My house is in poor condition and won’t sell

Q: I am trying to sell my home. I found a buyer but they have now pulled out because of the findings of the survey report which found structural issues. I am selling because I don't have the money to maintain the property let alone invest in it. I wondered if you can offer some advice on my next steps - Quick Sale firms?

This is a great shame and must be putting the seller under considerable strain. I am afraid is it unlikely that quick sale companies are going to buy it due to its condition and the amount needing to be spent on it to get it into a saleable proposition.

Specifically relating to the structural movement issue it leads me to the conclusion that the property would need to be sold to a developer/experienced builder who can invest enough to sort the issues and bring into a saleable state. With this in mind, my advice would be to focus the appointed estate agent on this line of thought leaving them to target active developers/builders seeking such opportunities – they are certainly out there and with an improvement in market conditions they would be confident to commit to such a project. A good way to access these types of buyers is via the auction houses – if I owned it that’s the route I would take.

Mark Neal
Managing Director, Homewise

Related guides:

• “Quick Sale” firms: pros, cons and what to watch out for 
• What can I do about negative equity?
• How to make your home more valuable and sell faster
• How to sell your house at auction
• What price should I sell my house for?