Lost buyer, house back on market and no interest - what do we do?!

[Goldendoodlelover]

We put our house on the market in January and got loads of interest straightaway: 7 viewings in a week, 1 offer of full asking price which we accepted. We then found the house of our dreams and everything was progressing really well until our buyers pulled out 2 weeks ago (change in family circumstance, unrelated to the house).

We put our house back on the market almost 2 weeks ago and have had very little interest - we had one viewing last week (but then they said it was out of their budget anyway) and we have one this weekend, but that’s it. Our estate agent has said everything is just very quiet because of the situation in the Middle East and fears about inflation / mortgage rates, but we are terrified about losing our purchase property, and the general uncertainty - we are moving out of the area so I have already handed in my notice at work, and so should be looking for new jobs but don’t know if / when we will be moving.

Should we just sit and hold tight? Do we think about reducing price? Is the market as bad as my estate agent says? Any advice would be much appreciated as am finding the whole thing quite anxiety-inducing…

Hold your nerve. The owners of the home you are buying will face the same situation as you and unless it really drags on won't want to loose you either.
Communicate with them so they understand what's happened and keep them updated.

That sounds really stressful! Sit tight, give it a little longer. I hope someone comes along and snaps it up soon.

Sit tight hold on. Even a couple of businesses I saw that were up for sale have been taken off the market so I think it’s pretty bad right now.

I am sorry, I know what an absolute roller coaster it can be!

But you are now in the long corridor where at one end, this used to be your home, and at the other end, you are moving to a new home. You just have to wait it out, and affirm that 'this house IS for sale and we ARE moving.'

You'll get there x

I read today that there's currently the highest number of houses for sale in the UK in ten years...

... It always comes down to price.

I think it’s price too. People’s expectations haven’t caught up with the drop in the market in most areas and the fact that the only things selling comparatively easily are very competitively priced. People are still thinking about 2022 prices. Everything has changed since then.

We've just dropped the price of ours by 5%. We really need to sell. The analysis on The World at One today was pretty depressing- price rises in everything, interest rates going up. I don't hold out much hope at the moment.

I was in a similar situation to you with no house to sell though. You'll find a new buyer eventually, but it takes time. What is the house/price and where are you in the country?

Thanks for all your replies. I understand ultimately it comes down to price - my husband is very very reluctant to reduce because literally 2 months ago we got full asking price within a week, so I don’t think we are being unrealistic with our price expectations - I guess the world just looks like a much more different place right now. It’s funny because when we first got our place valued in December all the estate agents were like don’t put it on in January, wait til spring and the better weather, and now here we are!

I wouldn’t be so concerned about holding out but we are moving area, so need to be thinking about new jobs and childcare logistics. Our current place was fantastic pre kids but it’s now too small, doesn’t have a proper garden and is too far from family (hence the move!) so we really are keen to get up and out!

Ah sorry OP. What a nightmare. The market is awful right now. Like others have said though your onwards purchase will be in the same position so they’d be stupid to pull out. I hope you can find someone

The market is getting really tough. Even from two months ago. People are scared about mortgage rates, costs of living, the instability of the world markets.

Id leave it on the market for a couple of weeks. If there’s no offers then the next best option is to reduce.

Unfortunately its about to get quite a lot worse. Its looking likley that borrowing interest rates could be something like 10 to 20% higher by the end of the year ! If your selling and you really want to move you need to reduce now imo, before the s*it really hits the fan..

With buyer in January it seems, and pulled out only 2 weeks ago; as some comfort if buyer pulled out then you'd have the deposit they forfeited,
don't you?

Eh? Buyers don’t pay a deposit until exchange.

@penstra i wish! In the UK you don’t put a deposit down until you exchange.

the problem is we probably do need to reduce if we want a quick sale but if we reduce too much we won’t be able to afford the property we really want to buy…

I would probably do this in your shoes- give it a bit more time and then reassess. I truly hope that the US put a stop to this awful war, although the chances seem to be diminishing, very sadly. If that does happen, you may have a small, improved window before we hit a recession.

Yes, I agree. It isn’t just about the war in the Middle East. Also, some potential buyers are waiting for prices to decrease and the unemployment rate is the highest it’s been in a long time, so some people are nervous about having a mortgage round their necks for years.

Spring is traditionally the most popular time of year for buying property, so I would hold on tight and reassess in June if you don’t want to reduce.

Honestly it’s fucked. If energy prices are increasing again, and mortgage going up. I am a bit scared.

And we have over 50% equity. But cash poor in this cost of living time.

I looked yesterday and our house value has fallen 50k from 450 to 400

Not surprised people are freaking out.

I totally agree with the first part of your post but what makes you think that things might improve in June? The likelihood is that the situation will be worse rather than better by then. I think the OP wants to be under offer soon because of her onward purchase in any case.

Just that spring will have ended by then so if the house doesn’t sell by early summer then it’s unlikely to sell by the end of the year (at the current price). So I meant that things will improve in the sense that OP may have a clearer sense in June that reducing may be the best option. More broadly, I struggle to be positive about the economy. I can see mortgage rates being 7% twelve months from now.

For various personal reasons we can’t wait until June to reassess the situation - we would definitely have lost our purchase by then but also at that point I think we would have to seriously consider renting out our current home and renting somewhere else.

I think the question is do we hold tight for a few weeks, or reduce now and try and secure a buyer asap before things get worse (and I’m no economist but I sense things are definitely going to get worse in the next couple of months before they get better)

June is very near the school hols, esp private.
It’s not a month where houses usually pick up.
After Easter I’d expect it to pick up if it’s going to & then maybe Sept.
But there’s so many over priced houses, what does pick up even mean? People suddenly having loads more money to throw at ridiculously overpriced properties?! I doubt it.

If you, as many others do, sense that things are going to get worse. Then you only have 2 choices. Reduce your price to try and snag a buyer now - before things really get rolling (I would say by June we will have the start of a dreadful bottle neck caused by increasing bills and increasing borrowing costs).
Or if your only other option to rent, you sit tight for now in the hope that others stuck in your situation also take the same path - increasing rental availability. Possibly if that happens, along with another round of cost of living increases, then achievable rents may also reduce.
You seem to be in a bit of a tough spot. Wishing you some good luck. Becoming a landlord is very challenging with all the new legislation, and also the likley increases in the costs of a buy to let mortgage - you need to be really clued up before making that choice.

You sounds desperate to move. Maybe your solution is sell for less now. Rent. And as the market gets worse (which I think we all predict is coming) buy then. You’ll be a strong buyer at that point.

I understand what you mean now, thanks.
I can't see any positive news on the horizon economically speaking. The opposite! I'm not sure that rates will rise to so rapidly though, although I think they will in the medium/longer term.