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Am I right to be disheartened after 3 weeks?

71 replies

Newbeginnings2024 · 10/09/2025 13:56

My property is on the market now, it’s been just over 3 weeks and we have had 2 viewings booked, one of whom cancelled 😞.

I think it’s priced correctly, I think it’s presented pretty well by the agent. Am I missing something? I have a property I want to buy so I’m stressing myself silly 😩

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/166060802

OP posts:
FancyCatSlave · 10/09/2025 17:27

I don’t know your area but here houses are taking 4-6 months to sell, not because of price but because of lack of buyers. It’s very slow in a lot of places.

We are about to list also because of divorce and I am sick with worry about it. We bought at height of market but have done a big renovation and might not make it all back. So stressful.

I do think the listing could be improved a bit as already suggested and some of the photos aren’t great but I think mostly you just have to wait. I don’t think you have the price wrong.

Newbeginnings2024 · 10/09/2025 17:31

FancyCatSlave · 10/09/2025 17:27

I don’t know your area but here houses are taking 4-6 months to sell, not because of price but because of lack of buyers. It’s very slow in a lot of places.

We are about to list also because of divorce and I am sick with worry about it. We bought at height of market but have done a big renovation and might not make it all back. So stressful.

I do think the listing could be improved a bit as already suggested and some of the photos aren’t great but I think mostly you just have to wait. I don’t think you have the price wrong.

Thank you ☺️
I fishing you all the very best of luck with yours, I know exactly what you are going through, not easy x

OP posts:
CasualDayHasGoneTooFar · 10/09/2025 17:34

Question: picture 5 - is that a very wide tv, or is the picture stretched?

Newbeginnings2024 · 10/09/2025 17:39

CasualDayHasGoneTooFar · 10/09/2025 17:34

Question: picture 5 - is that a very wide tv, or is the picture stretched?

The tv is massive 😆

OP posts:
AppropriateAdult · 10/09/2025 17:41

Your photos and decor are fine, honestly - have you seen the way some houses are ‘presented’ for sale?! Yours looks well maintained and relatively neutral, which is what you want.

It’ll be the price.

Periperi2025 · 10/09/2025 17:45

Newbeginnings2024 · 10/09/2025 15:51

It’s white walls and the kitchen is a Taupe kinda colour, I think it’s the photos 🧐

Okay, definitely looking very grey on my screen, i did wonder about the kitchen as one photo shows it more greige. The grey carpets obviously add to the effect. Maybe think about adding in some non grey accents to distract from the grey that is there and get some better photos taken in optimal light conditions.

You can always take them yourself, just make sure they are the correct aspect ratio and email then to the estate agent. Frustrating to have to do there job for them, but i think it could help.

Londonmummy66 · 10/09/2025 18:04

I think it is a well presented house. The front is tidy and has kerb appeal. The inside is tidy but a bit too impersonal. The back garden is a basic estate house garden so will compare with many others - its a bit empty but I think that is probably the area where spending money wouldn't be worth it.

I would suggest a few tweaks to the inside and then get some new photos taken.

Sitting room - needs a little bit of warming up/personality. I'd get some new cushion covers and a couple of throws to fold over an arm of each sofa in a warm shade - perhaps red kilim or in bright teals. The rug is too small and too neutral - get something bigger that tones with the new cushion covers - places like Dunelm have cheap rugs in their clearance/returns centre. Move the desk out of the window and put in an armchair instead. If it will fit you could move the pink chaise down and accessorise in pinks? A couple of much bigger houseplants would help too. You could move in the bigger one from the kitchen.

Hall is great and uncluttered.

Kitchen again needs warming up - a buyer needs to see it as the heart of the home and a place for happy family meals, so you need something on the dining table - eg a large coloured bowl of fruit or a large vase of flowers. A few herbs in small pots (Flying Tiger does nice metal ones in bright colours as do Primark) on the windowsill. Maybe the tea and coffee canisters on a bright tray in the corner. You need to tie the colours in so eg a blue bowl of oranges on the table, herb pots in various shades of blue etc.

Bathrooms - put all the plastic bottles etc away in the undersink cupboards. Buy a couple of nice new fluffy towels that only get put out for viewings.

Bedrooms - you need to make the two with sleeper beds look very different - a brightly coloured IKEA desk chair the younger one and some much brighter bedding - get rid of the drinks bottles (its not a bar) and perhaps replace with some pots of pens and colouring pencils etc. The other one should be styled more as a teenage/gaming room - if there's space perhaps the desk from downstairs so it looks as if there is a defined homework corner and a defined gaming corner. The spare room - I think fine to have a photo with the sofa bed open and one with the sofa bed closed - make it look more welcoming again a bit of colour - perhaps the rug from the sitting room and a throw that can either go accross the bed or on a sofa arm plus a couple of cushions. Get rid of the gold mirror it doesn't work with the house and looks silly on the floor.

Garden - I wouldn't spend money on plants etc but you want a clearly defined area where the family can sit and eat outside - see if someone can lend you a garden table and chairs to stage at least for the photos if not for viewings and put a large low round terracotta pot planted with herbs or violas on the table as a centrepiece - can always bring it indoors to brighten up the kitchen afterwards.

Get the estate agent to label the photos - so living room/bedroom 3/bedroom 4/bathroom 1/bathroom 2 and get the dimensions put on the floorplan.

Not an expensive fix - a bit of money spent in IKEA or wherever will brighten things up without making any big changes.

Newbeginnings2024 · 10/09/2025 18:07

Thank you so much for all of this. I really appreciate all this advice. X

OP posts:
CagneyNYPD1 · 10/09/2025 18:07

I think you have a lovely house. It’s presented well (clear of clutter and clean) which helps buyers to see what is really there.

Yes, the garden could perhaps do with a bit of brightening up. The estate agent does need to re look at the photos and floor plan measurements.

But I do wonder about timing. It’s a family home that will appeal to families up sizing, probably with school aged kids. With schools only just having gone back last week, your target audience may well have been a bit busy.

Give it a few more weeks and then review. How long is your contract with the EA?

GloryFades · 10/09/2025 18:09

I don’t think it’s far off on price. I live in Slaithwaite so more au fait with prices there… but Holmfirth is a marginally nicer village than ours (in my opinion), but ours is better for a commuter… so maybe I’d expect a bit cheaper for where you are.

I think the problem is you’ll be competing against new builds which have their own advantages. A lot of the other available properties are more character / project type properties so they won’t appeal to the same audience as your house. I think you just need to wait it out a bit, I think there is some apprehension about property taxes and the upcoming budget which will be slowing the market too.

youalright · 10/09/2025 18:14

Im no help but you have a lovely home I really like it

YetiRosetti · 10/09/2025 18:30

Hi OP, I’m also in the midst of divorce conveyancing hell so I send love. Buying and selling is bad enough at the best of times without the emotional turmoil.

Your home is lovely, great kerb appeal and really nicely done inside. I agree to get them to remove OIEO and just put £450k. Perhaps simple touches like some flowers on the kitchen table and something to soften your children’s (very tidy!) rooms so it looks a bit more homely.

its is a tough market out there, I’d hold out a bit longer before reducing.

Twiglets1 · 10/09/2025 20:51

The house is very nice, nothing off-putting that I can see apart from there are no room dimensions - why has your EA not done that?

With no room dimensions given, I would be assuming that something is being hidden like the room sizes are small or at least some are.

Honeypickle · 10/09/2025 20:57

Photo 16 (the loo roll) made me laugh out loud. Sorry, not helpful, but I always wonder when there are odd photos like this, why they have been included, ie are these photos better than showing the rest of the house - what is being hidden??

Mintearo7 · 10/09/2025 21:24

Remember you’ve listed over the tail end of summer so I would wait it out a little. It’s in decent shape. You can make the improvements suggested but don’t automatically expect a sale as a result. We are looking to list but the market is pretty bad. Because it’s buyers market people will likely buy and take on high mortgage rates, etc, if they are getting a good deal I.e. under the valuation.We’re doing our numbers and wondering what ‘hit’ we can take on the price if we want a quick sale. If you don’t get lucky over the next couple of months, I think you might need to reduce the price or as others have mentioned, remove offers over. An offer slightly under valuation in this market is better than no offer.

sbplanet · 10/09/2025 23:08

Along the lines of what Honeypickle said, does the listing really want so many pictures? I always wonder whether so many makes buyers think they know exactly what the house is like and they don't need to visit? Whilst the pictures do seem to show the obvious they are a bit 'without personality', too far along the neutral?
It does look a lovely house though, so as you say why few viewings? How many hits has the webpage had, that might give a bit more info on where the trail is breaking down?
It's tough when there seems no obvious real faults, question you EA too. Good luck.

ICantWaitAnotherMinute · 11/09/2025 01:22

Good luck @Newbeginnings2024 also currently selling due to divorce and it is a rollercoaster!

Twiglets1 · 11/09/2025 05:11

Newbeginnings2024 · 10/09/2025 15:48

So the first one is a dormer bungalow so some of the bedrooms are downstairs which I guess isn’t for everyone, it’s also 300 sq ft smaller and right at the top of a massive hill. It’s only up the road so same area but mine is within the newer estate which some might think increases the kerb appeal.

The second one is at the other side of the village which is less desirable as next to social housing.

I do agree the photos make it look quite Stark, it’s not as stark in person 😢 But I appreciate your comments. Thanks.

How do buyers know it's 300sq ft smaller though - I can't see the size of your house or the dimensions of the rooms within listed anywhere?

Edited to say, I've just found them in the description. But a lot of people have made the same observation about no room sizes because it's normal for EAs to provide that information on the floor plan.

I would be asking my EA to add the information to the floor plan.

Advocodo · 11/09/2025 12:45

I think it’s a lovely well presented house. The estate agent should be sacked for the pic of the toilet roll!! Need room sizes on the floor plan and can’t see anywhere where it says what orientation. Good luck.

Wowthatwasabigstep · 11/09/2025 15:18

You are looking for advice so here is my advice, for goodness sake inject some colour and warmth.

After looking at the pictures, I wouldn’t view your house, it is grey and beige and all the rooms merge into one. We are moving towards less sunlight and much colder days and that will only make the house feel even colder. Grey had become the Magnolia of the last few years and looks very cheap and dated.

Look at the position of your house and then google which shade will work for the direction, Farrow and Balls website is great for this, you don’t need to get their paint, get some mixed instead. Some warm shades of actual colour on the walls that will make it feel loved and something people aspire to buy.

Books, pictures, plants would suggest signs of life rather than cold and clinical.

No advice on the price as I don’t know the area.

augustusglupe · 12/09/2025 08:49

Newbeginnings2024 · 10/09/2025 15:56

Yep, I know the house, it’s over the road. I think it was just over a year ago that one sold. The agents seem to think that prices have risen in the last 18 months. Not majorly but a little. A couple of other people on the estate have put their properties on the market but sadly both changed their minds and ended up staying so no sold data. This was end of last year. They listed for offers over 450k and 460k

House is fine, it’ll be the price. As soon as I see offers over & it’s not a ‘wow’ house, I scroll past.

Prices have risen in the last 18 months Why are agents telling people this? They haven’t.

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