FTB - Struggling with offer prices!

bobbi1984

Hi there, new to the forum and after a bit of advice.

We have a mortgage offer in place and deposit with no chain so in a good position to buy. We have just been let down on one property as after the survey they found masses wrong with it and couldnt justify the extra cost.

We have now seen another property that we want to make an offer on but are unsure what figure to offer. It is on the market for £189950. It is a 3 bed detatched nice size garden in good decorative order. The current owner bought the property in Feb 2007 for £187500 when prices were getting to their peak.

I'm no expert but as house prices have been dropping for at least 12 months I would expect the price it is being marketed for to be less than the figure bought for (or am I totally off the mark?) Any advice would be really welcome! thank you

JayHam

Take a look at http://www.nethouseprices.com/ and see what properties have been selling for in the area recently.

The market price and how much house prices have fallen/risen are all better looked at locally. The headline figure of an x% fall in house prices over the last six months should never be taken as true for a property your interested in.

Only advice to give on how much to offer is how much do you feel comfortable with and what can you afford?

Cat695

it really depends on the area.....but yes house prices have fallen

It sounds like they are just trying to break even....however that is NOT your problem......all depends on how much YOU feel happy to pay for it (and how much the bank will pay for it)

why not wait till you get a survey done if you feel its the right house for you

monkeymaster

bobbi1984 wrote: »

Hi there, new to the forum and after a bit of advice.

We have a mortgage offer in place and deposit with no chain so in a good position to buy. We have just been let down on one property as after the survey they found masses wrong with it and couldnt justify the extra cost.

We have now seen another property that we want to make an offer on but are unsure what figure to offer. It is on the market for £189950. It is a 3 bed detatched nice size garden in good decorative order. The current owner bought the property in Feb 2007 for £187500 when prices were getting to their peak.

I'm no expert but as house prices have been dropping for at least 12 months I would expect the price it is being marketed for to be less than the figure bought for (or am I totally off the mark?) Any advice would be really welcome! thank you

Sounds like they're having a laugh. What were they seeling for in 2003? Maybe offer around 150k.

bobbi1984

Thanks for your replies, I know the house next door (there are 3 the same) sold for £177000 in Dec 2007 so just before the markets started to crash and other property in the area has decreased too!

bobbi1984

The house sold back on the 12th December 2003 for £147500. Is that the sort of time I should be looking at to compare prices?

JayHam

It all sounds as if you're in a great position (no chain, mortgage offer and a falling/stagnant market).

See if you can find out if there is much interest in the property (viewings and such). If not then you stand a great chance?

However as Cat suggested, if the sellers are aiming to break even then moving them may take time, it all depends on ther sellers circumstances.

Be confident and put an offer in, the worst that can happen is they say no!!! Try an offer around £170,000 to £177,000, the exact figure is all down to you and the situation, just remember your in a great situation.

Love_bargains_2

Sorry to say there's no right answer to this question. When making an offer if they accept your first figure you've offered to much. Start reasonably low and expect to agree by your third bid or not at all. Also, try to get a steer from the estate agent who should be very pleased that he has a prospective sale so ought to be willing to help rather than let you slip away. Find out how long it's been on the market, how many views there have been, how many offers, and whether the seller is waiting to sell this property in order to complete on their next one. This will give you an idea of how desperate or otherwise they are.

Ultimately, selling your home is quite an emotional experience, and no matter how much evidence you have that a house is worth X, if the seller thinks it's worth Y and doesn't want to take a loss on the sale then you're not going to agree a price. But you're not responsible for the bad buying decision the seller made back in '07 so don't be afraid to walk away. Look at a few other places and if the same property is still for sale after a couple of months make another, even lower offer. Maybe by then the seller will have learned the true value of their property.

hethmar

The house sold for £147k when they bought it but have they done a lot of work to it, extensions, or anything?

SavingSteve

JayHam wrote: »

It all sounds as if you're in a great position (no chain, mortgage offer and a falling/stagnant market).

See if you can find out if there is much interest in the property (viewings and such). If not then you stand a great chance?

However as Cat suggested, if the sellers are aiming to break even then moving them may take time, it all depends on ther sellers circumstances.

Be confident and put an offer in, the worst that can happen is they say no!!! Try an offer around £170,000 to £177,000, the exact figure is all down to you and the situation, just remember your in a great situation.

No way is this worth this much, as an identical house next door sold for 177 in Dec 07!

Sonofa

hethmar wrote: »

The house sold for £147k when they bought it but have they done a lot of work to it, extensions, or anything?

No he says that was the sale prior to

"The current owner bought the property in Feb 2007 for £187500 when prices were getting to their peak."

But even so, what you're saying could be right. Who's to say that the present owner hasn't significantly improved the house.