what price to market at?? Help!

[norkmaiden]

Hello property-watchers! ADvice needed on an asking price, if anyone would like to hazard a guess:

3-bed modern semi, modern/clean throughout (new kitchen/bathrooms). Single garage and good parking, neat garden. Good area, where houses rarely come on the market - I think this is part of why it's a bit tricky to price.

2 EA say 190k, maybe up to 200k. We paid 180 in 2004, when the house was a state (ex-rental, v sad and tatty looking). Do you reckon the EA are right??

thanks ll - I do want rid of this house, it's no use to us where we're going! 175 just feels so so low. From 250k to c.175k in just over 18 months

Prices falling more slowing in the area we're heading to, as well..

gah, more slowly not slowing

Everybody seems to be saying where ever they are moving to the prices are slowing and yet we're all looking at different areas, taking a hit on ours (ok it's hypothetical for me at the moment) but you take my point, if you guys are having to drop there's no way in hell everyone else doesn't have to as well.

It's all psychological anyway, if somebody said to you the house was worth £250k but you'd have to add that £75k or more to the next house you're buying you'd probably be delighted where as you'd be paying more stamp duty, more in estate agent fees etc.
Prices dropping are a good thing for 99% of people.

I think that more than 1% of people are in negative equity or have not enough equity to enable them to get a new mortgage with the current requirements.

To the OP, remember that you will save on EA fees.

Oh I totallyagree about low prices - they can fall as far as they like, we can only benefit. My worry is that ours going for a bit less than hoped for will make it more difficult to trade up if the 4-bed 300k houses I'm looking at won't shift down by the same margin as we will have to. That's the bit I'm scared of anyway. Logically it should happen. Practically? Tthey don't seem to be going down!

Anything around 200 will get offers of 175.The true value is dictated by what someone will pay not what any agent hopes for or what it was last year.

I know brett, that's a not insignificant sum too!

Actually I don't know if prices in our new area aren't going down - all I do know is that very very little is selling. But nor are prices heading downwards. Confusing and frustrating.

noddy, even if we pay the stamp duty??

True value is also dictated by how much someone will sell the house for in the absence of having to sell.

At the moment there aren't a lot of houses on the market as a result. It isn't just demand but also supply driven.

You could market at 195 with SD paid and see wgat happens and calculate different scenarios and what it would cost you.It is a really difficult time to sell atm so if you have to move you will have to try and negotiate hard when you buy.

Brett, I agree, though EA mentioned that as a possible positive for us, in that there's little in terms of stock at the moment so anyone looking to buy doesn't have much choice?

We're keen to sell up, but still could always rent it out, that's always a possibility. Until things look slightly less dire.

CHeers Noddy, that's kind of what we were thinking. The 175 is such a pain for us - the house is worth more, I'm sure of it (houses selling at 175 here are much grottier/in not so good areas), but the 175 boundary means that anyone will have a go at this price I guess. (EA said 'just say no' )

Well yes, absolutely from that perspective it is.

The issue round here anyway is that older people in 4 bed detached houses looking to downsize and pocket some equity are staying put. As a result bungalows seem impossible to shift and it is cutting down on the choice for people wanting to move up the ladder IFYSWIM?

Brett, yes I think that'll be our problem when we come to buy - we're after something like a 4-bed detched, but they're not sellign (due to older vendors refusing to reduce??) How that one resolves itself I'm not sure!

It's difficult, because it requires the whole chain to sell at a low price. For some groups, it is psycological but to a downsizer if they are pocketing less then it is a real drop.

Not everyone will be in that situation though of course, someone else may have to relocate to a comparable property in a different area and will therefore take a drop.

I just think this 'they will have to drop the prices' attitude is a bit simplistic that's all. The other option is that they don't sell.

FWIW though I'm not convinced that there is ever a good time to move - if the market is going up it can be very difficult too but for different reasons.

It's difficult to know what to do in that if you sell low then you are ready to proceed and in a strong position. But if people aren't dropping then that isn't much help.

No I agree that it's too simple to say that people 'have to' drop prices - they can just stay put! Those forced to sell are not, I imagine, generally speaking older people with family homes that are now empty nests (and which I'm looking for!)

So cash in hand, I'm still not really in a great situation - especially if my house has sold low.

Yes but most downsizers are the baby boomer generation who were basically given a house for free in the 70's as a result of inflation, have final salary pensions too and want to shaft their own sons/daughters by making them give them £200k spare change for holidays too

Yes so they're not going to hear of my low offers, cash or no cash - right?!

Cash makes no difference in my experience, nor the fact that you have no chain. It should do but EA's are the worst sales people, they cannot handle/overcome objections because over the past 8 years they haven't had to it's been like working in a supermarket, order takers
You're going into free rental anyway so I would say by the Autumn the penny might have dropped and you'll have a clearer picture of how things will pan out.
Perhaps be honest with the neighbour and say you want to give it six months at £190,000 and if it hasn't sold you'll come back to him ?
These boomers will be forced sellers too eventually, they will have medical bills and care homes to pay for and not be able to manage their big houses.
I am trying to stay in the smallest house possible for now and then buy the forever house in 5 years when I think we've hit the bottom of the market.

I disagree cash does make a difference as it is instant no risk of being turned down for a mortgage etc.We got 20% off with cash and the estate agent advised the seller to take it and the house was already about 20% less than it would have been in 07.

It is true that the market will have to move to equilibrium in the long term. But if this is in 6 years time then that isn't much help to the OP! The prob is that no-one knows how long it will take to happen! Also, equilibrium could be achieved by prices creeping back up again, no-one knows for certain what will happen.

My personal take on it is that as long as you can afford to buy what you want then forget about the money and see it as a home. But I would be worried about taking such a big drop on mine that it may leave me with an insufficient deposit.

sorrento, do you wear a black hooded cloak and carry round a scythe?

Obviously it's much better to lie to people about the state of the economy and the problems people are facing, but then i'd be an estate agent or politician in fact.

i didnt say you were lying... just that your opinions (which is what they are, given they are not based entirely on fact) tend to be rather negative.. and that I find myself anticipating your doommongering, and would miss them, indeed worry, if I saw a thread without them.