mick_newcastle

ANy suggestions guys....

Want out of UK ASAP as the longer we are here the more doubt that sets in about making the move.......

Need to sell the house quick but dont want to give it away - literally 3 weeks ago we have droped its value from 150K to offers over 144k.

Estate agent seems as if they are doing nothing - seem to ring them 3 times a week to see what is going on. Similar properties on the estate are being sold on the estate for same sort of prices.....

Any suggestions would be welcomed.
Getting frustated as we cant book cats for export or book flights until we have the cash........................

emu72

Keep it, rent it out, and use the rent to pay your rent in Australia.

Simple!

mick_newcastle

No savings mate - all the money we have in the world is tied up in the property (Believe me I wish I could keep it on)- want to make a clean break and have a bit of money behind us till we can find work.
Also I personally feel if we sell the house - if the going gets tough out there we will be more likely to stick it out and give Brisbane a real go.
Don't want to be in a position to take an easy way out and come back at the first hint of trouble.

Loubags

Sorry, can't help with getting your house sold, but know how frustrated you are. We've sold ( again - last buyer pulled out couple of days before exchange ) and were supposed to exchange last week. Buyer at bottom of chain ( only 3 of us in it so not too bad supposedly) seems to be stalling. We chased everyone again yesterday and were assured they would all be ready to exchange this morning. Guess what - still hasn't happened.
We're in same postion re money. Can't book flights / shippers etc until we've exchanged and can't go without selling the house as we need the capital.
AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

The only positive comment I can make is that I provisionally booked John Mason shippers to come out next Monday and they have held the slot open for me if we can exchange today. They have been fabulous.

Try and stay positive. Good Luck with it.
Lou
P. S Just had call to say it should be this afternoon, but I'm not holding my breath. If we do exchange today, you'll probably hear the cries of joy echoing over the expat site!

Nick11

What about putting house on market with more than one estate agent?

Downies

Go for a smaller agent - they are more hungry!

If you are anywhere near me try Adams - do a flat fee and really earn it.

As a last resort there are companies who will buy your house under market value for speed - they value it and give you less than that, mad isnt it!

mick_newcastle

Whats the situation with that ? Do you have to pay both of them in the event of the sale ?

Loubags

We had 2 agents in the end. The first one charged us three quarters percent for being sole agent. When we put it up with another, the fee went up to one and quarter percent, which the agents split between them. Not sure how they divide it though.

geordiekaz

Look at changing your agent, our house had been on the market for 6 months and had nothing, changed the agent to one that was new to the area and they were fab, hungry for the business and sold it within a few weeks. Its all very frustrating though isn't it!!

geordie mandy

From the outset when we sold our last house we put in on with 2 agents and told them who ever manages to sell it got a bonus .
This was after the house being on the market with a useless agent first time round who never got any one in to view. Having 2 agents worked for us as it promoted compition for the bonus and the house got sold within 3 weeks of doing this.
Good luck Mick
Mandy

Nick11

Quite agree - play one off against it other. You might sell your house and have a bit of fun at the same time!!!!

Issie

If it appeals to a first time buyer what about offering free legal fees for the buyer.

leigh&ivan

We are in exactly the same situation. We have 457 visas & OH employer's expecting us September. If we haven't sold the house I don't know what we'll do, like you, we need the cash from the house

Leigh

Tiggs+Graz

Hi mick
Have you tried the basics? - neutralised colour schemes, packed away the clutter, removed your personal photos etc, tidying up the garden.... in other words the 'staging' stuff to make your house stand out to buyers.

Then there is the slightly more expensive stuff that is probably worth considering - replacing worn carpets (or cleaning old ones if they are decent), getting rid of 'big' pieces of furniture (that make your rooms look smaller) and replacing them with smaller items (don't need to spend a lot - consider second hand or even borrow things from relatives)

Have you asked your estate agent their opinion on why it is not selling? They should be willing to do a walk through the house with you and point out things that are likely to put off buyers. Or you could ask someone who hasn't been in your house before to give your their opinion - maybe one of your neighbours or someone from work - the idea is to have 'fresh eyes' look around and point out the things to you that you may not have even noticed yourself.

Also consider things like taking pets off to a neighbour when you have viewings (or in my case teenagers!) ...

This is just the stuff off the top of my head - i am sure i can come up with more if it is any use!
Adele

pike

Spent weeks giving the house a coat of paint ,de clustering etc. put it on the market 10 days ago had 1 viewer with no feed back every time i come home from work I'm wishing for a sold sign, I'm panicking that it wont be sold by september ready for the big move in November