2 RICS survey,
but that is another story altogether.......

Be careful though as estate agents never lose,they play owners against each other for their monetary gain & aren't working necessarily for vendors or buyers.
Estate agents have their vested interests first...

Be careful though as estate agents never lose,they play owners against each other for their monetary gain & aren't working necessarily for vendors or buyers.
Estate agents have their vested interests first...

We've got our eye on on that's been on the market for nearly 2 years. It's a probate house which has been granted. It's mainly liveable but needs a new boiler, the double garage needs reroofing (flat roof not tiled,) and were considering turning half the garage into a useable room.

It could be very over priced and no one is offering (agent may have lied) or they have had offers but they have fallen through because it is over priced or it is possible they have just been very unlucky. It is true that lots of sale are falling through. Some buyers are unable to get finance or are already running into problems with unemployment. I also think that people are generally anxious about costs at present so more likely to pull out if they think they may be over paying compared to usual times. Another possibility is that the sellers are extremely awkward and are putting people off.

You need to email the agent and ask him why it has been on the market so long and why other buyers pulled out. Ask him to disclose if they had concerns following the survey. Find out as much information as you can. Also, do your research carefully on the local market and don't be pressured into paying more than you think it is worth. If your aim is to make significant money on it over the next 3-5 years, it's quite unlikely that you will be successful (at least not in real terms).

I think it also depends on location and price bracket.

Where I am, things aren't selling fast and most of the properties on my Property-Website-Shortlist just aren't budging.

Another thought @Cathbach. Download property log on google chrome for info about reductions. Also, have a look at MovinghomewithCharlie on X/ YouTube. He has some good advice for FTB/, making offers, etc

You may be missing a good buy ?
Maybe a bargain when money becomes more available again
With property at a particular price point being sluggish because of
Current money markets after liz Truss's disaster can be making an opening for shrewd buyers who realise money availability is fluid , & changes at it's own agenda.
Ask yourself do you want to be on the right place when it does.?