What’s wrong with my house?

[Blueysothermother]

House been on the market since Easter, it’s in the catchment for the much sought after local grammar, well priced, was valued originally at £595,000. We had an offer for £575,750 which we accepted during the summer hols but then fell though due to reasons unrelated to the house. We need to relocate, so dropped the price, even though much larger than most houses in the surrounding streets and better parking. Estate agents can offer no constructive feedback that I can act upon. I get that it’s not all grey etc but it’s a period house and has a wealth of features intact. Any ideas?
www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/91344150

Lots of mismatched furniture make the rooms look cluttered and small - can you have the photos redone and move some bits out of each room just for the photos?

Looks to be lacking much of a garden, the lean to looks worn and like a strong gust of wind would blow it down, esp with something growing over it - tidy it all up, get the lean to woodwork painted and then get better photos.

The lack of any covering on the boiler/pipework and fridge/freezer makes the kitchen looks scruffy and unfinished and that bit of boxing in the loo looks really poor - makes me think cheaply done work.

I’d price and market it as a 3 bed with potential for a fourth so those looking for a 3 bed see it if you really want to sell it, no one is fooled in what is now very much a buyers market.

edit for a typo

Yes I know, I'm not saying it should be priced at £520k too, but there is a £75k difference between £520k and OP's house's original price. OP's house has a dated kitchen and living room so for most people with a ~£600k budget it requires substantial work too. I'd buy the worse house and spend the £75k to gut it completely to my taste, new kitchen, bathrooms etc since I'd have to spend money on OP's house's refurb as well. I'd probably price it around £555k and it should sell quicker.

Also as PPs mentioned - repaint bold walls to more common taste, declutter, cover pipes, repaint kitchen fronts etc. I know some people like this style but it's a safer bet to paint it so that most people will like it

I agree.

I think I would want to fully redo the kitchen, it looks quite a bodged job unfortunately, especially around the boiler.
You have a slimline fridge and freezer which wouldn't work for a family so some re jigging needs to be done.

Where is your washing machine?

Look I am sorry to be blunt but the inside is really not great. I don’t see period furniture, like lovely Victorian pieces, TBH it looks like the pier circa 1995. Too much furniture and stuff. Weird freaky faces on the lounge wall. Too many sofas. Downstairs loo looks like a chunk of wall had been taken out and put back in badly. Terrible colour in the dining room. Kitchen cabinets don’t match and no photos of appliances. Clutter upstairs and no wall for the 4th bedroom. Garden looks tiny because the trees are all overgrown and the furniture looks like a student house. The lean to looks like a liability and the back door looks like a squat!

Now yes all of this can be remedied and it’s got lovely bones but what it screams to me is that this is going to cost a lot of time and money.

I would declutter and get rid of about half the furniture, sort out some of the most lurid colours and unique artwork, cut back the garden and get a few nice pots and a bench, get the door on the lean to changed, sort the DIY jobs and get the photos redone.

My honest thoughts:
No allocated parking
Needs a new kitchen - the mismatched units are off putting
The garden looks small and overgrown
The ivy will need cutting back
The bathroom looks like it might need redoing

There would be too much that would need doing to justify the price (albeit I don’t know the area or what the ‘going price’ is).

I had this exact style of house. The difference was a corridor to the back bedroom so that there are four bedrooms. They sell so fast in my hometown which is a commuter town to London. It would be snapped up at that price and would probably get £100,000 more. I think it's just the current market.

That can't be true about a new kitchen and "more than once" unless you mean new to you?

I think your house has character but a lot of people won't see past that and will see rooms that need quite a bit of work. You need to price as not quite a doer upper but half way between that and done up.

It's 3 beds.

One bedroom only has access via another.

I assume this has been mentioned already- not read every post.

You have a really nice house, it looks inviting. Bonus points for no grey and no kitchen island!
As pp have said, it's a tough market at the moment. Perhaps list it as a 3 bed and reduce the price? Someone will want it - you did!

I think people on this thread are being very kind.

the whole house needs a makeover. Every room needs stripping, possibly skimming and decorating.

new kitchen and new bathrooms.

its disorganised and cluttered with random artwork on the walls.

it might be to your taste but its not a general buyers tastes so you either drop the price massively to reflect the investment needed from the buyer and markets as ‘has potential’ or you invest now to prepare this house to sell it for maximum price.

Nothing puts me off quicker as a buyer as someone marketing their 4 bedroom when it’s actually 3 ….

It’s priced as a 3 double bed with additional study though. If selling as 4 bed it would be on for the original 485k

So get the listing changed!

Upstairs , the end bedroom is only accessible via the other bedroom.
Some may want to knock them into 1 room.

I really like it op, also love the colours. For me the kitchen is off putting. You have 2 different styles of cupboards and it’s not working , it looks temporary , like something you put up while you were saving up for a remodel , maybe if you painted the top cupboards the same as the bottom it wouldnt be so jarring. I also think the dark blue dining room/ area woukd be transformed if you painted that a lighter colour, most people have said they don’t like that room in particular and I would have to agree . The garden may be small but it’s a bit of a mess so a good tidy there woukd help , then get some new photos . I agree with the estate agent , have your downstairs bedroom disguised for viewings .

Presumably your market is first-time buyers who will be in their 30s and your personal style is unlikely to be the same as theirs. The downstairs toilet doesn't even have a hand basin and that would really put me off. Being brutally honest, it looks like, if not a full renovation project, then at least a do-er upper. But the price doesn't reflect seem to reflect that.

I used to live in Watford. West Watford is a much harder sell than round by the Junction Station. You are VERY close to the stadium and it isn’t that pleasant on match days with the road closures and loud drunk fans walking about.

Parking is also an issue on most roads there as the bigger period houses like yours lend themselves nicely to being HMOs.

Plus you are listing a three bed house as a four bedroom house.

There’s a four bed house gone under offer on Whippendell Road that was on at £550k and this one on Kensington Avenue for offers in excess of £500k. Both are still impacted by match days but aren’t anywhere near as close to the stadium as yours.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/92530482#/?channel=RES_BUY

Your house is great. It’s just price.

It doesn't look like it's had a new kitchen though. You have basic units at the bottom and mismatched cupboards at the bottom. There nothing up with that, but it will put people off as they just see the cost of a new kitchen. I'm confused by the hob situation too.

I live in a borough with grammar schools (Trafford), but this house wouldn't appeal to me as I have boys. So being close to a girls' grammar school is not a draw for every parent unfortunately.

If you want to market it as a 4 bedroom house then I would build a stud wall with a doorway to make it a separate space. I'd figure out where a bed and wardrobe at least could go before you decide where the door is better off going. Is there a radiator?

Royal blue and black, and bright green looks a bit dated and polarizing. B&Q have a two for 3 on paint at the moment (or did when I popped in on Friday!). I'd paint it a more neutral colour. Love the yellow though!

The rooms are cluttered with too much furniture.

You have 2 different types of units in the kitchen - green wall units.

It's not in good condition.

The flooring loos incredibly tatty- a mix of rugs, carpets, wooden floorboards, painted floorboards, the paintwork and woodwork in the cloak room is worn and needs repairing.

The paintwork is bright and not to everyone's taste. Paint the walls neutral.

Your artwork is scary! Lots of rather odd 'goblin' type figures, like the 4 in the living room. I think you need to take some art work down and put it away.

The lean-to at the back is a demolition job IMO.

Firstly, I love the aesthetic, that wouldn’t put me off at all..
but-
its being marketed as 4 bedrooms and it only has 3
all the photos look ai which is a bit disconcerting
One bathroom, not even an extra loo??
Feels very expensive to me, I can buy a detached six bed for nearly the same price in our town. And we are in the south, 45 mins commute to London, nice area etc.

The black fireplace and door in the dining room needs to be repainted white or cream, it’s very dark. And the garden is very overgrown. Apart from that it’s a cute house!

So many rooms I would want to repaint that it would feel a huge amount of work. The blue room with the black skirting & doors is hideous and would be very hard work to strip or cover up. That room alone would massively put me off

There is a loo downstairs but nowhere to wash hands which many buyers would not find acceptable.

Lovely house, especially the living room, but it’s a 3 bed plus study. I am instantly put off houses that are marketed with more real bedrooms than they have (including reception rooms called bedrooms).

I love the colour but there’s a huge amount of personality in the house so maybe neutralise it a bit? Tidy and open up the garden? It’s a lovely house though so good luck!