If anyone is looking for a 2 bed flat in Worthing...

[TeddyBeans]

Here's ours 🤣

Feel free to critique the listing, we had a fluke viewing the day after it went live and radio silence since... Would love to sell, the kids need their own rooms and we desperately want a garden

I would disagree. It's not "sterile". Plants in pretty pots are not going to shift a property in this particular climate.
A good price for the property type and area will.

FYI You can use AI to stage a room, rather than buy things yourself that you don’t want or need.

And when people turn up to view they will know they have been cheated and just walk away never to return. The price isn"t realistic, quarter of a million pounds (possibly as debt with interest if a mortgage is involved) isn"t realistic for this flat.

The rooms look like an odd shape - particularly the kitchen. Are they?

I'm sorry, but I'm afraid it does look rather cold/unwelcoming @TeddyBeans . I agree you've probably gone overboard with the decluttering/depersonalisation.

In my experience you need something to set your property apart from the competition. This is particularly true if there's lots of other similar flats/houses available...so that viewers have something to remember yours by. Yours is just really bland.

I'm guessing you've added the kitchen and bathroom since purchasing? Nonetheless, I doubt the value has increased very much (certainly not to 250k - bloody lying EAs!). If the other, cheaper flat(s) in your block aren't selling, there's no way yours will sell for more.

We're in a period cottage a bit further west along the coast and a (1990s) townhouse in our road sold around the time you purchased your flat. It's had a bit of work done and went back on 18 months ago for 150k more than they paid. They've gradually reduced the asking price till just before Christmas it went under offer...at 100k less than it sold for in 2021!

Drop the price to closer to what you paid and hopefully in the spring it'll sell🤞

It's the price. That part of Worthing is going to be a more difficult sell than the ones on Ardingly or Mill Road which are similar priced but with more curb appeal and a better location. At the current price you're competing with them. At £215k you'd be a much better option than the flats in the causeway, it's all about position against your competition if you want to sell.

You’ve made it lovely! It’s nice to see a home someone has loved and taken care of!

All of it looks quite cold, like nobody real actually lives there. I think you may have over-decluttered by removing every scrap of human existence and left only "for show" ornaments, if you see what I mean?
The lounge looks like a waiting room and quite unwelcoming though, sorry.

That pp said it perfectly. It's a really good sized room, but it's so cold and unwelcoming, which is the last thing anyone wants to see in a prospective home. The grey furniture doesn't help. You need colourful curtains, cushions, a rug and some pot plants at the very least. Maybe a throw. But it needs life and warmth, and yes - humanity. A bookshelf and a toybox wouldn't be clutter, they'd just signify a home.

The AI photos have ‘staged with AI’ very obviously on them and are included in addition to the actual photos. They’re more of an “here’s an idea of what you could do to this room” prompt. It’s not everyone‘s cup of tea but it’s nothing more than that.

I think you need to have photos of
the entrance and communal area - although it’s top floor it’s probably not many stairs?

bit concerned about the balcony conversion - has it got documents and permission - it must be just partition like

the tv room lounge needs pictures on the walls as it’s very bottom heavy - arranging in zones would be brilliant - maybe showing a dining table so you can use balcony as study

It is cute but looks like a second home. Does the “breakfast room” (aka study) have an opaque window? Looks too small for a table and chairs. The layout of bedroom then lounge wouldn’t work for me, although it is similar to dc exLA rental. Nor being so far from sea and town centre. Is it actually in Worthing, rather than Durrington or Goring?

And some of the pics look distorted by the wide angle lens.

It looks like a rental , no warmth or personality . Add plants / rugs / pictured , something . The breakfast room looks odd and would lend itself to being dressed like a study . The rooms look a good size and agree with others the dimensions are needed .

So I love the flat and I know the area (work) it's a nice enough area, I'd buy rn but for my crappola divorce, fml.

Thoughts on a glow up: (blunt edition, but I mean well op!)

1. shades on the pendant lights: please get nice ones, the ones that are up are a bit bland and small

2. window treatments: the curtain rods need attention, they are over long, and the curtains are too short, I know it's a palaver but a good pair will lift the room

3. scale of the artwork in the living room is too small, and bring the seating away from the walls, centred around the right sized statement rug (use AI it will tell you the right size with links)

4. add warmth, a few throw cushions, a draped blanket (textures, neutral patterns) a large plant, a coffee table with a few books,

5. the layout of the bedroom. Position the bed under the window, go to next, look at their bedding set - a complete one, new pillows, a matching duvet and layer to dress it, Google how to dress a bed for sale. That wooden cupboard dominates where it is, it's the first thing you see, it's very wood-toned.where as you could just bring a more coastal feeling in, textures, warm, washed times. Again think about adding warmth with a properly proportioned rug, and I don't love the window treatments in there but don't stress about that overly.

6. the dining area needs some tlc, lean into the size, make it a nook, you can get lovely adhesive wallpapers that are easy to hang and would make a feature of an awkward space and the chairs could do with a refresh, and a vase in the middle. Set it with some nice dinnerware

It's a good flat in a nice area, I think the price is fair enough. If that's your garage door, think about giving it a jet wash if not a lick of paint

It just needs a smidge more dressing for sale. The things I've suggested could be done via Freecycle or gumtree on a budget, or online if you're short on time. Most of it could go with you on the move

Please no flaming from anyone - these are just ideas, it's got lots of potential you just sometimes have to help people to see it

I agree with above - you could just buy cushions, rugs and pictures for photos then return them

it Does look like rental - lacking love - but still a nice roomy flat

you really need a shot of the stairs and doorway - lift?

Thanks for all the comments! Sorry I didn't reply to any yesterday, it was my daughter's birthday ❤️

We have no lift which is a massive bummer for the service charge we pay. The enclosed balcony has all the necessary paperwork and permission, it was all done above board by the previous owners.

We put obscuring film on the balcony windows as next doors kitchen window is directly adjacent and there was zero privacy. There is an argument for it to be classed as goring but imo it's definitely Durrington.

I'm gutted I went too far with the decluttering. I was so in the mindset of showing off the actual room sizes. There's nothing I can do about the dark furniture, we don't have the money to replace everything now and I'd be hard pressed to do it anyway if we're moving 'imminently' as the furniture might not fit the new house.

The curtain pole is annoying because it constantly moves, the seal that keeps it at the length it's supposed to be has gone and I didn't notice it was too long otherwise I would have pushed it back. I think I'm going to need to get the photographer back in 😮‍💨

The rooms are all rectangular. The kitchen, bathroom and the balcony have built in cupboards though. The floor plan isn't the right shape for the balcony anyway, it's closer to the utility room shape the other flats have but the kitchen and bathroom are accurate

It looks really well presented, OP. The fact that it’s top floor is a big positive, I’d definitely pay more for a top floor flat.

I may have convinced DP to drop the price. He's going to call the agents tomorrow. Will still look at adjusting the rooms and having the photos retaken though

I would definitely include about no lift - it’s tempting not to say but it just wastes time - is the bottom door locked? Do people leave prams downstairs? There is no point in people coming to view when it’s a no brainer. -plus it will make EA think it’s not popular but for wrong reasons - at the moment it feels like your deliberately not providing key information. It looks to me like it could have very manageable stairs but you need pic and of the front door

I think you need to get that worked out and be honest about it

just think with the decluttering you’ll be able to pack and leave In Half a day - how lovely to get to new house with no clutter

Having spent a long time doing up then eventually having an offer (everything is crossed!) on my late dad's house, here are my thoughts:

Are you happy with your EA? The one we now have is fab - very proactive and will say to us if he thinks we could improve something.

Photos - although the sky is blue, it looks from the ground as if it had been raining. Get the EA to take one on a sunny dry day now the garden has been done. It's the first photo so needs kerb appeal.

Photo 3 is pointless and negative.

Jazz up dining area - table in the middle, nice candle or runner on the table?? A softer pendant light shade with a bit of colour would help warm it up a bit. Borrow 2 matching chairs (or auction - so cheap!!) Or as others said, table in living area and set it up as a home office.

It's immaculately tidy but needs a bit of a zhuzh. People do like soft stuff. Flowers, cushions... I bought a pack of about 18 cushion pads very cheaply from Amazon and made lots of cushion covers. Maybe even a couple of tiebacks to add some curved lines - Ikea do these fab magnetic ones very very cheaply.

I tied in colours by framing bits of wallpaper in some cases just to tie things together (as in bits of wallpaper I took as samples then put in big frames). Also borrowed some bits and pieces from a friend.

Many buyers don't have much imagination.

Love the dinosaur curtains!!

It's such a pain - you've done a fabulous job of decluttering then you're having to add bits in. Good luck - it's a difficult market!

Good move.

Nothing much to add, but wow! Back in the 90s, when I worked for a (now defunct) building society, I could have just about, with a staff mortgage, scraped together enough to buy a flat in Worthing for about £30k, as couldn’t afford Southwater or Horsham.
Am now kicking myself big time for not having done so!

Why? This flat isn"t going to sell for quarter of a million, and to make any profit you would have had to downsize ( everything else is getting more expensive in a rising market) so would have had to move to a 1 bed to actually get any real money. Unless you really wanted to live in the 30k flat it wasn"t an outstanding investment, not better than actual money in the bank or in stocks.

It's overpriced with no redeeming features compared to inner London