No viewings on our house - would these things put you off?

[Wallawallawallaby1]

We've had no interest at all...is it the market or is our house just priced too high? We're in the South West (Salisbury), and I'm told by the EA the house is a tricky one to value. It's a 5 bed detached Edwardian house over 3 floors. We bought it for £675k just over three years ago, and it's on for £720k. Interestingly next door is on for £750k, and they've had little interest as well. Identical houses in build, but they have an added bathroom and a much larger garden (although their house does require a fair bit of modernisation).

I'll list a couple of the negatives - could you tell me if the following would put you off viewing?

1. 5 beds but only one bathroom (and a downstairs cloakroom). The rooms are large so there's plenty of space for an ensuite (or two), but my DH doesn't want to do it. I was hoping though that potential buyers would realise this opportunity. Would the 1 main bathroom put you off?

1. Very small garden. Large-ish patio that extends round the house, but grass space quite small. We have a sofa set and a small climbing frame on the grass, with a massive trampoline on the patio, so it's perfectly functional...just small.

1. No garage, and on-street parking (but very quiet road, so no issues with parking)

The positives though: very grand house, massive amounts of curb-appeal, large rooms with high ceilings, close to good schools, 10 minute walk into town.

I desperately want to move as I need more downstairs living space. I could also really do with another bathroom (DH just hates the idea of any work being done in the house).

Please help!

Thank you

Near me, most houses haven't actually increased much in value in 3 years!

This is a great point

When we were looking large 5+ bed, high ceilings and very spacious were better value than a smaller 3-4 bed but still didn’t sell.

I've seen this but as well as the maintenance costs it's the price. People can't stretch so much anymore.

Why would you think that a house you bought at peak of the market in 2022 for £675k would now be worth more?

It's a nice looking house and very spacious, but there are four main things that would be sticking points for me:

Kerbside parking only; you're in a nice area of Salisbury, but parking can be an issue there, IME.

Only one bathroom: families rushing to get ready for school and/or work in the morning are unlikely to want to wait for their turn in the shower or whatever.

Artificial grass; it can be difficult to remove.

Disproportionately small garden for the size of the house.

@ShesTheAlbatross definitely made a good point about the house not appearing in searches - and the other consideration is anyone thinking about buying your house with a view to putting in a second bathroom or ensuite will probably factor in the costs involved and make a lower offer than you would find acceptable.

(I've read through all the responses; apologies if pp have already made similar comments.

Sorry to say that it’s the balance of bedrooms to living space.

we had exactly your house previously, without the loft conversion but with a lovely big garden.

even then I wanted more downstairs living space.

I think if people are looking for a detached house they might not feel yours really is that- the floor plan shows no side windows so I'm guessing it's too close to neighbours to have them.
Most people looking for a family house will want more of a garden and some storage.
The bathroom issue can be resolved- perhaps by dividing one of the bedrooms into a shower room and a study
Ultimately, someone will want your house- you won't be the only people who want additional bedrooms for WFH not for a big family- but for now it has too many downsides for the price.

If you haven’t had any viewings, it’s the price. The inside is lovely and I actually think the garden looks really manageable for a family with younger children.

I would expect an en suite or shower room on the top floor for that price and number of bedrooms. And the parking situation would definitely put me off.

I haven’t read all the replies but one thing I would say is to consider the tree in front of the house. I sold a property with a similarly located tree which the buyers intended to remove as it was causing some damage to the front path. I would be nervous, as a buyer, about a tree in such close proximity to the house and the potential for the roots damaging the foundation. I say that as someone who loves trees and recognises all the advantages they offer!

Sorry, another person who'd buy your neighbour's house over yours/pay more for it -- it is actually much 'grander' looking because they've kept more of the fireplaces/ceiling roses etc., and your decor is quite contemporary. Those things are worth the cost of a few new carpets to me, even without the bigger garden/bathroom. I think a lot of people buying older homes would feel the same way.

Not to say your house isn't very nice, and I'm sure it'll sell.

Looking at the listing from when you bought, it doesn't look like you've done anything to it. Is that right or have they caught a previous attempt to sell? But if that's the case then the 50k uplift in a falling market is pretty steep and I would think it was cheeky as a buyer. I'd also suspect that the house would feel far more tired in reality than it looks in photos if the decor is all that at least that age (which isn't rational as I certainly don't redecorate myself every five years!).

I think we're stuck here forever

drama llama! 😆

Big drawbacks for a family home. Big ones. It will sell though IF the price reflects these drawbacks. Given bugger all interest, it very clearly does not reflect these drawbacks

Substantially reduce and you get interest

I have a strong feeling through, you’re going to dig your heels in about price considering the daft view that you add

it is very easy to find on right move op
beautifully decorated but the one bathroom is really shocking!
and the garden is tiny for a property that would likely appeal to 3/4 children families

you reduced it only yesterday… by how much?

Don’t get me wrong I love a good period property but there’s a reason that a lot of these multi-floor, multi-bedroom Victorian and Edwardian houses end up as HMOs. So many are just not suitable for modern family life. Only one bathroom is an absolute dealbreaker in a 5 bed house for me, is there a downstairs loo? (The floor plan becomes blurry when you zoom in) I wouldn’t view a house with on street parking and a small garden but some people are fine with those. I think the main issue is the lack of downstairs space, only one sitting room is going to put a lot of people off I’m afraid. I think if you had only one of those ‘issues’ some people would compromise if the house had lots of positives but with the whole list of negatives you’re appealing to a very small pool of potential buyers unfortunately.

@Wallawallawallaby1 how small is the garden roughly?

It wouldn't work for me. Literally the last time my husband and l spoke about moving house then my want list consisted of off road parking and more than 1 bathroom

I would not even view a house with fewer than 2 bathrooms - I don't think that's an extreme view. At 5 bedrooms and 3 floors, I would expect 3 bathrooms.

Parking - fine.
Garden - may suit some buyers. Not everyone likes garden upkeep.

But as has been said before - it will sell at the right price.

And you can’t put them in yourself?

London is full of houses exactly like this, and none of them are HMOs.

They all have the side return done and the two receptions knocked in. The bedroom behind the master is often turned into a dressing room + bathroom. (Or an en suite is added at the side of the master). And a bathroom added on the top floor.

That would make it perfectly comfortable. My only gripe is with limited outdoor space which means there’s no room to extend at the back.

Because house prices have risen regardless.

Average house prices rose by around 6% just in the 12 months to March 2025 let alone the preceding years.

You can, but only if the price of the house reflects this as getting work done is expensive.

Re next door, (although their house does require a fair bit of modernisation). I love it !
but then I am much older than you and I dislike very modern interiors.

So if I were to buy either, I'd buy next door.

as someone else mentioned, the tree out in the front garden looks very big.

If the price of the house makes sense when budgeting for £20- 35k of renovations. And you don't mind the weeks of dust and disruption. And you can find reputable builders who are available. It's no simple thing, taking on a renovation, and it's super expensive and messy and invasive.

I bought May 2022 and would expect to sell for about the same now. Maybe less. Despite spending a fair bit on improvements. Prices have not risen in most areas. That was the peak of all peaks.

I’d expect offers around 650. Then would look to offer similarly on the next place. Only competitively priced places are selling.

Not when I could buy the house next door with triple the garden and all I’d need to do was update the decor, which is much cheaper and can be spread out (cost wise) more easily than putting in a new bathroom.

Installing 2 bathrooms, which is what you were referring to, is hardly major “renovation”.

That’s a different issue, that poster’s point was that she “would not even view a house with fewer than 2 bathrooms”.