Getting disheartened

Just hang on, because six weeks is nothing at all really in the house selling game. I've sold houses that have taken over a year to sell. It requires nerves of steel and great patience, but suddenly one day someone will make an offer, then bingo!
I do wish you the best of luck.

I have just sold after 6 months. My house was empty of furniture -perhaps this didn't help but I had to move out and gone into sheltered housing where the rent had to be paid. Very difficult time for me and brexit didn't help. Good luck and keep being positive - it will sell!

I think it's definitely a lack of vision in would be buyers.

I think the footprint of the property is important not the decoration but there seems to be awhile raft of people for whom you practically have to put labels on things for them to get the idea.

For me it's about space , will this space work. Grampy cannot 'see' it so has to take my word for it . We have spent a year getting our house ready doing all those neglected jobs. We had a new kitchen too , ours was over 30 years old so it makes sense , but we vectored it into the sale price.

So we shall have to wait and see if it pays off .

Bbevan the last house in our road to sell was redecorated throughout, new kitchen added and new carpets fitted. New owners have gutted the place including ripping out the new kitchen, so it seems such a waste of effort on behalf of the previous owner just to sell.

Anya their leased is up in September, but as we haven't sold yet we as unlikely to be ready by then. We have made an offer but obviously if someone ready to proceed makes the same (or a better) offer we will lose out. We are trying not to think about it too much.

Yes, your house sounds lovely. And it's true that some most people can't see past things. No imagination at all!

Apparently you're selling a lifestyle not a house.

I'm fancying yours myself. If I could afford it--fat chance--.

The seeing through things is interesting. We can and certainly did when we bought our current tiny home as it had last been decorated over 20 years ago. Our sons can as can one daughter in law, the other just can't. She knows it's a block and tries to overcome it but can't. I'll never forget her face when she saw our current home before we updated it, although she tried to be positive her face said it all. We get a different expression now when she visits, thank goodness . Your home sounds beautiful Bbevan, don't lose heart. They right person to pass it onto is out there, if just may take a little longer than you hoped. Just thought, the couple who bought our last home seemed totally disinterested when they viewed but quickly made a good offer, you just can never tell.

I sort of agree with youPWiggly surely people can see beyond the toys and photos. They will all probably re-decorate anyway. I will ( if I ever get that Far )
Gook luck

Will the house you are after stay tenented Piggly?

We too are selling after 30+ years so this makes interesting reading.
We have found a house we like which is tenanted and smells of cigarettes, but it hasn't put us off. The layout is what we need. I am amazed that you have to dress your house to sell when clearly we have found a house that is not dressed at all . I have had many discussions with my friend about this. She says I have to depersonalise, but there isn't anywhere to put things like the grandchildren's toys, and as it is a family house why do we need to hide all evidence that a family lives here? Are people really so devoid of imagination these days?

BB your house sounds lovely, and it will sell.

Rosina made a very good point that things can suddenly change in a few hours. You only need one person to say 'yes' and you're on your way.

But a bit like buses you'll probably find two offers come along together.

J52 I went on the Rightmove site. According to them we have a few weeks to go for the average selling time in our area. So that has made us feel a little better.
We have DGs this weekend so it is constant tidying just in case. We are off to the zoo today so house can have a rest

J52.... the neighbour we were being so kind to, our entire family lending pots of flowers for the patio etc.....was our son.

If you delve into the Rightmove site, you can get to a page that tells you the average time it takes to sell a house, of your type, in your post code. It might be of some use/ comfort.

I can't remember how I got there, but might have just Googled the question. It was spot on for us!

Don't forget also that everything can change in a few hours - an agent told me that everything, but everything, sells in the end, and I am sure your house is lovely. The buyer is out there, and will arrive tomorrow, next week or even next month, and then you are on your way. I have moved five times, and a couple of times really felt I was going to scream if nothing happened soon - and then it did. (We never failed to sell) Keep calm and carry on advertising!

Sold our family home of 34 yrs last year. We put it on market first week in January and moved to our apartment middle of October. The third offer we accepted finally completed but we went almost all the way with the second one who pulled out at the eleventh hour. Horrible business, but like having a baby once it is over you forget about the pain.

In order to sell my late father's house. I had do the 'make over'
Fresh paint.
New cushions + curtains + bedding
( just inexpensive ones, but coordinated)
Removed all personal things eg photos + ornaments)
I bought modern vases from charity shop for fresh flowers
Put fruit in fruit bowl on table
And put wine in a small wine rack on kitchen work surfaces ( which had been de cluttered)
I also put out my coffee machine.
If the viewers are for example a young soon to be married couple it provides a bit of 'aspiration'
We also painted front door and I put a bay tree (mine) next to it.
I lit the fire and as it was a cottage, I put some logs by the side of it.

I showed the viewers around by myself.
No DH or Pets. Send them out!.
Only one person needs to show the buyers around, otherwise it can be both owners talking over each other also men like to talk boilers, sheds etc
Big up the positives. Re house and area
Let the viewer go into the rooms first and you follow.
Keep all doors closed to avoid the distraction of the viewers peeking in to other rooms before you show them in.

We had house on the market with our village estate agent. But found that we were like yourself getting low offers
so we found another agent and asked if we could go duel agent and they both agreed
in the end we had a buyer with both agents!.
Obviously we went with best offer

Just a thought please check out your photos.
We asked that the sky was made blue (it was raining when they were taken)
We also made sure that they didn't show next doors bins and cars ( all can be air brushed)
All sounds mad
But needs must

Good luck to all who are in the painful process of selling.

I have to say there's not much more you can do to make it desirable. When on a visit to my late brother in the US when he was selling, he had an open house and they had a tea tray with pastries and a pot of coffee and cups for the people coming round. I thought it was a bit OTT, but their agent says that there are so many tricks now, including air scent diffusers that smell like bread baking to lure people into a state of home-iness.. LOL!

It took almost a year to sell our family home when we divorced. We did have a sale which fell through during that time due to the buyers sale falling through. As a consequence I lost the house I was planning to buy. It's a stressful time. As others have said try to neutralise the house as much as you can and pack away stuff if you have a lot of ornaments and photos. Make sure the garden is tidy and kitchen and bathroom sweet smelling and shiny. If any of your decor is past its best it might be worth a lick of paint. Good luck!

Thanks everyone .I take it all on board We are in a very 'desirable area' Excellent schools, 10 mins. Walk to station for Euston. Very easy access to M1 and M25.
The house is mostly decorated in pale colours with oatmeal carpet or Karndean. Kitchen is newish with solid wood work tops and slate floor. Garden south facing.
Similar houses are on at a similar price. One very near which looks lovely from outside has been on the market 2 weeks longer than us. It's a conundrum, but I expect it will work out in the end

We were in exactly the same situation BB. We tried to sell in the last recession it took 5 years and we had to reduce the price by £30,000! I do hope that you have better luck with yours.

The fact that you've had 2 offers is good news but what you want of course is commitment, good serious offers and no faffing around.
You also want someone who's sold their house so you don't end up in a chain.
Anyone who is serious will make you a decent offer but never accept the first one.
Never take your house off the market.
Don't spend money updating as whoever buys will have their own tastes which will almost certainly be different to yours.
The trend is to knock down walls wherever possible and have kitchen-diners, snug rooms,etc.,
Have you decluttered?. Can you send some stuff to the auction rooms?.
40 years in the same house, few people can say that!.
It's going to be horribly emotional for you!.

I'm sure your agents will have given you a good idea of what kind of offer you could accept and what needs updating in your house.

New kitchens and bathrooms costs hugh money now so all of that has to be taken into account.
6 weeks is not that long, I would give it a bit longer before considering bringing the price down. What you don't want is to have it 'hanging around' at the same price for too long. In the long run you could end up getting less money for it.

Have you looked up Zoopla to see what other houses in your area have been selling for?.

Best wishes.

My late fathers home has been on the market for 2 years, lots of interest and 4 buyers who have made serious offers then pulled out because of comments from ascerbic neighbour who shares access alley and parks there.
It went to auction recently as guaranteed 4 weeks turnaround but 10 weeks later there is a problem with land registry. The saga continues.

How long is a piece of string. I have bought and sold quite a few times and it has ranged from 1 day to 18 months! The timings for the most part reflect the state of the house market/economy at the time.

Good points from Anya and try more that one agent, watch their commission rates and don't get locked into a - say - four month exclusive representation.

Good luck. I have always taken the philosophical view that house buying and selling is meant when the circumstances are right, which may not be revealed until life has moved on. Eliminates stress! Che sara and all that.

I sympathise with your impatience to get this moving BB! We are waiting to exchange contracts, survey being done next week on this house. The lady buying was the least enthusiastic of all our viewers, the ones we never heard from again were the "over the moon, blown away, love, love love it" ones, so take it all with a pinch if salt! We had to take a significant reduction, both in the list price and what we had set as a realistic minimum, and our Agent, who has been surpringly good all along, told us the Brexit vote has affected the housing market short term. Your choice of agent is crucial, make sure you choose one who knows your area very well and ask them for details of similar properties they have sold recently in your area. We are in a very desirable area, close to station, 25 mins into Charing Cross, excellent schools, local shops, including supermarket, village location, complete with duck ponds etc and our buyer made us an offer in four weeks of us going on the market! Our agent was confident of a quick sale due to the excellent (neutral) decor and general presentation of this house, which has been well looked after. We have also been here 40 years! OK, they are getting a bargain, but we are miving up to lincolnshire where we are buying a new build 3 bed bungalow for less than half the value of this house! Good look, its not easy at our age, (i am 74, oh 89!) but it will be worth it.