# Keeping a level head when buying



## richtung

*Keeping a level head when buying a house*

HI Folks,

After viewing 5 houses that turned out to be duds, we have been notified of a property that has come on the market very recently. It ticks all the boxes for mine and the wife's requirements (family home) and judging from the photo's, requires very little work / improvements.

The EA has just rang (i filled out an enquiry form) to get us booked in for a viewing. the fist viewings are available from this Saturday and its an open house. The EA gave us a choice of slots (ours is 10am) and went on to comment there already were people booked in and 3 others waiting for call backs to make bookings.

Now, i know the number 1 rule here is to never believe a word the EA says but this has undoubtedly planted a seed in my mind. I guess its activated the fear of missing out in my mind.

Obviously, im not asking whether the EA is making this up about the other viewings (impossible to to tell) but how do i keep a level head, not let outside influences (i.e the EA!) cloud my judgement, not let the fear from making rash decisions, not get drawn into a bidding war etc?

Im a a decent negotiator and not shy at all with haggling. However, this is something that we are committing to for the next 25 years of our lives and its difficult to maintain a nonchalant attitude.

Thanks

Rich


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## GleemSpray

Rule 1: The Estate Agent is acting for the Vendor ONLY. He / She wants the very best price for them, so they get the greatest commission.

Rule 2: An Estate Agent is no more trustworthy than a car salesman or a double glazing salesman.


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## pantypoos

Try to plan ahead, decide how much you want the property and what lengths you are willing to go to to get it, then stick to your decision. If you've already got a game plan in mind you're less likely to make rash decisions.


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## Bazza85

Have you got proof of what amount a bank/lender will let you borrow?
Having this slip of paper proves how serious and what situation you are in, may give you a stronger haggling point as you're offering piece of mind to the seller and not dreaming kinda thing
(I too am looking at moving house so know exactly what you mean abouts EAs!!!!)


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## richtung

^^

yep, we have a mortgage in principle - however, i loathe to show it to the EA before any potential offer is accepted because it could give the EA an insight into what he could milk us for!

We are not in a chain

Deposit all squared away

Solicitors ready to take our instructions.

Pretty the next best thing after a cash buyer really.

Rich


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## Bazza85

I know EXACTLY what you mean about showing your hand too early so to speak. Before I bought my current house our EA knew what we could afford & kept asking for £2k more to stop the sale above falling through. Agreed first time as it was dream home at the time. 
Sacked the house off the 2nd time as only me getting squeezed. 
Good luck however you tackle it. 
It's exactly the position a seller would want you to be in when making offers


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## S63

The "open house" is a technique used by EA's to whip up interest and an attempt to create competition between rival buyers, not something that sits easy with me. Very very difficult not to allow your emotions to over rule your cold logic, if you have a close friend with an eye for property take them along, they can observe without the emotion you'll be going through. Might sound stupid but when you've done the viewing sit down with your wife and put out of your mind completely the price and just discuss the property and is it the one you want ticking all your boxes, not just the house but the location too, it's an old saying but a true one, you can change things about your home but not the location.

If it is the property of your dreams, decide on a max purchase price and stick to it.

Good luck.:thumb:


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## S63

S63 said:


> The "open house" is a technique used by EA's to whip up interest and an attempt to create competition between rival buyers, not something that sits easy with me. Very very difficult not to allow your emotions to over rule your cold logic, if you have a close friend with an eye for property take them along, they can observe without the emotion you'll be going through. Might sound stupid but when you've done the viewing sit down with your wife and put out of your mind completely the price and just discuss the property and is it the one you want ticking all your boxes, not just the house but the location too, it's an old saying but a true one, you can change things about your home but not the location.
> 
> If it is the property of your dreams, decide on a max purchase price and stick to it.
> 
> Good luck.:thumb:


P.S. If the owners are at home (they really ought not be) strike up a rapport in the limited time you have, compliment their taste in decor and furnishings, you'd ne surprised how many a seller has declined an offer because they didn't take to the buyer. Wear slip on shoes, easier to remove as you enter the property.


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## WP-UK

I'm the forum devil/estate agent :wave:

How did you get on yesterday at the open house?


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## richtung

WP-UK said:


> I'm the forum devil/estate agent :wave:
> 
> How did you get on yesterday at the open house?


Went to the viewing as mentioned in earlier post. House was decent and probably the best we've seen so far. It pretty much ticks our boxes.
EA was keen to mention about the massive interest in the property etc etc but we just nodded and not let it phase us us really.

Vendors are in an upward chain and looking to move to a more rural area. They don't have a place in mind yet. I mentioned to the EA that we were chain free and would be quite flexible on completion time scales.
In terms of offers - we feel the property is overpriced (as are most) and we reckon an offer of 90% of asking price is a more fair reflection.

Phone call at midday from the EA - it was the duty bod who did the Sunday shift rather than the guy who showed us around at the open day.

EA tells me there was decent interest in the property and that they had received a couple of offers as a result of the open day yesterday. He felt that a deal would be reached in the next couple of days and wanted to give us the opportunity to submit our offer.

I didn't submit an offer and said i wanted to discuss things further with the wife.

Later today, we submitted our offer via email to the EA which is 10% below asking price. Our Max budget brings us to 95% of asking price.

Just have to wait and see!

Rich


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## WP-UK

All sounds fair, good luck! Let us know how you get on


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## Bazza85

Good luck. Keep us posted


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## richtung

In the email with our formal offer, i have tried present our offer in the best possible light by mentioning:

being chain free
having AIP and deposit in place
being flexible with completion dates
solicitor standing by for our instructions

I have also informed them of our current situation that we are newly married and looking for a family home in order to start a family. As the vendors have a young child, i would hope that this would relate to them as they were in our position when they purchased the house (if this makes sense?)

Is there anything else i could write in any future communications via the EA that would stand us apart form the other buyers? (if there is indeed any at all!)

Thanks

Rich


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## WP-UK

Hi Rich,

All sounds good to me! Only other thing I can suggest, if the EA has a mortgage broker arrange an appointment with them to financially qualify you - you don't need use them just shows one more sign of commitment and that you are open and honest. Although you have sent over an AIP, which if you were buying through me would be sufficient proof. 

An option to save in case you need it maybe.


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## Mike!

You're in an ideal situation there's no doubting that's a good position to be in. But some people won't be willing to budge on price and are willing to wait for the right offer, no matter who comes along and makes it. I've managed to get my house without being hightest bidder because I'm in such a good position, so it is worth loosing a couple of grand to some people.

I'm in the process of buying my first house and it's been an eye opener. I now loathe estate agents, they're bullies who will do/tell you anything to close a sale.

ALSO: With open days, lots of people will come and view it, but not all will be interested. Some might just be going for the sake of it, I know I went to a view a few houses I had no intention of buying, just as a comparison, or any idea of what was on the market for similar money to my budget. If anyone is really interested they'll make an offer within a couple of days.

I went to see a house that the bank were selling, I put an offer in the day I saw it and it got rejected because the bank believed they could get above asking price due to the levels of interest. It was up for £175k and I offered £170k, which imo is what it was worth, not a ridiculously low offer. One other person made and offer of the same amount. Four or so weeks later the EA rang me back and said oh the bank have reviewed your offer and would like to accept if it still stands. I said I'll make an offer but it's £160,000 now, mess me and try and squeeze me for more money about I'll mess them about and squeeze them for less. Funnily enough he rang me back two minutes later to say they'd refused it haaha.


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## richtung

WP-UK said:


> Hi Rich,
> 
> All sounds good to me! Only other thing I can suggest, if the EA has a mortgage broker arrange an appointment with them to financially qualify you - you don't need use them just shows one more sign of commitment and that you are open and honest. Although you have sent over an AIP, which if you were buying through me would be sufficient proof.
> 
> An option to save in case you need it maybe.


thanks for this - Ive not sent over the AIP yet, just stated we have one. With seeing their mortgage advisor - would it compromise our bargaining power of they know exactly the limit of the AIP?

Rich


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## Mike!

I'd say not. You could have £1,000,000 but you're only going to pay what you think it's worth, it's irrelevant how much you have. iMO


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## WP-UK

No I wouldn't say so, assuming the AIP isn't for less than the offer price. IMO from an agents perspective, if I buyer withholds from providing a copy of AIP it raises suspicions. Not saying this about you personally at all, but I think every agent has been stung by the 'our mortgage is all in place' and it turns out the buyer can't afford it. Think that might strengthen your position to provide it.


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## richtung

Mike! said:


> I'd say not. You could have £1,000,000 but you're only going to pay what you think it's worth, it's irrelevant how much you have. iMO





WP-UK said:


> No I wouldn't say so, assuming the AIP isn't for less than the offer price. IMO from an agents perspective, if I buyer withholds from providing a copy of AIP it raises suspicions. Not saying this about you personally at all, but I think every agent has been stung by the 'our mortgage is all in place' and it turns out the buyer can't afford it. Think that might strengthen your position to provide it.


Thanks guys. I will see what happens with our initial offer. Its been 24hrs since we offered 90% of asking price.
To be brutally honest, we were expecting a rejection last night, first thing this morning.

Rich


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## richtung

Just had a call from EA.

EA: Mr Richtung, wanted to thank you for making the offer. As you know, we had plenty of interest and to be honest, we've had 3 offers at full asking price. what are your thoughts?
Me: i will discuss with my wife and re-look at our finances. We wont be submitting a revised offer at this time.

Fancy that, 2 days after open house and theres 3 offers at full asking price yet wants to give the chance to match it - despite our offer being £30k lower!

Our offer was 10% below asking price. Now, i noticed he didn't actually say "the vendor has rejected your offer" or even words to that effect. Perhaps I'm just reading too much into this.?

We will revise our offer though to 7% of asking price and see what of it.

Rich


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## staffordian

richtung said:


> Just had a call from EA.
> 
> EA: Mr Richtung, wanted to thank you for making the offer. As you know, we had plenty of interest and to be honest, we've had 3 offers at full asking price. what are your thoughts?
> Me: i will discuss with my wife and re-look at our finances. We wont be submitting a revised offer at this time.
> 
> Fancy that, 2 days after open house and theres 3 offers at full asking price yet wants to give the chance to match it - despite our offer being £30k lower!
> 
> Our offer was 10% below asking price. Now, i noticed he didn't actually say "the vendor has rejected your offer" or even words to that effect. Perhaps I'm just reading too much into this.?
> 
> We will revise our offer though to 7% of asking price and see what of it.
> 
> Rich


Call me an old cynic, but why would the EA be courting you of he's got three full price offers?

He's either talking out of his @rse or he knows full well yours is by far the most viable offer.

I'd be tempted to sit on my hands for a day or two and see if he comes crawling back to you, though I realise that is easier said than done when you really want the house...


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## Bazza85

staffordian said:


> Call me an old cynic, but why would the EA be courting you of he's got three full price offers?
> 
> He's either talking out of his @rse or he knows full well yours is by far the most viable offer.
> 
> I'd be tempted to sit on my hands for a day or two and see if he comes crawling back to you, though I realise that is easier said than done when you really want the house...


Completely agree. You are in the best possible position you can be in as a buyer. 
Sounds like, as said, yours is by far the strongest offer & they're just tryin to squeeze what they can out by whatever means they have. 
I offered 20k under asking price on the house I'm in now as I was in the same place as you. 4 days later a flat no was a yes. 
Good luck, hopefully you're closer than you realise


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## Guitarjon

Agree also. 

Sounds like your not rushing into it which is good. 

If they had 3 offers at asking why bother with you. Youd expect them to reject the offer there and then and tell you why.


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## richtung

Thanks for the input guys.

I'm not confident enough to sit on it a couple of days (although we should!).

Like you have all said, why bother with us when they have 3 "offers" at asking price?? Actions speak louder than words, right?

Does he really expect us to increase our offer by £35k in order to outbid the others?!?!?

Rich


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## S63

A really shrewd seller will see the best offer as not neccessarily the highest but one without any potential risk ( a long chain). You maybe the buyer that they would like to sell to if you can up the anti a bit more.

As has already been said the EA has a duty to get the best possible price for the vendor, at the same time the EA has a duty to be honest with all parties. Quite often it's the seller who messes around playing games frustrating both the EA and a potential buyer.

Easy for us not involved to offer advice but the "sitting on your hands" for a day or two sounds good advice to me.:thumb:


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## Johnr32

Not sure what the houses are selling like up north but in London and around London, the houses are selling like hot cakes especially close to the Crossrail areas.

I've seen so many buyers paying over the asking price and bidding against other buyers which is madness.


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## S63

Johnr32 said:


> Not sure what the houses are selling like up north but in London and around London, the houses are selling like hot cakes especially close to the Crossrail areas.
> 
> I've seen so many buyers paying over the asking price and bidding against other buyers which is madness.


It's been that way in London for decades with no sign of slowing down, the flat I sold four years ago has just sold again for an extra £120k.


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## Darlofan

Easy said but wait. They're clearly trying to get more out of you. It's tough and we were in your shoes back in November. We lost 1 when someone matched our offer an hour after ours. We pulled out, it's still on now!! 2nd one was a repo we had offer accepted on, offers came flooding in on that one so we kept raising ours until the survey picked up on asbestos, as I was reading survey ea rang saying another offer had come in so we pulled out. House we got and are now in (and love) was 1st one we ever looked at!! We put in cheeky offer that was accepted! 'Other offers' came in but we held our offer and just pushed our position to buy was good. They stuck with us and survey came back with a lower valuation so we reduced our offer by 5k and they accepted it!! It's a stressful time, hold out, if house is right you'll get it.


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## richtung

ok guys, we are holding our nerve - just.

I presume that if the vendors had rejected our offer, the EA would need to state so in a "the vendors have rejected your offer" kind of way rather than alluding to other offers received at asking price?

In a twist of fate, another house has come on the market a mile away from this house. Similar kind of house but nowhere near as nice. However, it is being marketed by the same EA.... i wonder if we should book in for a viewing...?

Rich


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## Darlofan

richtung said:


> ok guys, we are holding our nerve - just.
> 
> I presume that if the vendors had rejected our offer, the EA would need to state so in a "the vendors have rejected your offer" kind of way rather than alluding to other offers received at asking price?
> 
> In a twist of fate, another house has come on the market a mile away from this house. Similar kind of house but nowhere near as nice. However, it is being marketed by the same EA.... i wonder if we should book in for a viewing...?
> 
> Rich


I would, make it clear on the phone you're the same couple that were going for the other one but you've been outbid. Judge what response you get then!


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## richtung

Just another update:

Rang up EA to book a viewing at alternative house. Just happens to be speaking to the guy who is dealing with our offer.
He asks that with this booking, he presumes there's no movement on our offer (this says to me our offer hasn't been rejected).
I tell him I need to have a second discussion with the wife as its a big decision.
He said he has several offers and would imagine an offer near asking price would be needed to be competitive. He feels a deal will be done in the next day or so.
He also tells me the vendor has found a place and was looking to secure the deal ASAP in order for them to go ahead with their offer. He doesn't think there will be much time.

Got him to book the new viewing and I would discuss offer with my wife.

Christ, I so wanted to increase our offer there and then!
Held my nerve, remained polite and positive and thanked him.

Rich


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## S63

Rich
I may take a different view to some when buying a house, if it's the one I truly want having seen endless others, then I will start with a lower offer as you have, I would then want a clear indication of what is needed to secure this property. Then place an offer which is my absolute maximum, you either win it or not. If you're planning on spending a number of years in this house then a few grand extra spent will be worth every penny when you look back with hindsight.


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## richtung

S63 said:


> Rich
> I may take a different view to some when buying a house, if it's the one I truly want having seen endless others, then I will start with a lower offer as you have, I would then want a clear indication of what is needed to secure this property. Then place an offer which is my absolute maximum, you either win it or not. If you're planning on spending a number of years in this house then a few grand extra spent will be worth every penny when you look back with hindsight.


we do want the house and willing to pay up to our absolute limit. As mentioned, the EA "imagines" an offer near asking price would be required to be competitive. However, the house is not worth asking price - the price quoted would get you a similar property in a far nicer area.

We will submit a revised offer that's below our Max. The offer will 93% of asking price.

Rich


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## nbray67

Been reading your thread over the last couple of days mate and from what I can read between the lines is that your current offer is exactly what the buyer wants in terms of getting things moving quickly, it just needs upping a tad I think, especially if they have already found a new house!!

All the 'other' full asking price offers are obviously all in some form of chain, no good for the current owner who wants a speedy conclusion to the sale.

As S63 as said, place a max offer with your terms attached, i:e removed from the market, exchange of contracts within 'x' amount of weeks, furnishings to be left etc etc....

It's time for you to start calling the shots now mate, that seller is wanting a speedy, no chain sale, exactly what you have to offer!!


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## S63

richtung said:


> we do want the house and willing to pay up to our absolute limit. As mentioned, the EA "imagines" an offer near asking price would be required to be competitive. However, t*he house is not worth asking price* the price quoted would get you a similar property in a far nicer area.
> 
> We will submit a revised offer that's below our Max. The offer will 93% of asking price.
> 
> Rich


That house is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, forget about similar houses in nicer areas. I have friends who have the same mindset with cars " I really want that car but it's £1k over book price". For me and more importantly my family if it's right we will pay whatever our budget allows if we are in it for the long haul. I paid £10k over the value for my London flat, cost me £120k, now just sold again for £486k......that £10k seems a bit of a bargain now.


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## richtung

nbray67 said:


> Been reading your thread over the last couple of days mate and from what I can read between the lines is that your current offer is exactly what the buyer wants in terms of getting things moving quickly, it just needs upping a tad I think, especially if they have already found a new house!!
> 
> All the 'other' full asking price offers are obviously all in some form of chain, no good for the current owner who wants a speedy conclusion to the sale.
> 
> As S63 as said, place a max offer with your terms attached, i:e removed from the market, exchange of contracts within 'x' amount of weeks, furnishings to be left etc etc....
> 
> It's time for you to start calling the shots now mate, that seller is wanting a speedy, no chain sale, exactly what you have to offer!!


Thank-you - I have submitted a revised offer of 93% and asked for the range cooker to be included in the sale.
This leaves us with 2% wiggle room before we hit our absolute maximum budget.



S63 said:


> That house is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, forget about similar houses in nicer areas. I have friends who have the same mindset with cars " I really want that car but it's £1k over book price". For me and more importantly my family if it's right we will pay whatever our budget allows if we are in it for the long haul. I paid £10k over the value for my London flat, cost me £120k, now just sold again for £486k......that £10k seems a bit of a bargain now.


S63 -as always, you opinion is is welcome and respected. I understand what you are saying. Please bear in mind though that this property is in Manchester (i don't think i've mentioned this) and would not follow the usual London market trends. If i was to buy any property in Manchester, i would never pay full asking price (unless it was was priced cheaply), let alone pay over asking price. I understand paying over asking price in London is a regular occurrence and not at all unusual.

In this case, our max budget doesn't meet asking price anyway so we arent in danger of paying full price.

Will keep you all updated!

Rich


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## S63

Rich I'm sorry if I worded it badly, I certainly wasn't suggesting you pay over asking price. I understand where you're coming from allowing a little "wiggle" room, I just think prospective buyers are seduced into this game of poker created to some extent by EA's and mischievous sellers. The house buying/selling process in England is all wrong in my mind, coupled with an archaic conveyancing system feathering the pockets of solicitors. Either have a fixed price or a public auction, life would be so much easier and less stressful.


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## richtung

S63 said:


> Rich I'm sorry if I worded it badly, I certainly wasn't suggesting you pay over asking price. I understand where you're coming from allowing a little "wiggle" room, I just think prospective buyers are seduced into this game of poker created to some extent by EA's and mischievous sellers. The house buying/selling process in England is all wrong in my mind, coupled with an archaic conveyancing system feathering the pockets of solicitors. Either have a fixed price or a public auction, life would be so much easier and less stressful.


No problems at all - you have been really helpful :thumb:
I just wanted to explain how the market round here was quite a bit different to London without calling into question your knowledge / experience. 

Rich


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## richtung

I didn't send the offer last night - just put it into drafts.

I wanted to reword the some of the conditions to make it sound a little better (and more attractive):

Original:
"until such time that the offer is formally accepted, we will continue to view and make offers on other properties."

New:
"until such time that the offer is formally accepted, we will continue to view other properties BUT will not make any offers until this offer is either formally rejected or expires"

Original:
"as the vendors have an onward chain, we would be extremely flexible with completion dates"

New:
"We would also like to highlight the fact that as we are chain free, we would be extremely flexible with completion dates and happy to work with Mr and Mrs Vendor in agreeing a time line to which they are comfortable with"

what do you think guys?

Thanks

Rich


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## Darlofan

richtung said:


> I didn't send the offer last night - just put it into drafts.
> 
> I wanted to reword the some of the conditions to make it sound a little better (and more attractive):
> 
> Original:
> "until such time that the offer is formally accepted, we will continue to view and make offers on other properties."
> 
> New:
> "until such time that the offer is formally accepted, we will continue to view other properties BUT will not make any offers until this offer is either formally rejected or expires"
> 
> Original:
> "as the vendors have an onward chain, we would be extremely flexible with completion dates"
> 
> New:
> "We would also like to highlight the fact that as we are chain free, we would be extremely flexible with completion dates and happy to work with Mr and Mrs Vendor in agreeing a time line to which they are comfortable with"
> 
> what do you think guys?
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Rich


If flexible about completion I'd want it off the market. If raising your offer I'd push for completion ASAP. EA despite what they tell you will still shaft you if getting more and if they are telling the truth there have been higher offers than yours already. Now you might be in a better/quicker position to move so are the more attractive buyer but the longer the sale goes on the more attractive one of the other offers becomes.


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## richtung

Darlofan said:


> If flexible about completion I'd want it off the market. If raising your offer I'd push for completion ASAP. EA despite what they tell you will still shaft you if getting more and if they are telling the truth there have been higher offers than yours already. Now you might be in a better/quicker position to move so are the more attractive buyer but the longer the sale goes on the more attractive one of the other offers becomes.


yeah, sorry, i should have made it clear. we already have stated that we wouldn't start searches / surveys until the property comes off the market and the sold sign must go up within 48hrs.

We are flexible on the completion date but we are looking to exchange at the earliest opportunity.

hows that?


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## richtung

Just an update:

Our revised off was rejected. The EA said (again) they had multiple offers at asking and would need a best and final offer by close of play.

I guess this is where we offer the max. If that gets rejected, at least we can sleep easy knowing that if our max wasnt enough to get the deal, it wasnt meant to be.

Thanks

Rich


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## S63

richtung said:


> I guess this is where we offer the max. If that gets rejected, at least we can sleep easy knowing that if our max wasnt enough to get the deal, it wasnt meant to be.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Rich


Yep, stick your max offer in asap, don't think its all over with a decline, many events and unforeseen obstacles will come into play with these alleged better offers.
Good luck.:thumb:


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## richtung

Offer at max budget submitted. At least there wasnt a rejection within ten mins like last time!

Fingers Crossed. :thumb:

Rich


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## pantypoos

Good luck, got my fingers crossed for you.


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## Titanium Htail

Our vendor attempted to raise the price by an additional cash sum cutting out the EA by playing one buyer against the other, it was not that the the price was more only that he initially accepted our offer, I did go round and have my say.

Suffice to say that you will fall in love with the next house either way, this can be an emotional event the start should be of hope plus new beginnings.

Good luck all will be fine in the end.

John Tht.


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## richtung

Hi guys,

just to let you know our offer was rejected. The vendors accepted an offer at full asking price apparently.

Ah well, we did our best, their offer was £15k over ours so its not like we lost out buy a few hundred or anything.

Onwards and upwards.

Thanks for your support guys :thumb:

Rich


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## S63

I tend to believe in fate when it comes to finding your home, as I said before nothing is set in stone until contracts are signed. The home of our dreams in London had an offer accepted as we were viewing it, full asking price too, six weeks later Foxtons called us to ask if we had found an alternative property, which we hadn't.....good news he said, the flat you so desperately wanted is back on the market as the deal fell through, we were in like a flash! 

We only found out later that it fell through because The Halifax disputed the properties value saying it was £10k over priced and the couple needed a 100% mortgage, felt a bit sorry for them and crazy in view of how the value soared over the following twenty years.


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## richtung

my wife got a little upset due to losing out on the house last night.
I tried to comfort her by explaining it obviously wasn't meant to be and in fact, this gave us the opportunity to add more money to the deposit pot and be able to look at houses that were beyond our budget previously.

Rich


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## Bazza85

Sorry to hear about it bud. What will be will be so they say. 
My house goes up for sale later today so I'm in the nervous/excited part of moving at the moment. 
Best of luck finding what you and your wife are after, please keep the thread updated.


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## alan hanson

something will come up we are currently selling, had 8 viewings 3 offers (all just under what we want and they all said they knew they would need to go higher) but the estate agents cant get hold of them, be nice to know if they werent interested anymore either way. we've had peeps view love it ask for a second viewing then cancel and say they have had a change of heart and do not want to move, theres only one house on the market we like we have viewed alot as well, its pointless us putting an offer in without selling ours first so i feel your frustration,

always say one of the most stressful things to do is moving house theres only so much you can do most of it is out of your control and the estate agents trying to keep all the people in the chain happy


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## Darlofan

alan hanson said:


> something will come up we are currently selling, had 8 viewings 3 offers (all just under what we want and they all said they knew they would need to go higher) but the estate agents cant get hold of them, be nice to know if they werent interested anymore either way. we've had peeps view love it ask for a second viewing then cancel and say they have had a change of heart and do not want to move, theres only one house on the market we like we have viewed alot as well, its pointless us putting an offer in without selling ours first so i feel your frustration,
> 
> always say one of the most stressful things to do is moving house theres only so much you can do most of it is out of your control and the estate agents trying to keep all the people in the chain happy


Doing it the right way though. We put ours on last May and wife started looking straight away against my advice. We only had 3 viewings in 3 months then out of the blue it sold!! What we then found was (much to my annoyance) the wife was right to look. 1 she had a list of houses to view 2 she knew some had been for sale ages. Amazing how all the houses you view have (according to EA) only been on the market for a couple of weeks!!


----------



## shane_ctr

Darlofan said:


> Doing it the right way though. We put ours on last May and wife started looking straight away against my advice. We only had 3 viewings in 3 months then out of the blue it sold!! What we then found was (much to my annoyance) the wife was right to look. 1 she had a list of houses to view 2 she knew some had been for sale ages. Amazing how all the houses you view have (according to EA) only been on the market for a couple of weeks!!


To be honest if your house is under 350k and been on the market more than 2 weeks it's over priced. Property in Ipswich if priced correctly will sel within a week. Right area can be with a day or 2


----------



## Darlofan

shane_ctr said:


> To be honest if your house is under 350k and been on the market more than 2 weeks it's over priced. Property in Ipswich if priced correctly will sel within a week. Right area can be with a day or 2


Well sounds like Ipswich housing market is doing well then! ! Just because a house is still on the market after 2 weeks doesn't mean it's overpriced. Too many other factors such as number of buyers out there, other properties on the market etc. What you're saying is if you haven't sold in a fortnight start dropping the price? Lucky we didn't do that and we're prepared to hang on for 3 months!


----------



## richtung

Hi folks,

After losing out on our "dream" house, we appear to have found another potential dream house. The house ticks all our boxes and beyond. 
The only issue is the price. The asking price is £355k and our max budget is now £310k (from £285k when this thread started). You might think i have no right looking at a property that much out of our price range - however, check this:

The house has been on sale since Dec 27th at current asking price. A little further digging has revealed it was marketed prior by a different EA on the 14 Sep for £365K (reduced to £355k a month later) before changing to the current EA.

So, the house has been on the market for almost 8 months and had a £10k reduction. My alarm bells are ringing - why hasn't the property sold??
The photos show the house to be of decent standard (will confirm with a viewing this weekend) and the area is nice. This can only mean the property is over priced?

The house next door is similar and was sold for £350k in Oct 2013 - my suspicion is that the vendors are hoping for a similar price. For the area (Urmston), i feel the property is massively over priced and i think this is proven by the fact its still on the market 8 months later.

Rich


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## S63

The odds are the owners are in no hurry to sell, not even that bothered unless they get top dollar which is fair enough. You can do nothing other than stick in your max offer and see if they bite. Going by the house next door they aren't far off the mark with their valuation.


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## Bazza85

As said above. If they are sitting on it and seeing what happens, all you can do is go in with your best offer, remind them of your position within the market & hope for the best. 
Good luck with the viewing though

Also, I don't know about where you live/are looking to move to, but in lincoln, £200k gets you a 'nice 4 bed' house in a nice area, £300ish gets you the 'wow, dream house'. 
My 'nice' house in a nice area is now on the market & were looking to buy our forever home. 
If you & your area are in a similar position it's worth remembering there's not many people who can make that jump, so houses are on the market a while with few genuine respective buyers, so why not hit £20k or so off if the house has been on the market for some time, you may get lucky, you are genuine & in a position to buy. I intend on doing the same once my current home has a buyer & I can haggle harder. 

(Sorry to you saarf end boys where house prices are insane!)


----------



## richtung

Bazza85 said:


> As said above. If they are sitting on it and seeing what happens, all you can do is go in with your best offer, remind them of your position within the market & hope for the best.
> Good luck with the viewing though
> 
> Also, I don't know about where you live/are looking to move to, but in lincoln, £200k gets you a 'nice 4 bed' house in a nice area, £300ish gets you the 'wow, dream house'.
> My 'nice' house in a nice area is now on the market & were looking to buy our forever home.
> If you & your area are in a similar position it's worth remembering there's not many people who can make that jump, so houses are on the market a while with few genuine respective buyers, so why not hit £20k or so off if the house has been on the market for some time, you may get lucky, you are genuine & in a position to buy. I intend on doing the same once my current home has a buyer & I can haggle harder.
> 
> (Sorry to you saarf end boys where house prices are insane!)


At the moment, in South Manchester where we've been looking, decent family homes are sold within 1-2 weeks of being advertised at full or near asking price (as illustrated by our "dream" home).
The house we are looking at this weekend is really nice, in a good location and plenty of space for us and future family needs.
Thats why im puzzled as to why its not sold after so long. I can only guess the asking price is too high and the vendor refuses to budge.

As mentioned, if we still like it after the viewing, we can only go in with our best offer and see what happens. At least this time round, the EA shouldn't be advising that they have received a number of offers at full asking price!

Rich


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## alan hanson

we sold, we bought two days later looks like our buyers are going to pull out! whats the point why make an offer we reject they come back with an improved off we accept all happy week later when we ask for solicitor details etc...... looks like they wont commit.
wish it was like scotland once you bid has been accepted your bound to it otherwise its pointless!


----------



## S63

alan hanson said:


> we sold, we bought two days later looks like our buyers are going to pull out! whats the point why make an offer we reject they come back with an improved off we accept all happy week later when we ask for solicitor details etc...... looks like they wont commit.
> wish it was like scotland once you bid has been accepted your bound to it otherwise its pointless!


They say one in three conveyances break down, sometimes for genuine legitimate reasons, but more often than not its because there are many that have no morals or respect for others. The outdated archaic system needs a drastic overhaul to stop these messers or at least make them pay dearly for their flippant attitude.


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## richtung

I agree - we need to adopt the Scottish way of doing things when it comes to house buying. Saying that, a little more transparency would be a massive step!


----------



## richtung

just an update for the folks following our house buying journey:

The house were were meant to be viewing tomorrow has come up being sold STC on the EA website and on rightmove!!

The house that has been marketed by 2 different EAs and on the market for 8 months is sold the day before our viewing?!?!?!?

Either a massive coincidence and the wife and I are unlucky or something not right is going on!

I didn't get a call from the EA informing me of this and to cancel the viewing... I shall call them in the morning and see what the situation is and to cancel viewing if it has indeed been sold.

Rich


----------



## Darlofan

richtung said:


> just an update for the folks following our house buying journey:
> 
> The house were were meant to be viewing tomorrow has come up being sold STC on the EA website and on rightmove!!
> 
> The house that has been marketed by 2 different EAs and on the market for 8 months is sold the day before our viewing?!?!?!?
> 
> Either a massive coincidence and the wife and I are unlucky or something not right is going on!
> 
> I didn't get a call from the EA informing me of this and to cancel the viewing... I shall call them in the morning and see what the situation is and to cancel viewing if it has indeed been sold.
> 
> Rich


That happened to us twice, first time we knew house had been on ages, we placed an offer and lo and behold another had been put in by somebody else!! We offered asking price but we're told others could complete quicker so we walked. That was last August, it's still on now!!!


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## richtung

Darlofan said:


> That happened to us twice, first time we knew house had been on ages, we placed an offer and lo and behold another had been put in by somebody else!! We offered asking price but we're told others could complete quicker so we walked. That was last August, it's still on now!!!


Am i right to be suspicious? i mean, it really is an amazing coincidence - property on the market for so long, I ring on Weds to make booking and its sold STC by Friday? Really though??

It was Sold STC late this afternoon but i didnt get a call like you would expect! (im probably more miffed about this aspect). If it is Sold STC, i will just cancel the booking.

Rich


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## S63

Rich
Always try and adopt the mindset that "sold" is only when the buyer completes and gets the keys, everything leading up to exchange (under offer) means the game is still on. Some sellers want nothing to do with further potential interest when they have received an offer but there are also many that continue to Keep the door open, maybe a better offer on the horizon or just back up should the original offer fall through (as often does).

If the owner of this property is willing to let you view although it's under offer, go ahead.


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## Kash-Jnr

Top advice from S63!


----------



## richtung

S63 said:


> Rich
> Always try and adopt the mindset that "sold" is only when the buyer completes and gets the keys, everything leading up to exchange (under offer) means the game is still on. Some sellers want nothing to do with further potential interest when they have received an offer but there are also many that continue to Keep the door open, maybe a better offer on the horizon or just back up should the original offer fall through (as often does).
> 
> If the owner of this property is willing to let you view although it's under offer, go ahead.


I get what you mean S63 - although im wary of a vendor who will continue to market their property once they accept an offer - it means the potential for gazzumping is high. If my offer meant another seller were gazzumped, i would be expecting to also be gazzumed if the vendor received a better offer.

Back to the house in question - received a call from the EA to cancel the viewing as the house is Sold STC. Ah well. the search continues and we have a viewing today.

Cheers

Rich


----------



## S63

richtung said:


> I get what you mean S63 - although im wary of a vendor who will continue to market their property once they accept an offer - it means the potential for gazzumping is high. If my offer meant another seller were gazzumped, i would be expecting to also be gazzumed if the vendor received a better offer.
> 
> Back to the house in question - received a call from the EA to cancel the viewing as the house is Sold STC. Ah well. the search continues and we have a viewing today.
> 
> Cheers
> 
> Rich


Don't be wary, remember this is a two way street, both buyer and seller can have a change of mind, circumstance or as in the majority of cases, the dreaded chain breaks down. It's the duty of the EA to do all in his or her power to ensure the vendors property gets sold as so many offers fall through, having someone else waiting in the wings is a very wise precaution and thoroughly professional.

It's entirely possible the vendor in your case agreed to remove the property from the market after the offer was made, this should have a time limit though whilst the buyer gets their affairs in order, if after a couple of weeks things like surveys etc haven't been organised I'd be putting the sale sign back up.

I've mentioned before that when buying our flat back in the nineties London was going through a buying frenzy and more often than not properties were sold before being advertised, some even without a viewing! After looking at many over the course of a few months we saw one that was absolutely perfect but just "sold" the day before........six weeks later the EA phoned us to say it had fallen through and was ours if we wanted it, sure enough we did.


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## alan hanson

we sold over a week ago and have had 2 viewings and an open day whcih 5 couples turned up 3 interested since accepting, not because we want more money i have accepted an offer and will stick to that but they are dragging their heels and not playing ball, so i'm covering my back as we dont want to lose the house we have bought. 

S63 is spot on, ring the agent say can you still see it etc..... theres no garuntees much to our frustration in selling so do all you can and if it comes up your in a position to react quickly


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## richtung

WE have pretty much decided not to peruse this house unless it does fall through - have a feeling our max budget might have still been a step too far to come down for the vendors.

Anyhow, we are viewing another property tomorrow - Its a decent sized house in a good location, ticks our boxes etc etc. Asking price is £330k and has been on the market coming up 2 months. our max is £310k so perhaps the reduction required to suit our budget isnt as steep and the vendor might play ball.
Im not getting hopes up ( not even seen the house yet) and definitely not calling it a "dream" home as it seems to jinx things!

The viewing is being handled by the vendors themselves so is a good opportunity to weight them up as well as leave a good impression with them.

Wish us luck! :thumb:


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## alan hanson

30k will be hell of a knock down, all houses are priced up well most but thats some margin. Sometimes viewing the house with the estate agent is better ask questions of interest any offers (although wether they tell the truth or not............) but personally hate seeing a house with either the owners in or being shown round, unlike an estate agent when you can say that needs doing, that will be ripped out etc.... you cant really relay this to the vendor. 

Good luck though hope it works out this time for you and then the fun begins.


----------



## richtung

alan hanson said:


> 30k will be hell of a knock down, all houses are priced up well most but thats some margin. Sometimes viewing the house with the estate agent is better ask questions of interest any offers (although wether they tell the truth or not............) but personally hate seeing a house with either the owners in or being shown round, unlike an estate agent when you can say that needs doing, that will be ripped out etc.... you cant really relay this to the vendor.
> 
> Good luck though hope it works out this time for you and then the fun begins.


apologies - the asking price is £330k, not £340k (have edited the post).
Looking on right move using property bee have seen plenty of reduction of £20k-£40k before a property was sold. Having said that, i dont think these are genuine discounts, more the fact that property was over priced to begin with.


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## alan hanson

your probably right and nearer 20k at houses of those prices is more achieveable. house we're looking at is over 300k (scary) unlike the house we live in which we made near 50k in 5 years cant help but think this house wont make us anywhere near that not that i am that fussed as we have decided to do two jumps in one save on fees twice and this should be the family home for along long time


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## richtung

Ok, the viewing went well - the vendors daughter showed us around as she was back from uni. She had limited knowledge but answered our questions about the area and schools etc.
Apart from a couple of cosmetic items, the house looks ok to move straight into. The garden is way bigger than we could tell from the photos and as its south facing, we witnessed the sun in all its glory.
We like this property and we will definitely request a second viewing this weekend and perhaps meet the vendors themselves.

Managed to find the home information pack for this property from 2009 - i guess they tried to (unsuccessfully) sell the property.
Doing our best to stay unattached to the property but its difficult not to.

Will keep you all updated! :thumb:

Rich


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## alan hanson

its very difficult not too when you start picturing yourself there etc...........


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## richtung

A second viewing booked in for this weekend. doing the research on houses of similar type that were sold in the last 12 months.

Rich


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## S63

richtung said:


> A second viewing booked in for this weekend. doing the research on houses of similar type that were sold in the last 12 months.
> 
> Rich


many will disagree but I don't hold with this philosophy, the housing market can fluctuate on a daily basis, the most important factor is what this property is worth to you personally, bit like only buying a car if it fits right with a Glasses guide. If you are buying with a view to sell quickly to gain a profit it's a different matter.


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## alan hanson

Defo agree a house is only worth what someone is willing to pay one sold two doors up for us withIn two days although it fell through due to health problems, they put it up and at that time someone apparently wanted to buy only on this street so met asking price straight away doesnt mean the next will sell and thats only weeks difference not 12 months. know what you can fford and are willing to pay the estate agent should have a rough idea what they would accept so should be able to give you subtle clues


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## richtung

thanks guys,

Im just aware that the property failed to sell 5 years ago for £45k less and has failed to sell again this time round (current asking price of £330k) despite there being demand for decent family houses in good areas.
I "feel" the house is worth around the £300k and certainly wont go over this. Im not aware of rival buyers after this property so im hoping in a decent position.

Lets see how the second viewing goes!

Rich


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## richtung

so, second viewing went well. Met the vendors who were really nice. They are a couple who are looking to downsize since all their children have left home.
Very keen to tell us they aren't under pressure to sell (of course).

The vast majority of our boxes have been ticked. Discussed with the wife and have agreed to submit an offer tomorrow.

Fingers crossed :thumb: 

Rich


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## Tsubodai

I've followed this without posting; as others have said I've always found missing out led to a better opportunity. Good luck Rich:thumb:


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## shycho

Thought i'd join in this thread if you don't mind. We've found a property which has a guide price of £215,000 we've done our research and sites like Zoopla suggest houses in the area are worth around £207,000. However the house is beautifully done up and ticks all our boxes so have gone in with a bid of £220,000.

In my opinion the house will easily go for £240,000/£250,000 based on other houses in the area which as first time buyers we can get a mortgage for, however I don't believe any bank will value the house at that. 

So we've set ourselves a limit of £230,000 and if we get it we'll be very happy with that price, and if not then on to the next one it will be.


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## alan hanson

how comes you have gone in at 220,000 dod you know there was other interest?


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## shycho

It was a guide price so we knew it would be higher. As it stands our £220,000 bid was rejected so I guess someone offered much more, never mind on to the next one.


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## richtung

just a quick update for you folks.

Had our offer of £290k rejected today (AP £330k). we aren't surprised the offer was rejected, just need to decide what to do next. I think perhaps we will sit on it a couple of days to let us compose ourselves.

Rich


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## Smanderson117

Any updates Rich? I feel like I need to know what happened next, did you find the right house after all?


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## richtung

No updates im afraid - i think we have viewed 7-8 more houses since i last posted.

However, it means our deposit fund has grown though! :thumb:

We have a viewing on Friday so will let you guys know the outcome of that!

Thanks

Rich


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## Darlofan

We're still keeping an eye on you Richtung. Good luck with viewing and well done on the positive attitude. When we had no viewings when selling the positive thoughts of paying off existing mortgage/debts etc was what kept us sane. 😃


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## richtung

Thanks Guys,

The past few months have been a roller-coaster - stress, frustration, heartache - the full works!


The house we are viewing hasn't had much interest. Its been on for 4 months and had a lowish offer near the start (this was rejected). Since then, its only had a handful of viewings and no further offers.
I think the asking price is putting people off as its on the high side. With the housing market in the areas we are looking, decent family homes are selling like hotcakes - this one hasn't shifted despite being a decent house.

Lets see how the viewing goes!

Rich


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## PugIain

We had an offer on the house we bought rejected at the start.
We then went away for a few weeks, looked at some more. All around a similar price to our house. None of which kind of fitted the bill, some were nice, and some were next door to zoos. Some needed work, some we could have moved straight in. One I remember looked spot on, until we went down the road after tea time, it was rammed solid with cars. No way would I have been able to use my drive. Everyone seemed to have about 3 cars per house, just parked up everywhere.
Fast forward about a month, we get a phone call to ask if we were still interested and would we make an offer. Apparently they had bought another house and had dropped the asking price to offers over £90k, from £105k. So I offered £94k and got it. So we saved over £10k on the original asking price, and on others we had looked at.
Patience is a virtue, and so is being a tight sod.


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## richtung

Update:

The house we viewed was really nice and ticked most of our boxes. The problem was that the house was overpriced (for the area and in comparison to properties sold on the same street). The vendor didn't accept this and wouldnt accept anything less than full asking price. Our best and final offer was £33k below asking.

Good news: We are viewing a house this Saturday that also ticks most of our boxes and is more realistically priced. Cross everything for me please guys!

Thanks

Rich


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## Overdoser

Good luck mate, I'm sure you'll find somewhere.


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## PaulN

S63 said:


> P.S. If the owners are at home (they really ought not be) strike up a rapport in the limited time you have, compliment their taste in decor and furnishings, you'd ne surprised how many a seller has declined an offer because they didn't take to the buyer. Wear slip on shoes, easier to remove as you enter the property.


Great advise.... i love the shoe thing too... although they are selling they want their home togo to good people.


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## alan hanson

god i hate it when they are in, once i've been in and they have been eating their dinner!


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## richtung

Ok folks,

House viewing went well - the EA turned up late so the vendors showed us round - we got to meet the whole family and they were lovely.

The house meets all our requirements and the area is nice and quiet.

They are moving down south but haven't found anywhere (or jobs for that matter) but have confirmed the sale will go ahead regardless and will move into rented accommodation if they dont find anywhere in time. 
We mentioned we were chain free and that we would be very flexible on completion dates - to say the vendors wife's eyes lit up was an understatement!

Originally booked a second viewing for tomorrow but after discussing with the wife, we agreed we wouldn't really learn anything new and have drafted up an offer to send to the EA first thing.

Fingers Crossed!

Rich


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## alan hanson

richtung said:


> but have confirmed the sale will go ahead regardless and will move into rented accommodation if they dont find anywhere in time.


Just becareful most owners say this as its what you want to hear actually doing it rarely happens


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## richtung

Just an update:

Had our offer accepted at the end of November. Told the vendors we weren't going to pressure to complete by a certain date (within reason) as we were chain free.

Since then, the new budget was announced along with the proposed stamp duty increase on "second" homes. As we are keeping our existing house with the aim of renting it out, we stand to fall foul of the new 3% increase in stamp duty (for us, this means an increase for £10.5k) if we are unable to complete by April 1st.

I relayed our concerns to the EA about completing before the April the 1st. EA said the vendors wouldn't discuss completion date until they had found somewhere themselves.

So, as it stand today, we have left our offer on the table to the vendors but are also looking at other properties in the hope that other properties may be more "proceed able".

Sigh....

Rich


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## Darlofan

Good god your saga continues!! I'm sure you were looking when we bought ours and we've been in ours a year now😀😀
April 1st seems easily achievable for vendors to find somewhere else though. Chancellor screwed us over by 12 days last year when he announced stopping stamp duty on lower priced houses. I did try and get solicitor to get it back but no such luck😠😠

Good luck anyway.


----------



## Taxboy

I think you now need to apply a little bit of pressure to the vendors to test how committed to selling they really are. 

You hold all the cards in this deal as far as I can tell. I would suggest that you ask when you can get the survey done and propose a target date for exchange say end of Feb and see what response you get. Remember you can exchange in Feb but fix a completion date in late March to help the vendors 

Been here ourselves and appreciate the stress it causes. Hope it all works for you


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## richtung

The EA is going to speak to the vendors tomorrow. I've told the EA that unless the vendors agree to complete by the end of March, we wouldn't be able to proceed as we couldn't afford the extra Stamp Duty. 
I've emphasised to the EA that this isn't our doing, we haven't changed the goal posts and there was no way we could anticipate the Stamp Duty rules changing.

Let's see what happens.

Thanks

Rich


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## Darlofan

At the end of this you realise we all want to come to the house warming party.


----------



## richtung

Update:

You really couldn't make this up!

Just to recap, we had an offer accepted on House 1 back in Oct. New SDLT charges announced which would effect us. We add pressure (end of Nov) on vendors to get a move on and find somewhere. End of Dec - we add more pressure. In the new year, we decide to look at other properties.

Last week, we view House 2 - although smaller and 1 less bedroom (4 bed detached vs 3 bed detached), is £77k cheaper than House 1. House 2 has bags of space to extend. House 1 and 2 are literally 300m apart. House 2 is chain free.

After discussing with the wife, we decide to make an offer on House 2. Offer goes in. Literally 2 hours later, the phone rings and its the EA for House 1 - the vendors have found a chain free property to buy and are now ready to proceed!! I asked the EA to give me a day to have a think as we were now interested at another property.

A couple of offers are rejected by House 2 -we're losing hope. The Mrs no longer wants House 1 as she much prefers House 2. Finally, we have offer accepted on House 2, the Mrs is happy and i get to call the EA for House 1 to give him the bad news.

Just waiting for EA for House 2 to issue the memorandum of sale to our solicitor and then searches can begin and we can get survey done. Second stage of mortgage application is in a few days to finalise mortgage application. Its all happening!

Watch this space!

Rich


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## Overdoser

Glad it's finally happening for you bud.


----------



## richtung

Another twist in this sorry tale:

EA wrong this morning - the vendor had come into the office to withdraw the property from sale - citing personal reasons.

Truly gutted... the Mrs is almost in tears at work.

Sigh

Rich


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## alan hanson

Buying and selling houses happens everyday and will for the forseeable future, how the way in which this all works hasnt been updated and rules etc put in place i dont know. 

Feel for you we had the same with buyers pulling out after we had offered on another house.


----------



## Overdoser

Gutted for you. Hopefully everything works out in the end.


----------



## shycho

Gutted for you. We were quite heart broken when we found an average house which had our offer accepted, and then 2 days later decided not to sell. Can only imagine what you guys are feeling right now.

But as the old saying goes, everything happens for a reason. In our case we were waiting to exchange when the vendor found out that a conflict of interest meant they couldn't mortgage their fathers house, in the end we purchased their fathers place and now I couldn't imagine living any where else.

I do hope that you find somewhere right for you and that the next house you offer on, actually comes off.



alan hanson said:


> Buying and selling houses happens everyday and will for the forseeable future, how the way in which this all works hasn't been updated and rules etc put in place i don't know.


Couldn't agree with this more, it's ridiculous that people can simply change their mind on a whim and cost someone else time money and so much emotional pain.


----------



## Taxboy

Sorry to hear about your woes but having had struggles with houses I'm certain that everything will work out for you and the right house for you will become available, even though you've just lost out on your "perfect" house.

The cost of the emotional investment and stress involved can't be easily measured unfortunately.

Good luck in your future search


----------



## richtung

Another Update:

A property came on the market a couple of days ago and we viewed it tonight. In a much better location and is a larger property - it is £25k more expensive though.
This house ticks all our boxes and as it is larger than the house that we lost out on, we think we can scale back and delay our extension plans.
We were the third out of five viewings tonight. EA said there were another 3 tomorrow. Have a feeling this house will go for near asking price.

Our offer is going in first thing in the morning...

Rich


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## Overdoser

Good luck.


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## richtung

Update:

Lost out on the house - it went to above asking price. We offered above asking but vendor went with another bidder.
Ah well. The search continues!

Rich


----------



## richtung

richtung said:


> Another twist in this sorry tale:
> 
> EA wrong this morning - the vendor had come into the office to withdraw the property from sale - citing personal reasons.
> 
> Truly gutted... the Mrs is almost in tears at work.
> 
> Sigh
> 
> Rich


well well. The day after the vendor pulled out of the sale, i wrote a hand written letter to the vendor asking them to reconsider as the wife and I really liked their house etc etc. I popped it through the letter box and that was that. Didn't hear back. That was 3 weeks ago.
GOt a call out of the blue from the EA asking if i had sent a letter (i said yes). It turns out the vendors had read the letter, discussed it and decided to sell - they rang the EA to see if we were still interested!!

I've re-submitted the offer which we agreed on last time. Just waiting to see if they have accepted..

Rich


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## alan hanson

or the other buyer pulled through/they were seeing if you would go higher, either way glad its worked out


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## richtung

So, another update:

Purchase is moving forward! 

Draft Contract received from vendors solicitors so searches from my solicitor have begun.
Our own mortgage application in the final stages - underwriter to asses it in the next 3 days.
Our own surveyor is booked for Monday 29th

I think we re finally getting there!!

Rich


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## Overdoser

fingers crossed for you mate.


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## Darlofan

Fingers and everything else crossed here for you. Good luck with it all, try to remain calm and not kill any solicitors (they don't move very fast!). We've been in our house 16 months now and you were trying to buy before that😉


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## richtung

Update:

So, tonight I'm off to the solicitors to sign the contract and discuss an Exchange/Completion date. I will propose to complete next Weds as i can imagine Thursday being really busy with every man and his dog wanting to complete before the long Easter weekend. 

Either way, I'm quietly confident of completing before March 31st - saving us an extra £8k in stamp duty!

Will let you know when we get over that finish line! :thumb:

Rich


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## Darlofan

richtung said:


> Update:
> 
> So, tonight I'm off to the solicitors to sign the contract and discuss an Exchange/Completion date. I will propose to complete next Weds as i can imagine Thursday being really busy with every man and his dog wanting to complete before the long Easter weekend.
> 
> Either way, I'm quietly confident of completing before March 31st - saving us an extra £8k in stamp duty!
> 
> Will let you know when we get over that finish line! :thumb:
> 
> Rich


Good luck, hopefully your house buying saga will end soon. I take it there was stamp duty changes announced in budget then? I'd have word with solicitor about completing before 31st or you'll reduce offer, we know what they're like for delaying.


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## richtung

Darlofan said:


> Good luck, hopefully your house buying saga will end soon. I take it there was stamp duty changes announced in budget then? I'd have word with solicitor about completing before 31st or you'll reduce offer, we know what they're like for delaying.


Thanks.

Yes, new stamp duty rules kick in on April 1st which were finally confirmed yesterday. We structured our offer so that it reduces if we don't complete before the deadline.

The solicitor is charging me an extra £100 to get priority attention in order to complete in time.

Rich


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## richtung

Another Update:

We are looking to Exchange on the 29th and Complete on the 30th.
Just purchased the Buildings insurance.. getting real now!

Going to hold my breath for the next 3 days!

Rich


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## shycho

richtung said:


> Another Update:
> 
> We are looking to Exchange on the 29th and Complete on the 30th.
> Just purchased the Buildings insurance.. getting real now!
> 
> Going to hold my breath for the next 3 days!
> 
> Rich


I'm hoping the radio silence is because you have been so busy with the move.


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## PaulN

richtung said:


> well well. The day after the vendor pulled out of the sale, i wrote a hand written letter to the vendor asking them to reconsider as the wife and I really liked their house etc etc. I popped it through the letter box and that was that. Didn't hear back. That was 3 weeks ago.
> GOt a call out of the blue from the EA asking if i had sent a letter (i said yes). It turns out the vendors had read the letter, discussed it and decided to sell - they rang the EA to see if we were still interested!!
> 
> I've re-submitted the offer which we agreed on last time. Just waiting to see if they have accepted..
> 
> Rich


The letter is a great idea... we did it when we bought our first house and ive done the same for my lady recently who was looking for a new place.....

It shows your serious and interested.


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