My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Nov 6th 2005, 8:40 pm
#31
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by frankieforehead
Well Done Allie....I suppose you've had a few to celebrate...lets hope this is it this time...fingers crossed...
Hi all. We have just put our bungalow on the market monday just gone. It is a self build, brand spanking new. We had loads of calls and people come round while we was building asking to look but nothing since it has officially gone 'on the market'. We know that this time of year is not a great time to be selling but we are hopeful! :scared:
Nov 6th 2005, 9:04 pm
#32
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by Snave
Allie: Where/how do I find PXS? Do they have a website you can forward? Under the circumstances if someone offered me %90 of the £195,000 my estate agent has priced the house at - I'd take it.
Nov 8th 2005, 3:01 pm
#33
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
An off-topic question here Allie, but how come it took so long for your family-class application to go through?
I was under the impression that they were generally fast-tracked but could still take up to 8 months. Yours took nearly 18 months!! Any reason why?
I was under the impression that they were generally fast-tracked but could still take up to 8 months. Yours took nearly 18 months!! Any reason why?
Nov 8th 2005, 11:19 pm
#34
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by Mr Lee
An off-topic question here Allie, but how come it took so long for your family-class application to go through?
I was under the impression that they were generally fast-tracked but could still take up to 8 months. Yours took nearly 18 months!! Any reason why?
I was under the impression that they were generally fast-tracked but could still take up to 8 months. Yours took nearly 18 months!! Any reason why?
So now I am a bit nervous but very excited about moving over to the other side of the world on my own!!
Nov 9th 2005, 4:16 pm
#35
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by allie2
My family class wasn't the 'spouse' route or 'children' route that you are probably thinking of, it was the 'last living relative' route that is quite unusual. It took them 9 months to decide if we were eligible (involving proving the births and deaths of Great Aunts and Great Uncles!) and then there was a mix up with the CRB certificate that was already in progress for some volunteering that I do (I got a normal police certificate in the end) which meant a 5 month delay in submitting the paperwork from the UK side. I sent it all in and got my receipt in December, medical request in February and passport request in March. So after the initial delay, it went pretty fast.
So now I am a bit nervous but very excited about moving over to the other side of the world on my own!!
So now I am a bit nervous but very excited about moving over to the other side of the world on my own!!
Nov 9th 2005, 6:25 pm
#36
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by allie2
My VISA expires in February and I don't know what to do. I have dropped my house price to £155,000 (average valuation £175,000) and the estate agents all recommend not dropping the price further. My options seem to be as below:
(a) land, list my goods to follow and come back. Pros: it won't cost me too much Cons
and this is big) delay my complete change of lifestyle indefinitely
(b) rent it out and keep it up for sale. Pros: it will pay the mortage Cons: I need the equity to move and change careers; they may damage the house/not pay the rent/make it unsalable
(c) release £10,000 from the equity, rent it out, hope they don't damage it, keep it up for sale. Pros: I can move and my mortage would be covered; Cons: no career change and the house may be unsaleable
(d) release £10,000 from the equity, rent it out, hope they don't damage it. Put it up for sale again when the housing market will buy anything in any condition. Pros: I can move; Cons: Have to permanently rent in Canada.
(e) sell to one of these companies that will buy the house for a pittance and profit out of my situation. Pros: I can move and have the career change with no chance of them backing out; Cons: I can't afford to buy where I wanted to buy
(f) drop the price to £140,000. Pros: it might sell quickly; Cons: it might not and then option (e) will reduce their offer accordingly
Any advice or ideas?
(a) land, list my goods to follow and come back. Pros: it won't cost me too much Cons
and this is big) delay my complete change of lifestyle indefinitely(b) rent it out and keep it up for sale. Pros: it will pay the mortage Cons: I need the equity to move and change careers; they may damage the house/not pay the rent/make it unsalable
(c) release £10,000 from the equity, rent it out, hope they don't damage it, keep it up for sale. Pros: I can move and my mortage would be covered; Cons: no career change and the house may be unsaleable
(d) release £10,000 from the equity, rent it out, hope they don't damage it. Put it up for sale again when the housing market will buy anything in any condition. Pros: I can move; Cons: Have to permanently rent in Canada.
(e) sell to one of these companies that will buy the house for a pittance and profit out of my situation. Pros: I can move and have the career change with no chance of them backing out; Cons: I can't afford to buy where I wanted to buy
(f) drop the price to £140,000. Pros: it might sell quickly; Cons: it might not and then option (e) will reduce their offer accordingly
Any advice or ideas?
Try to de-clutter the house ( if there is any ), paint the walls neutral, and put some nice looking furniture in there, rent them if you may. The thing is, buyers like to see houses just like they can imagine themselves in it.
Also...if you have pets, try and give them a vacation and be sure to put some scented candles, or bake cookies in the oven, when buyers are coming over.
Remember you are trying to appeal to mostly young buyers, and some older buyers as well. Some peopel wonder why their houses don't sell, and when you see the state of it, you sort of know why. ( not saying that is the case here ).
Good luck
Nov 9th 2005, 6:44 pm
#37
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by Mr Lee
I take it you applied for your police certificate through GMP. How long did it take to come through?
Nov 9th 2005, 7:42 pm
#38
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
We sold ours through the internet. You get the bargain hunters trawling through there, so if you price reasonably aggressively you may get some interest. We used www.propertybroker.com. It was good for getting intest from out of the local area. We live near Oxford and our buyers are coming from Cumbria.
Strangely, the people who bought our house phoned us the day our ad in the Evening Standard Newspaper came out, so we though it was this that had done the trick. Only found out otherwise when our purchase came around to pick up his redirected mail last week.
Strangely, the people who bought our house phoned us the day our ad in the Evening Standard Newspaper came out, so we though it was this that had done the trick. Only found out otherwise when our purchase came around to pick up his redirected mail last week.
Nov 11th 2005, 10:45 pm
#39
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Would you believe it? I forgot to tell the other estate agent about the house offer and they have just had an offer for the full asking price!!!
It really is like buses...you wait ages for one offer and then two come along at the same time!
It really is like buses...you wait ages for one offer and then two come along at the same time!
Nov 16th 2005, 6:20 pm
#40
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by allie2
Would you believe it? I forgot to tell the other estate agent about the house offer and they have just had an offer for the full asking price!!!
It really is like buses...you wait ages for one offer and then two come along at the same time!
It really is like buses...you wait ages for one offer and then two come along at the same time!
One of my properties has been on the market well over a year, the other coming up for a year. I gave up with one agent who was far too passive in the marketing process. Then I tried a more strategically placed agent and got some interest. I then had 2 buyers in succession who went to the 99% point before walking away. All surveys etc. were fine. I'm now on the 3rd buyer but hopefully things will go well this time.
It's easy and logical to say that if it's not sold within x months, you're doing something wrong. But when you check the checkboxes and everything has been done that can be, people will still take advantage of a system that doesn't get them to commit until a very late stage.
It's great news that you have a stroke of luck with your house sale. What I was saying to myself when it was slow, is that you only need one buyer to buy your place, but if a couple come along it makes it more interesting.
Nov 18th 2005, 8:28 pm
#41
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Cheers G! What a week...
...so it turns out my first time buyer wasn't a first time buyer after all. They have another property and they have applied for a let to buy mortgage for 100% of my purchase price and though in principle that's fine, what happens if they change their mind and bring their house into the equation? So, I am feeling a lot less sure about this purchaser...
...step in my original buyers, who have offered to split the difference between my two offers, exchange within 2 weeks and complete when I want them to...their survey and searches are back and all OK...
...and then a family knock on the door, really interested in the house and my housemate shows them around. They want to put in an offer too...
...aargh...where were they all earlier in the year?
...so it turns out my first time buyer wasn't a first time buyer after all. They have another property and they have applied for a let to buy mortgage for 100% of my purchase price and though in principle that's fine, what happens if they change their mind and bring their house into the equation? So, I am feeling a lot less sure about this purchaser...
...step in my original buyers, who have offered to split the difference between my two offers, exchange within 2 weeks and complete when I want them to...their survey and searches are back and all OK...
...and then a family knock on the door, really interested in the house and my housemate shows them around. They want to put in an offer too...
...aargh...where were they all earlier in the year?
Nov 18th 2005, 8:46 pm
#42
Joined: Apr 2005
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by allie2
Cheers G! What a week...
...so it turns out my first time buyer wasn't a first time buyer after all. They have another property and they have applied for a let to buy mortgage for 100% of my purchase price and though in principle that's fine, what happens if they change their mind and bring their house into the equation? So, I am feeling a lot less sure about this purchaser...
...step in my original buyers, who have offered to split the difference between my two offers, exchange within 2 weeks and complete when I want them to...their survey and searches are back and all OK...
...and then a family knock on the door, really interested in the house and my housemate shows them around. They want to put in an offer too...
...aargh...where were they all earlier in the year?
...so it turns out my first time buyer wasn't a first time buyer after all. They have another property and they have applied for a let to buy mortgage for 100% of my purchase price and though in principle that's fine, what happens if they change their mind and bring their house into the equation? So, I am feeling a lot less sure about this purchaser...
...step in my original buyers, who have offered to split the difference between my two offers, exchange within 2 weeks and complete when I want them to...their survey and searches are back and all OK...
...and then a family knock on the door, really interested in the house and my housemate shows them around. They want to put in an offer too...
...aargh...where were they all earlier in the year?
Nov 21st 2005, 3:20 pm
#43
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Hi
Our PR visa ran out this month. We landed in August had a holiday and returned to the UK to await the sale of our house. Our daughter is applying to University out there and cant start until next September anyway, but I would land and sell your house as and when.
You have 5 years on the PR visa, and only need to reside for 2 of those, so kick back and wait
Hope that helps
Peter
Our PR visa ran out this month. We landed in August had a holiday and returned to the UK to await the sale of our house. Our daughter is applying to University out there and cant start until next September anyway, but I would land and sell your house as and when.
You have 5 years on the PR visa, and only need to reside for 2 of those, so kick back and wait
Hope that helps
Peter
Nov 21st 2005, 11:21 pm
#44
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Originally Posted by allie2
...aargh...where were they all earlier in the year?
Nov 22nd 2005, 12:07 pm
#45
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Re: My house still hasn't sold...any advice?
Can I ask a question?
we finally exchanged on our house a couple of weeks ago, the purchasers are pretty demanding people for first time buyers.
Our house is a typical Wimpey 3 bedroom home - 7 years old - good condition etc etc.
They have come over a total of 4 times before exchanging - the final time being told from the estate agents that they were not going to be able to come over any more until they receive the keys at completion.
They have even been measuring our furniture (which incidentally is going with us to Victoria BC next month!)
This morning got a call from the estate agent saying that the purchasers want to come over on Saturday to see the house again.
My first reaction is bugger off! We've two small kids and getting fed up of having to tidy the whole place up to showroom standard.
Are we leaggly obliged to show them the house as and when they feel like it? Estate agent did try to mutter something to that effect but I asked I don't remember agreeing to this? The purchasers and estate agent don't know we're relocating out of the country as we have been artfully vague about our final destination...
Help? All input gratefully appreciated!
we finally exchanged on our house a couple of weeks ago, the purchasers are pretty demanding people for first time buyers.
Our house is a typical Wimpey 3 bedroom home - 7 years old - good condition etc etc.
They have come over a total of 4 times before exchanging - the final time being told from the estate agents that they were not going to be able to come over any more until they receive the keys at completion.
They have even been measuring our furniture (which incidentally is going with us to Victoria BC next month!)
This morning got a call from the estate agent saying that the purchasers want to come over on Saturday to see the house again.
My first reaction is bugger off! We've two small kids and getting fed up of having to tidy the whole place up to showroom standard.
Are we leaggly obliged to show them the house as and when they feel like it? Estate agent did try to mutter something to that effect but I asked I don't remember agreeing to this? The purchasers and estate agent don't know we're relocating out of the country as we have been artfully vague about our final destination...
Help? All input gratefully appreciated!