Four out of five homebuyers would consider making a reduced offer on a property if they found maintenance issues when viewing it.
In a survey by insurance provider Aviva, more than half of prospective buyers said they would “definitely” reduce an offer, with 7% saying they wouldn’t make an offer at all if they discovered, when viewing the house or flat that it had problems.
The survey of 2,001 UK adults found poor maintenance could knock 14% off a house price, the equivalent of more than £40,000 based on current UK house prices.
The most common concern was signs of damp, mould or dry rot with 65% of respondents saying they would find it off putting.
Cracks in the walls or ceilings would be off putting for 59% of people canvassed. Other concerns were loose roof tiles, blocked drains, uninsulated lofts, dripping taps, draughty windows and boilers that had not been serviced.
The study was commissioned to show homeowners the importance of looking after their properties in the run up to putting them on the market to sell.
Sheldon Bosley Knight’s associate director Andrew James said: “House prices remain high in the Midlands and there are no shortage of buyers.
“However that doesn’t mean sellers should be complacent and not take note of the state of the property they are selling.
“In our experience, those properties which are well maintained both internally and externally are the ones which sell quickest and get the best price.
“Those which are not well looked after are more likely to be the ones on which buyers want to negotiate when it comes to price as they are thinking about the cost of the work needing to be done to bring it up to standard.
“We would urge sellers where possible to think about the presentation of their properties both internally and externally and do what they can to improve the overall condition. It’s in their interests to do so!”