By Jess Sharp, Money live reporter
Mortgage rates are high, house prices are rising again and saving for a deposit has become increasingly difficult. So what is the process of buying and selling a home really like in 2025? Over the course of this year, we’re going to find out with two people, a buyer and a seller, who are going through the process.
This week our buyer, Minreet Kaur, explains her Rightmove anxiety, and our seller, Denise Palmer Davies, shares her frustrations with viewings and having to lower her asking price…
The mission
With a £650,000 budget, Minreet is looking for a four-bedroom property that suits all her family’s needs, with her mother suffering from incurable blood cancer, her dad needing enough space for his garden tools and a prayer room also on the list for all of them to use.
She is looking in Windsor, Egham or Burnham, but she’s discovering anything in her price range isn’t much bigger than where she is now in Hayes, Middlesex.
Just 10 options
According to Rightmove, the average sold price in Hayes over the past year is £412,853 – and around half of the four-beds on the market are within budget.
In Windsor, the average sold price is much higher – and just 10 of 100 four-beds listed on Rightmove are within budget.
Finding a terraced home is much easier in Windsor at the moment, Rightmove searches show.
The age old problem
“In the further-out areas, you can find bigger houses, with space and lots of green spaces, but we just can’t move that far as Mum has hospital appointments and we need to be in an area that is familiar to my parents especially,” Minreet says.
Rightmove anxiety
Another issue is navigating the search process when it’s all new.
“Often, you can only view the houses on open days,” she says.
“Every day, I am on Rightmove. A friend said to take Rightmove to bed with me, so I do, but it’s so stressful looking as I just can’t get over the prices.
“It’s just really stressful and very hard as a single woman because there is no support and it’s all new to me. I am ready to buy but just haven’t seen the house of our dreams yet.”
Sleeping on the sofa
Minreet says: “At the moment, my mum sleeps on the sofa as she finds the house so cold as it’s so old and I really want to find a nice warm home for my parents.”
The mission
Denise is on a mission to sell her £1.5m home in Esher, Surrey.
She has her sights set on another house in the village, but with the clock ticking, she is hoping to get it before someone else beats her there.
“Financially, it would be a like-for-like move in terms of porting our mortgage,” she says.
“After a second viewing with my husband and children, they also fell in love with the property.
“We made an initial offer on the new property, going in low due to the additional £100,000 we’d need for stamp duty. Unsurprisingly, our offer has been declined.”
Chains
Denise’s experience so far sums up the stresses that come with chains – even before you’re in one.
“Since listing our home in November, we’ve had a handful of viewings, but in the meantime, two other families have also made offers on the house we want – so it’s a race to sell first,” she said.
Lowering the asking price
For many, this becomes the only option when moving is a priority.
Denise says: “[After finding the property we wanted] we quickly met with the estate agent selling the home and agreed to list ours with them for simplicity. Their suggested asking price was higher than we expected, but after reviewing recent sales in the area, we agreed.
“At the start of this year, we reduced our asking price, which has led to more viewings.
“We’ve received one firm offer, but it was well below asking, so we declined.
“It is getting frustrating as we do want to remain in the village, but properties are fairly hard to come by as people rarely move.”
