5 reasons why your property isn’t selling
by on 12th August 2017
You’ve taken the plunge, decided to get your home, your investment property on the market for sale as you want to move, release cash, upsize, downsize, relocate and you wait patiently for offers.
If the asking price is right and the property is marketed well on portals, social media and email shots, you shouldn’t be hanging around long at all.
In fact, with demand for housing reputedly outstripping supply, you’d expect to move and move quickly – but sometimes things get in the way and these can be off-putting internal features that you may love, but a buyer may not.
So, apart from price, picking the wrong estate agent and poor economic conditions, what are the five reasons causing your home to remain unloved and without offers in 2017?
Some may surprise you, so here goes:
- Wood panelling. Yes wood panelling is the biggest feature that deters buyers. Why? We think it’s because it’s seen as dated and also viewers of a property may be wary of what it’s masking. It’s not like stripping wallpaper, a buyer may think. So if you’ve got wood panelling, and you’re not living in some listed Tudor manorhouse in West Yorkshire, consider removing it, reskimming the walls and whilst the plasterer is there, tackle the second pet hate of home buyers: artex.
- Artex ceilings. Your swirly ceiling fan designs may have been all the rage in 1981 but decorative taste has moved on and, like wood panelling, potential home buyers do not like it. It’s not an easy fix, in that those artex ripples need flattening and skimming over, but trust Hogan’s, if your house is lingering on the market and artex adorns the ceilings, it could be time to nudge the plasterer, who is removing the wood panelling.
- Wood chip. Again all the rage years ago, when wood chip adorned many a property and was sung about by Sheffield’s Pulp: “Her house was very small / With wood chip on the wall” but now very much out of favour. Easier to deal with than Artex or wood panelling, so if have you it, get ready to remove it. You could even put Pulp on whilst stripping it?
- Built-in bars. Unless you’re selling a pub or a guest house, a built-in bar is the fourth biggest buyer turn-off. To be honest, we don’t see many on valuations at Hogan’s, but if you have one, consider removing it. It will probably be therapeutic too, particularly when knowing you can drink what’s left after you’ve removed the bar area.
- Avocado bathrooms. Yes, we see a few of these and to be honest the cost of a plain white bathroom suite will quickly pay for itself by removing it and adding desirability and better offers nearer the asking price. A suite can cost under £300. Of course, you then to need fit it or pay someone else to, but it will have a big payback for you.
There you have it: the 5 top reasons why property won’t sell.
Of course, some house buyers will look beyond these and see potential or, use them as a lever, to make a lower offer.
The best way to ensure your property sells on time is to use an estate agent who knows the local property market intimately – like Hogan’s, Hogan’s Online Plus and Hogan’s Fast Sale – who’ve spent 30 years in property management in Leeds.
From the same time when artex, panelling, bars, wood chip and avocado bathrooms would have had us and your viewers cooing.
