Going to view a house today that I want badly !

[skidamarinkadinka]

Gorgeous 1930s detached house, needs alot of modernising, huge garden, big drive and garage. It's on a main road into town but all the houses on this road are the same and just so lovely to look at.
We are not on the market yet but plan to get the same estate agents to list us asap. We need to move, we've outgrew this house in the last two years.
They want £450k. It was reduced in October.
Feedback has been the main road putting people off and also the work that will need doing.
How can we up our chances ?
We can probably go upto £430k but that would be the maximum.

Well you may have to. You don’t know level of interest yet

Well, the agents aren’t showing it if that is the case. They’re not very forthcoming ! I thought with double commission on the agenda they’d be all over it, apparently not !

In other news BIL has come back with his valuation, he has said £420k at a max £430k but he said to bare in mind he hasn’t physically been into the property

Well it would be an unprofessional EA to be showing frustration about their client

but think about it…. It’s been a year. They’ve spent money and time and got zero back for it. Of course they’ll feel frustrated that this very aged couple don’t seem to want to move

What has BIL based this on?

If they sell and it’s their second property, then they’ll have to pay CGT

if I was them, given they aren’t like to be here for many more years…. I’d move to new property they’ve already bought and either rent or leave vacant this one. Then it will just form part of their inheritance with no CGT

i reckon that’s what they hoping for.

People who want to move and have already purchased their onward property…. Especially given their ages… would have moved by now.

a year later and they haven’t. This is a couple that doesn’t want to move

Not sure, but he is a surveyor so I’m confident of his opinion.
and yes I am getting the feeling it’s the husband that isn’t too fussed about moving. But why would you buy another property and list your current one if that’s the case ?!

I think you need to be curious about the basis of his valuation as may be important d influence what you negotiate on

where is your dh in all this?

family pressure op
pure and simple

He did mention how this is his daughter’s inheritance hence them being involved. Which is fine of course, I do get that, but I don’t think it’s helping us being quite blunt.
Dh is very much the same as me he wants the house, fell in love with it too, but is more head over heart and willing to stand firm on the offer and walk away if we have too.

I am getting the feeling it’s the husband that isn’t too fussed about moving. But why would you buy another property and list your current one if that’s the case ?!

They haven't "bought" another property, @skidamarinkadinka; like you all they've done is offer on a property and list their own, which any fool can do

I fully agree with Pillopads that the estate agent will be fed up with the unsold house - after all it's not earned them their commission, which is all they're interested in - but as long as it's on theirr books they have to sound enthusiastic or risk earning nothing at all

Given that the OP has asked them to list her house and they aren't sending round a photographer for over a week, I'd question how on it they are as agents too. It sounds like a combination of unmotivated seller and uninspired agent to me.

They have bought a house, half their stuff has been moved in already

Ah, I hadn't twigged that ... makes the whole thing sound even stranger

I know ! 😆 it’s actually stressing me out abit now because I just think well what else can we do? We can’t do anything can we, that’s the reality, so if he isn’t going to budge I guess we’ll have to just walk away. We will leave it on the table though.

I think it's all explained by the daughters' inheritance thing to be honest. They have no pressure to move but pressure (even from themselves) to sell for the highest price possible for their daughters' sake. I think everyone who has put a house up for sale has felt a bit crushed when they've had to reduce - you see it on here all the time - but when the motivation is to get a house sold so you can move on it helps; it's transactional. Whereas this sale is purely heart for them - selling a house they love to provide for their children in their future.

I just think well what else can we do?

Personally I'd view some of the other much nicer properties for sale in the area which don't appear to come with so many apparent problems, @skidamarinkadinka - while, as you've said, still leaving the offer on the table

It may even be that, once you've been inside them, you come to wonder what the hell the appeal of this one was

I think you’re right. He said it himself.

We are looking still, I think I’m just so invested in this house I’m blinded I guess.

Tried really hard not to let it stress you out, make bookings to see other houses because it will give you some idea of the market and also it'll probably get back to him that you're looking around so maybe he'll feel a little unsettled that you're just pay what he wants and it might make him think about accepting a more realistic offer.

And breathe!!

Op, are you ND? The reason I ask is that this absolute blind focus on this property despite deafening alarm bells would indicate that you have lost sight that this is

a) a property that no one else is interested in and hasn’t been interested in for a year
b) and very elderly couple in poor health who have a property ready and waiting for them but haven’t moved yet
c) directly opposite an enormous secondary school
d) in need of fairly substantial reno on a very tight budget

They've said they will wait for us to get ours on the market, which should be by next week!

I would have had to have hid my smile when he said this. He will “wait a week” will he? When he’s been waiting a year and squat all interest!😂

I am autistic yes, I did post this early on actually.

That sound like our scenario, we are now in for 7 years.

Ok so I think you need to consider this op
because even before you’d seen the property you’d said it was your “dream home”