No viewings - please tell me what I need to change in house!

[Whywontitsell]

Desperately trying to sell a house that we've never lived in and is nowhere near where we're currently living. We move around with DH's job and have accommodation provided with that, so we bought the house 6 years ago to keep us on the ladder.

We've already dropped the price from £500k to £490k to now £475k, but there's just zero interest. It's definitely not looking its best having had (good) tenants in for the past few years - some dodgy curtains left up and some hanging off the track! So the pics definitely aren't selling it well.

We live about a 3 hour drive away but I have a week off soon. If I go through there to do some work - what would I be best to focus on? The showhome pics make it look so nice - I presume you can't add a link to these on the Rightmove ad? An empty house is just so unappealing...

I would really appreciate any advice...

House:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/143709212#/?channel=RES_BUY

I’m talking about sold prices. And I know what my area is doing.

Rural areas are different to popular cities, and the property market is without question affected by CoL crisis and high interest rates. Nonetheless, annual U.K. house price inflation was 1.7% in the year to June 2023. So that’s an increase of 6500 in one year.

Buyers don’t offer ask unless the market is hot anyway.

It doesnt matter much if most people cant sell their property without a sizeable price cut, look at the sales volumes for various areas and see how the headline price stats are more and more meaningless as sales fall.

https://www.plumplot.co.uk/house-prices-by-region.html

Headline prices are always meaningless!

The only thing that matters is the sold price vs the previous sold price.

Not really, I am saying that they are more or less meaningless now because of the much smaller sales volumes they are based on, it was the headline prices from the same vested interest mortgage lenders that helped create a massive property bubble as people chased "the ladder" with cheap debt, people wanted to buy before the price went up further, now the money lenders are desperately trying to spin the headline numbers so people don`t stop buying (or borrowing to "buy" more accurately)

We’ve been in a property bubble for 20 or so years, there have been peaks and troughs within that bubble, notably the financial crisis.

added to which

when OP brought l in 2018 for £385k it was a new build, so brand spanking new with all the guarantees etc

Now… 6 years of multiple tenants, it is not new and those guarantees will have expired or coming to an end

Indeed. Property prices have increased since 2018.

Perfectly possible - we bought a property for £170k in 2017 sold it for £375k in 2023. No improvements but highly desirable location.

op bought it as new build

now 6 years of multiple tenants and looking tatty

I see 6 years of someone else paying the mortgage and no capital gains tax to pay on disposal of the asset. Good for the OP.

Why the surprise that the house is now off the market / not for sale thru that agent ?

The OP did say that their circumstances had changed very very recently and they could / would continue to rent out the house.

And...sooooo many of us advised her to change the estate agent !

I think that you may need to attend my secret squirrel investigation course! I think you got the wrong home twice and now I think you have the circumstances wrong too. I don't think she did buy it as a new build.

I'll sign you up too! For a reduced rate. The property was first sold 2 years before. It's public record.

Yes, but ..... 😆

Not really, the "financial crisis" saw interest rates cut to zero to keep it all going when the banks looked like going under, to me that is just continuing the peak and making it bigger, now that rates have risen at their fastest pace in 40 years in response to inflation we are heading for the trough, and I think it will be a deep one. The suggestion that there have been normal market "peaks and troughs" during the last couple of decades (15 years to be more precise) of financial experimentation isn`t correct IMO, to me cheap lending = Bubble, No more cheap lending = Bubble Pop.

Oh dear...I think we can all work out what's happened here 😂

All that people are looking at is size, location, and price (for many it will be how much their lender says it is worth) it would have to be really dirty and in massive disrepair to put people off on that front IMO, most people will tackle a bit of cleaning and DIY if they like the house and location (and most importantly price) As rates were zero when it last sold it is likely that it was overvalued back then, so the asking price now isn`t sensible IMO.

Maybe had a generous cash offer based on this thread. 😂

Exactly, people know that a house doesn`t appreciate that much in value over a few years, all that was pushing prices before was cheap lending.