Houses aren’t selling

[pleasepackitin]

At least not in my area (Staffordshire) houses are sitting on the market for months, some a year ! And eventually reducing by quite alot.
We have recently gone on the market, had 5 viewings, another booked for this week, but I’m not feeling very hopeful. I think we’re priced reasonably and we are priced to sell. But I’m already getting anxiety because we’ve seen a house we love but cannot move forwards until we get a buyer!!
Anyone else in the same situation?

No need to apologise - just curious and pondering as I’m not an experienced seller at all. Even this house was half-inherited and I bought my sibling out a decade ago with a mortgage and did it up.

With mine I think there are two things - yes, probably was overpriced; maybe by up to £40k? (I did knock 10% /£40k off). Had it valued by four agents and even put it on at the lowest valuation because of this but still no joy.

The house is a decent sized cottage - one v large bedroom and two other doubles, plus kitchen, lounge and dining room, in the greenbelt. Good transport links and schools. But, it’s only got a tiny garden with no room to extend this, and both young families who came to view said the house was great but the garden was too small. The other three houses for sale on my lane of 30 properties have all been on 2+ years and I think they are all victims of the same overpricing. It’s a conservation area and agents use that to put a premium on.

Anyway, took it off a year ago for a break. Will get the Budget and Xmas over and reconsider in the Spring.

I've been keeping an eye on our local housing market as looking to move next year. 3-4 bed houses that are in immaculate condition with modern kitchens and bathrooms are being snapped up - our neighbours just sold in a week. But plenty of other properties have been on for a long time, often 6 months or more, with several price reductions.

We're cash buyers, currently renting, so I thought we'd be in a great position to negotiate a good price on our next purchase. But no, vendors around here (Worcestershire) are digging their heals in with their overpriced Properties. One house, priced at £485, has been on the market since May. We offered 470 and they said no. Said they want minimum 490 - so more than it's on for! Another place has been on for over a year and won't negotiate at all. I have about 20 stagnant properties on my watch list that have been there at the same price for months on end.

Having said that, there are a few sensibly priced places coming onto the market and selling quickly, so sensible vendors are finding buyers.

People like that are not motivated enough to sell. Or there is something wrong with the properties

OP, we’re in Staffordshire too and sold our house in South Staffs over the Summer after being on the market for 7 weeks.
Houses normally sold very quickly on that estate, within days usually, but the market had really slowed down and even now houses that were up for sale well before our house went on the market are still available, one has been on Rightmove since January and has been reduced twice.

We’ve now moved to a new build in East Staffs (we were cash buyers and our buyer was too and was in rented accommodation so the whole process from the offer to completion took 43 days) and while I don’t know the housing market here in general, the houses on this estate have sold signs on them before they’re properly built.

The agents obviously don"t really have a clue, time to change to a more realistic/informed agent?

Yes, I don't think it's clear that Blackrock, etc will be buying up everything, at least not yet. What I meant in my earlier point is that population numbers falling in some areas in the US, as immigrants leave, means that LLs can't charge high enough rents to make it worth their while purchasing more properties.That then lowers the demand for homes for sale more when buyers who want to live in the homes are already relatively thin on the ground. In some areas, there is very low demand but very high supply.
Who knows how it will all settle in the end.

Just here to update - we sold in 2 weeks, got 5k under asking which we was happy with. We managed to get the house we’d seen, moving in around mid December !

Similar in North Hampshire.

There are seven 4 bed detached houses of varying ages for sale in our very small village. On the market for between 4 months and 2 years. One has finally sold after 18 months.

A developer has just built 30 new houses on the edge of the village and only the affordable homes have sold (to the local housing association). Nothing else is moving.

I think it's a combination of waiting for the budget and the CoL.

Maybe they will start knocking down houses? The "no money down" model definitely seems to be broken.

Good result, well done, good luck!

" only the affordable homes have sold (to the local housing association)."

Could that lower the value of property in the village?

Some people on here get really offended when you say things that they don't want to hear so thank you for not doing that!
It sounds as if your home has many positives, just that all the local owners are pricing too high. If you came to market again and priced say 15% lower and competitively compared to your neighbours, you may find that the families are prepared to overlook the small garden. Personally, I wouldn't leave it too late in the year because I only see things getting worse economically speaking.

They might. I follow a few US housing experts intermittently. One of them made this exact comment on a podcast fairly recently.

That's great news. Congratulations!

Can"t really see any tough decisions happening in the budget, could be wrong though, they need to be careful about market reaction, I heard somewhere that a change of leader at this stage could also be market negative.

Always quiet round here on run up to Christmas and many are nervy prior to the budget. I suspect it will pick up in the New Year. Now is a good time to declutter in and out to make it market ready

I used to work for a new homes developer and still have friends inn the business
They all tell me its is desperately slow with hardly any enquiries
Potential buyers on their database are deterred by the increases in cost of living and taxes
Also by the fact that buyers who need a mortgage are aware that the govt will probably to increase taxes throughout their tenure in office which makes financial planning very difficult
They also said that many potential buyers are also saying that with companies are making less money, consumer confidence very low, people are aware that redundancies are possible at a time that the job market is also shot to pieces

It’s certainly led to a lot less “action” for people trying to sell. I used to know a couple who went round looking at houses just for something “fun” to do at the weekend! I guess that may mean less people just happen to fall in love with a house they didn’t originally have any intention of buying, but I can’t imagine there were ever very many of them.

I agree. I've said on here a few times, but on other threads, that I think they will only be able to force major changes through following a crisis.
I can't see KS going improving things at all. Who else is there?! Apart from that, they will be thwarted by the electorate and their own MPs in terms of making changes.

Exactly right, particularly your last paragraph.

Yes those are two factors but the problem is that the 'COL' is permanent, rather than temporary. There is next to no prospect of the economy suddenly improving plus all the other current negative factors.

I agree, and I also suggest that people with an attitude like that will be a nightmare further down the legal process. In my experience they are the people who on the day of completion announce they want £5k for carpets and curtains. Or some such silly contrivance.

I think there are also many people who have watched the incessant rise in property prices and somehow think that is the way it has always been, that there is an entitlement to the 'wealth' they have 'earned' in house prices rising. When in fact, even in my 50 year lifetime, there have been many ups and downs of house prices. But people have short memories.

Find a motivated and reasonable seller.

And yet the new development I just moved to last week was the fastest selling development that they had in a few years, and off the back of the strength of sales the next phase has been started. Apparently they have a waiting list of potential buyers who missed out on phase 1, who are greater in number than the 64 houses of phase 2...
I had 5 other buyers in line behind my house purchase, all of whom had been qualified by the developer who do not accept offers unless your house is already under offer.
Meanwhile, the developments up the road who have crowded in houses and just 'identikit' streets if the same houses are half sold. My place has greenspace, mixed houses, wider streets, decent views etc etc.
This is in central Scotland, where property prices are lower relative to income and in a place with significant new jobs planned over the next few years.

I agree with the other replies. They aren't serious sellers. They are in cloud cuckoo land. Stick to your guns and don't overpay. You are in a great position.