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Backhanders - & Estate Agents!
Comments
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True, only 95% of them are bent.
Another new poster tossing in a few cheap comments and clearly not up to the task of really being a good MSE person and helping others out with worthwhile replies.A retired senior partner, in own agency, with 40 years experience in property sales & new build. In latter part of career specialising in commercial - mostly business sales.0 -
but not one person has tested their theory about backhanders by offering one????
Excellent sugestion and well who will be the first to try it.
I have been in the business for a very long time, know and have known a lot of agents and only ever heard of one case when I was in my 20's in Luton.
I have been accused, by a seller some 15 years ago, of working against their best interests, with a buyer, saying I must be taking a bribe. This seller mentioned it to other people who were so disgusted they told me. My solicitor wrote to him saying if he were to persist he would be taken to court for defamation of character.
If you feel someone is 'on the take' report it - Police, Trading Standards,Professional Bodies, Ombudsman, OFT, MP, papers, Watchdog on TV, ete, etc. but to take no action and hide behind the veil of secrecy scaremongering on this forum is pathetic.A retired senior partner, in own agency, with 40 years experience in property sales & new build. In latter part of career specialising in commercial - mostly business sales.0 -
This is very easy to test.
If you feel that you are not being given a fair attempt to buy a property, knock 5k off your max price and offer the estate agent a 5k cash payment on completion.
If he accepts, you will know he is dodgy. Then you have the great moral dilemma of getting the house you want but knowing you played dirty tricks to get it.I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.0 -
Part of an EAs role is to advise the client on whether an offer is proceedable. Very easy for someone unscrupulous to offer when they have no chance of raising funds/ selling their own property etc and an estate agent has to say if they think an offer won't proceed.
If you want to be in with a chance and are always getting pipped to the post, you need to be able to persuade your estate agent that your offer is genuine, serious and proceedable.I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.0 -
This is very easy to test.
If you feel that you are not being given a fair attempt to buy a property, knock 5k off your max price and offer the estate agent a 5k cash payment on completion.
If he accepts, you will know he is dodgy. Then you have the great moral dilemma of getting the house you want but knowing you played dirty tricks to get it.
Ooooooh decisions, decisions...... how much do you want that property?!!0 -
Seems to me that people are blaming estate agents for their inability to secure a property. How about considering that the seller wouldn't accept your low offer?
Reading this thread you wouldn't think that there was a credit crunch. Buyers are meant to be in short supply, so the chance that two buyers are competing should be unusual.
In today's market, sellers are cautious and only want to accept offers where they are confident that the buyer has a mortgage offer (or funds) and has a proceedable buyer for their own place.
You read MSE, offer 15% below asking price and expect sellers to kiss your feet.
In the real world their has to be some enticement to accept that your house is only worth XX and a buyer waiting for a mortgage offer with a low deposit, or one where their purchase is dependent of someone else's offer on their own being delivered, is not going to work.I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.0 -
Just to add, it is the seller that chooses the estate agent. So if they choose one that accepts back handers in order to secure deals, on their head be it. The estate agent is acting against the clients interest, so it is the client that is losing out. The buyer is not acting immorally. He wants the property, realises that increasing the offer price is not going to secure it, so offers a brown envelope instead. Buyer isn't answerable to the seller.I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.0
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You read MSE, offer 15% below asking price and expect sellers to kiss your feet.
Met some of my old associates this mroning who tell me that prices being accepted are in this region are 5% less than asking price if you take out the inflated asking prices. So do agree with you.A retired senior partner, in own agency, with 40 years experience in property sales & new build. In latter part of career specialising in commercial - mostly business sales.0 -
Just to add, it is the seller that chooses the estate agent. So if they choose one that accepts back handers in order to secure deals, on their head be it. The estate agent is acting against the clients interest, so it is the client that is losing out. The buyer is not acting immorally. He wants the property, realises that increasing the offer price is not going to secure it, so offers a brown envelope instead. Buyer isn't answerable to the seller.
How true. You've just made me see the whole thing from another perspective....0
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