How long normally should it take to sell a house [uk]?

Question

my house has been on the market for over a year with very few people looking at it.how do i increase my chances for a quick sale

Answer 1

Hello,

(ANS) No.1 There is NO!! SUCH THING as a normal house sale, each property is different based upon a wide number of variable conditions. And therefore you cannot say how long it will take from first advertising to contract completion.

No.2 You MUST bear in mind that as far as property selling (sales) goes, at the present time we are ALL faced with extremely rare & unusual conditions. YES! its a buyers market as house prices have fallen by large % amounts in the last few months as the housing price bubble has now burst.

**BUT even if you are keen to sell and even if you have an extremely keen buyer who wants your house then the finally problem which is likely to  completely snooker the whole process is that lenders (mortgage companies) wont lend the funds for the purchase, why? due to the credit crunch. Financial institutions lack of confidence in each other, i.e. bank to bank which is endemic at the moment.

No.3 To improve the chances of a house sale or to vastly increase interest in your property you MUST look at DRESSING your property. That means getting an independent objective third party opinion about what needs updating, changing or moving around as in fittings, fixtures, furniture, redecorating & so forth. DON'T attempt to do the analysis yourself because 9 times out of 10 your just NOT going to be objective enough. i.e. cannot see the trees for the wood etc.

Hope that helps?

Kind Regards Ivan.

Answer 2

Ensure that the agent is honest with their valuation and also that you too are realistic to "selling prices" which differ from "for sale" prices.  If you are thinking of buying a bigger house then this IS the time to sell as you'll get a better discount off your purchase price.  You'll make money not loose it!  As for mortgages and the theory that they are not out there, they are!  Over three thousand products on the market, how many does one person need? (as long as it's affordable).  The biggest obsticle in selling houses in this market is often the seller themselves.  Good luck.

Answer 3

Depends how much it is and location.I'd get a different estate agent if I was you, or maybe try redecorating and cleaning it.

Answer 4

Lower the price by 35%

Answer 5

Maximum 6 months but to increase your chances try to paint away chipped paint and stuff buy accessories to try and make your house look more modern and also remember buyers like neutral colours.

Answer 6

Now is not the time to be selling a house. The mortgage companies are not giving out mortgages and house prices are falling so the people who have the money are waiting til the house prices hit rock bottom before they buy. Sorry, but apparently all will be well within 2 years.......

Answer 7

Two ways.

Make it more desirable

Lower the price.

Answer 8

Change your agent, make sure they advertise on Right Move, maybe lower the price and ask new agent what you can do decoration wise to make the house acceptable. Be open minded.