Nightmare trying to sell our house

[PinkBubblesxx]

We are trying to get to sell our very well presented new build lived in home and having a complete nightmare with complete utter time wasters 😫 Our home is in a great central but green location in a very family oriented area and is priced fairly (10k under its market value) to encourage interest.

We have been on the market for over 2 months now and had at least 30 viewing's! We have had a handful of offers of chancers offering £40k under the asking price, which we strongly declined. And the other offers we have had, have offered asking price, which we happily accepted. As soon as we have accepted they have either gone quiet and just ignored the estate agent, one offer had to supposedly rush back to Nigeria for a family emergency then not to be heard from again, we've had 2 offers when they have to submit their paperwork and have an affordability check and it turns out they can't afford their offer or even pull out a mortgage! Last week we had an offer from ideal first time buyers and we had our hopes so high that this was the one! They dragged their feet all week to submit their paperwork to the estate agents broker - which we found odd. They then asked for a 3rd viewing which we found highly frustrating but of course entertained it as we want a sale. The day before the 3rd viewing the estate agent had qualified them being able to purchase and had a mortgage in place, so they marked our property as sold over the weekend. This morning they emailed the agent saying they had changed their minds 😫 the agent pressed for a reason behind the sudden u turn and they said the mortgage rate they had now been offered was slightly more than what they thought they would get 😫

So we are back to square one, having to entertain viewings - which are really draining! Especially where we already had at least 30! Me and my partner are at wits end and it's really making us feel so ill and depressed from all the stress of it all as we have found our dream home but feel like it will just get snapped up! We have been messed around with so called serious offers so much that we have lost all hope 😫 Even the estate agency is just as frustrated with the amount of time wasters we have had! We have a prime home in a prime in demand location and £10k under the market value.

Is it just us having bad luck trying to sell our home or is anyone else experiencing the same? As it's honestly becoming unbearable 😫

Finger crossed we are exchanging contracts this week. I feel your pain , we had about 20 viewings, changed estate agents, many viewers putting in cheeky offers, others asking price never to be heard of again.
My main annoyance was people coming to view then saying " oh you have no downstairs toilet " why would you not look at the floorplan, we were on Rightmove and when I was looking at houses it was the first thing I would look at, for layout and sizes of rooms

I agree with this. Next time you get an offer for 40k under, I would use it as a starting point for negotiations and see where you end up.

Crikey where is this ? It must be a super popular area ?

In my area in the South East I've noticed a lot of properties on for several months , I think there are just so many and interest rates are high and buy to let is not so attractive .

Hi OP, I would reccommend that you only allow viewings for people with mortgages in principle. otherwise you will just be messed around

Those are very easy to get, you can do it in a couple of hours.

shes not being messed about other than by one couple . People are viewing as they are interested, she’s had offers, just people do not think it’s worth what she thinks it’s worth.

the op is strangely hung up on 10k less than market value, but there is no such thing as market value as an absolute number, it’s a corridor and it is only worth what someone will pay.

I actually think that you're in the right ball park with price as you are getting so many viewings. I wouldn't be that disheartened and wouldn't do anything drastic unless you're desperate to sell.

There are clearly buyers around. Many buyers feel like they should be getting a deal due to the current market and the media emphasising this so I think you will naturally get more chancers. I think many buyers are in the mindset that they must offer 10% less even if the house is already reasonably priced.

Also there have been two offers of asking price. The sales have fallen through but I think that's a definite sign the price isn't unreasonable.

You probably need to put it on for £440 lk and then drop. Everyone likes a bargain.

OP there is absolutely no point advertising your house for 10k less for what you or the agent think is market value - which is a moot point as a house is worth only what someone will pay for it.

Buyers will offer around 10% under the ask so if you want 425 for it you need to put it on at 460k. The house that sold for 440k was probably on at around 460-70. No-one offers the asking price unless the market is really hot and/or they’re desperate to buy.

In any case you’re selling at a time when no-one is buying or selling and everyone waiting to see if interest rates come down. So you need to be prepared to be patient.

I agree that you are getting too hung up on what you perceive to be ‘market value’ . They weren’t cheeky offers just offers that people thought was what they were prepared to offer! You should have made a counter offer! The fact you didn’t makes a buyer think you are just not interested in getting a sale. If you have found your dream property you need to rethink your price and strategy!

Have you sold a house before OP?

yep, west London, there is an outstanding primary school so anywhere close to it is sold 25K above the asking at minimum. Our sale fall through as we were gaslighted on price and two offers at asking rejected due to others bidding significantly higher :(

I wonder if people are viewing your property when they are unable to afford the asking price? The housing market has slowed down, so perhaps people are viewing your house when it is outside their affordability, assuming that they will be able to negotiate the price down because things are slow? For those who have offered asking price, they are maybe finding the monthly mortgage payments are higher than they anticipated. Some people will not appreciate the difference between a mortgage repayment on 1.6% vs 4.8% until they actually crunch the numbers. Yes, people should do this before actually putting an offer in but not everyone will. I wouldn’t rush to reduce the price or accept an offer 40k lower just yet.

"£10k under the market value."

market value is the price the market is willing to pay for it.
If it hasn't sold after 30 "time wasters" then whatever figure you've been told is the market value, isn't the market value.

That's your asking price - nothing to do with it's market value.

House prices can fall as well as rise.

I think a house taking a while to sell in a slow market isn't always overpriced. Of course, if you need a fast sale then you must price the house accordingly but sellers right now would be prudent to wait a while before cutting prices too drastically. In contrast, a house selling in a burning hot market isn't necessarily great value for money even if it sells immediately.

If OP uses relevant data from similar houses sold nearby then she probably does have a decent grasp of market value. That doesn't mean the house will be snapped up or that lots of prospective buyers will be desperate to put in offers, but she is probably in the right ballpark and may need to be patient to achieve the price she wants. It's like someone selling a valuable commodity of any sort in a slow market. You may have to wait for the right person if buyers are thin on the ground but it doesn't mean that the market value is hugely lower than what the goods are being marketed for.

So you've put it on the market for £430k and you're being offered £390k ish?

Yep - seems legit. 10% under is a really standard opening offer - it's not insulting or absurd at all. Sounds like you need to change your expectations tbh.

We're looking to buy this year and the change in interest rates' effect on what our mortgage would cost us each month means our limit is substantially lower than it used to be, and that's no doubt the same for many buyers. 'Market price' isn't relevant anymore.

A timely point. I just did the maths on what a house would cost us (total cost of mortgage over 25 years) at 90% LTV between 2017 and now, off the back of what I know banks charge FTBs versus the Bank of England base rate.

The numbers came out at between 39 and 51% more expensive for the lifetime of the mortgage when buying in 2024. I was looking at 4 houses sold between 2017 and 2021.

Other first time buyers will also be considering this.

Example (the 51% difference one)

House I know sold in 2021 for 230k
Mortgage rate approx 0.75%
Total cost to owner 2021 - 250k
Total cost to owner 2024 - 378k (@ 4.8% mortgage rate - we can get below the base rate right now, the bloody thing just jumped by 0.20% in the last 3 weeks again)

It's folly not to take affordability into account and if the sorts of FTBs you seem to be attracting don't feel like they're getting a really good deal, they'll probably continue to get cold feet on you after a period of umming and ahhhing.

And folks would be stupid to assume that mortgage rates of 0.75% are going to return any time in the near future.

I gotta say, a 7 year old new build is a particularly unattractive prospect imo. Especially if other new builds are going up in the area that are priced similarly, which they often are. 7 years of bathrooms and kitchens being used. 7 year old appliances. Only 3 years left on the NHBC. And, more often than not, the owners haven't done anything to them, so your kitchens and bathrooms will be plain and basic AF, unless you bought a really high spec property in the first place. It barely takes 7 years for home decor tastes to change, either.

Of course, if your property is swanky and you have upgraded it to be delightful, you can feel free to dismiss my opinion!

Currently watching a 10yo NB in an extremely desirable area drop in increments of 20k at a time where the owner hasn't done anything to it. In comparison to those two surrounding that did have stuff done and flew off the shelf earlier in the year.

Totally agree re not so new new builds. Especially if tiles, kitchen units etc chosen originally were of the moment (thinking greys and navy..) they can actually look dated quite quickly. Builders will be offering deals, choice of spec, and other incentives. You are up against it OP. If you could bide your time, I think I would.

Ours was around 15 years old when we sold some years ago. At that point, building had slowed a lot around the estate and we had a good plot in a good location. We hadn’t changed anything major other than decor which we kept neutral but with some colour, but it was presented immaculately and totally uncluttered (not our usual style at all!). We had spent around 20k on the garden, which was in full bloom when we put it on the market. Completely styled it for viewing days, such hard work but I think it helped it to feel “established”.

We went against the EA valuation and went higher, so we could seemingly negotiate if needed. As it happens, we had full asking but I think this is a good tactic. You’ll soon know if it’s not for you.

Best of luck and hope you keep the thread updated.

Or your asking price.

This.

@PinkBubblesxx

The house that sold for £440k - was that the asking price or the actual price that was paid?

I was shocked at how much I had to reduce to get an offer, (very decent period house in a very secure/popular area) in the end I took my house off the market, will redecorate/sort the garden out and sort a few minor maintenance issues, then re-list in the hope that the market might be moving a bit again by the autumn.

Is it worth asking the EA of the house you'd like to buy if their vendor is being realistic, if you can both drop ten% then it would work in your favour?

New builds are niche, like all houses, but if it's only been 2 months I don't think you have to panic just yet? Especially with an election on the landscape