Flat not selling

[Bellabella82]

We’ve had our 2-bedroom shared ownership flat in London on the market for about 5 months now. There’s been a fair bit of interest and quite a few viewings, but unfortunately no serious progress. We did have one offer early on, but it fell through when the buyer didn’t pass the leaseholder’s financial assessment.
One of the challenges we’re facing is the service charge – it’s £340 a month, which feels steep given what’s on offer. There’s no concierge, gym, or any of the usual extras. The only real shared facility is a large communal garden, which islovely and well-used by residents, but we’re not sure if buyers are put off by the costs versus what they’re getting.
We’re really keen to sell, as we’re a family of four – with a 1-year-old and an 8-year-old – and space is getting very tight. We’re desperate to upsize, but we feel quite stuck at the moment.
Has anyone else had experience selling a shared ownership property in a similar situation? Is there anything we can do to make it more attractive or to speed up the process?
Any advice would be so appreciated!

Edit - sorry. I dont know why this posted twice.

Is it an American first floor, or a UK first floor? Because if it is a UK first floor, then how is the patio private for your flat? Also wondering as you have laminate flooring, which I didn't think you could have unless you are on a ground floor.

As a potential buyer, I'd definitely need to know what % of the property I was getting for my money, and how much more I'd be spending on the rent for the remaining %. This needs to be very clear on the listing.

I would also like a couple more photos of the communal garden, and information on how you get from the underground car park to the flat.

As theres only one allocated parking space, are there other "free for all" spaces in the car park if you are a two-car family, or is it street parking?

I couldn't open the video.

Im completely confused by that listing. Does the £350k buy them the entire flat and if not what percentage?

@HurdyGurdy19 I just checked and I couldn't open the video either.

I know exactly where you are. I pop into the M&S and Asda regularly!

Personally I wouldn’t want to live on that side of Colindale as it’s not the new built up part (though appreciate your development would have been part of the wider redevelopment of Colindale). The issue with your part is that you’re right by the industrial estate, the car park underneath used for M&S doesn’t feel very safe in the evenings and it’s generally a very busy road even though it’s off the main road. I’m not sure how much flats go for in the newer end of Colindale but I wouldn’t price it in the same category as those and wouldn’t use them as a comparator. That, along with the service charge, could be putting people off.

You need to market to a divorcing probably woman who has got a chunk of deposit but a low income job, so she can buy the share outright and then the rent and service charge will be covered by her universal credit.

That's literally the only person who would be in a good position to buy it.

You can also ask your housing association if you can now market it at 100%.

You may have identified one type of potential buyer but I strongly disagree "that's literally the only person who would be in a good position to buy it".

The SC is on the high side but it's not so high that no one would pay it. People can and do pay even higher service charges than that one in London.

People will pay a higher than average SC if the flat is good enough in other ways. Mainly the price may need to be lower to make the flat seem like more of a bargain on the purchase price. But also there are things OP could do to improve the flat which we are discussing on this thread.

In addition to the SC I would be put off by the lease length. Both are very tricky as you can do nothing about them.

I would want to know what view I am getting in the main living area. The nets are off putting as you have these big doors and no view. If they open out onto a nice patio, then show that in a picture.

look at the photos and cross ref them to the floor plan. Not rocket science.

The living area obviously looks out on the (private) patio and (communal) garden. Aa a consequence the nets likely being an essential requirement for privacy purposes

The lack of mention of it being SO, and what %, seems grounds for a formal complaint to the estate agent about misleading advert. How can anyone compare "value" if the don't know what they are buying?

Interesting perspective from @Spotthering . OP says she’s been getting interest but I think once people take a look around they’re realising it’s not worth the price, very high service charge and short lease combined with being in an average part of Colindale and on a busy road with the tube station a bit of a trek away. I also wouldn’t want to
live somewhere with a lot of shops and other businesses on my doorstep because of noise.

@Wot23 I do indeed have the brain cells required to imagine this. My point was, that you either want an image of the view (on higher floors), or an image eg of the patio doors opening up onto a patio with pot plants, table with a glass of wine etc. A picture of nets is the worst of both worlds.

Peple who are happy to pay high service charges out of their own pocket don't find themselves in Colindale.
Other people who can "afford" it are exactly as described above - someone who has SC covered by UC so doesn't care.

I think you are wasting your own time and the time of people looking round it if it is SO and you are not stating that clearly on the description.

Without knowing the % SO if's very hard to assess whether it represents good value.

As for the SC, the terms of the increase might be just as relevant as the actual amount.

As others have said, what's the full value? Mortgage lenders get twitchy when the annual service charge is more than 1% of the value of the property.

The SC does seem high. Ours was less than £200 per month for a 2 bed flat in London in 2024 (we sold in 2024 so not sure about current SC - however it did increase very little over the 9 years we owned the flat). It included gym and concierge (in addition to maintenance etc.). The flat was in a great position (Hackney, 15 minutes walk to London Fields and Broadway Market and less than 10 minutes on the overground to the City.