Seen a place I like, now what?

amr_scotland

Hello,

I viewed a new build house this weekend which I quite liked. The sales lady took me around and explained how wonderful the house was etc and asked me a few questions to gauge my interest. I tried to be as vague as possible in my responses so not to give too much away, she asked if I had a mortgage and deposit to which I responded 'yes, the finance is all sorted' and told her I was a FTB (I want to be taken seriously). At the end of the tour she asked if I liked the house, I told her that it was a bit bigger than the other house I had been looking at and then she said she would call me in a few days. I left it at that.

I have read loads of threads on this forum from start to finish trying to prepare myself for the viewing. Hopefully I have done all the right stuff, I tried to appear curious rather than interested but did make it clear I had been looking 'for a little while' (again to be taken seriously).

She will probably get in touch in the next few days so I want to be prepared and I want to negotiate the price down. I have never done this before I am feeling quite nervous about it all, I hope some of you nice people will be able to help. What should be my next move?

[FONT=&quot]Thanks for your help[/FONT]

Mini_Bear

Just a few things to consider:
Is this the first phase in the development, if not, what have simialr size properties recently sold for - look on Zoopla.
Secondly, what is the plot like, is it a good position within the new estate? Where are the local amenities and where is the social housing?
How is the property priced relative to stamp bands, ie priced at 275k i would not offer more than 250k for that reason.
Do you know what the level of fixtures and fittings are? some housebuilders have different "packages" available, ie laminate flooring, fully tiled bathrroms (and tiles not carpet in the bathrooms) etc.
Parking - this is a biggie, how big are the houses and what is the parking situation, on street/designated parking areas/garages. I only say this because we live in a new build 4 bed terrace row, and the builders gave us one space initially for parking!!! Most houses have 2 plus cars so the road becomes pretty clogged up at certain times!!
I woudl get as much info on the local area as you can, crime statistics any major road building likely. This will give you more weight when negotiating.
Good luck with it all OP. My sis in law managed to negotiate a 40k reduction on a house because they could move quickly and were a first time buyer, they also took a slightly smaller plot. So it is possible in this market!

amr_scotland

Mini_Bear wrote: »

Secondly, what is the plot like, is it a good position within the new estate? Where are the local amenities and where is the social housing?

The house it tucked away towards the end of the estate, the location appears to be fine. How can I tell what the social housing is, will it be the same design as all the other houses? Phase 1 is schedules to be complete by Aug this year. The builder have moved down the road a bit to start the next lot of houses. Phase 2 will begin Aug ish.

Mini_Bear wrote: »

How is the property priced relative to stamp bands, ie priced at 275k i would not offer more than 250k for that reason.
Do you know what the level of fixtures and fittings are? some house builders have different "packages" available, ie laminate flooring, fully tiled bathrooms (and tiles not carpet in the bathrooms) etc.

I like two properties, they are very similar. One is an end terrace at £130k (I think, details are at home) and mid-terrace £125k. The end terrace appeals to me more but would be happy with the mid. Kitchens are fitted with laminate and the bathrooms are part tiled. I'll get all the details when the sales woman gets back in touch, I didn't want to ask too many questions on the first visit.

Mini_Bear wrote: »

Parking - this is a biggie, how big are the houses and what is the parking situation, on street/designated parking areas/garages.

There is an allocated parking space and a few 'guest' spaces. One space will do for now as we only have one car, I don't plan on getting another for a few years at least. There is no garage or drive way and because the front and back of the terrace has a 'public' lawn it is not possible to convert the garden later. I would love a garage/drive but that's not possible on my budget.

Mini_Bear wrote: »

I woudl get as much info on the local area as you can, crime statistics any major road building likely. This will give you more weight when negotiating.
Good luck with it all OP. My sis in law managed to negotiate a 40k reduction on a house because they could move quickly and were a first time buyer, they also took a slightly smaller plot. So it is possible in this market!

I am local to the area and am quite happy with the location. I have checked out the Scottish Land Registery website which shows that sales in the town have dropped 27% but confusingly prices have gone up 5% ?

Will the upcoming end-of-tax-year encourage the builder to shift the houses faster?

Thanks for your help.

PasturesNew

amr_scotland wrote: »

How can I tell what the social housing is, will it be the same design as all the other houses?

Somebody I know just moved onto a new build mixed estate. You can tell the social housing people as they tend to use their front gardens as storage areas for bikes and kids' toys, whereas those that bought their houses have nothing on display in the front gardens.

PasturesNew

amr_scotland wrote: »

I like two properties, they are very similar. One is an end terrace at £130k (I think, details are at home) and mid-terrace £125k. The end terrace appeals to me more but would be happy with the mid.

What is alongside the end of the terrace? Think about what could potentially happen in this space, e.g. kids playing football, gathering, people walking back/forth. If the end is part of your garden it's less of an issue.

Doozergirl

I don't understand why people feel the need to behave nonchalantly. Especially as you haven't asked many questions because you didn't want to be too interested! Completely honestly, I would bend far more for someone that loved the house I was selling over someone who appeared that they couldn't care less. If I don't like someone or don't really get the right feeling from them myself then I am far more likely to quibble with them because it's evident that they are holding something back.

The fact that you love a houes doesn't mean that you want to pay top dollar for it either. When buying I will always tell people that I love their house, because I do! That has never meant that I've paid over the odds as a result. If you know what the house is worth to you then stick to that price. I can guarantee with a developer that they will be negotiating with you very hard but I still think that if they can feel that there is a possible sale that your salesperson will work harder to get you the deal that you are looking for.

You can love a place but stand firm. Ask all the questions you like and act as interested as you like - a salesperson has to try and work out which prospects are hot; if you act like you're lukewarm, then they will as well.

Go low and stand your ground for as long as you can. Always go for cash discounts over things like carpets thrown in - they sell things like carpets and appliances waaaayyy over the going rate and you'll pay three times more than that over the life of your mortgage one you've accounted for the interest! It's convenient to move into a house with the carpet already there but seriously consider buying it yourself even if the cash dicount you obtain is apparantly less than the value of items that they offer you. Those prices are seriously made up - I can buy the same carpet for around 60-70% less than they tell you it costs.

Also, they love to tweak their prices because this one has a metre more garden, this one slopes less, this one is EOT, that one has chrome sockets but when those houses are second hand, much of it won't make a blind bit of difference because people will not have the choice of every house on the street like you did. Don't fall for it. At £125-130k I'm not sure that the EOT is worth a whole £5k more. Maybe it is but don't let them use this stuff on you and don't start doing that when it's time to sell on, the second people in won't see it the same way. I know people who have paid quite a bit more for one house than the neighbouring identical one. I still have no idea why but it must have made sense to them at the time when they were comparing the houses. When they came to sell on both houses within weeks of each other, both houses fetched exactly the same amount. It's possible to get better discounts on the ones that appear to be slightly more compromised on paper which aren't all that different in reality.

googler

Assuming from your pen-name that you're buying in Scotland, do you have a solicitor ready to act for you?

If not, hire your own (maybe a family solicitor) and hire one experienced in house buying and selling. Don't let the housebuilder fob you off on their own solicitor.

Your sol will advise you on the process, and tender your offer to the builder's sol or the builder themselves on your behalf.

You can look up the housebuilder's planning application on the local council's website, or view it in person at their offices, and this should show on the site plan or other documents which area of the development is the 'affordable' or 'social' sector.

amr_scotland

Doozergirl wrote: »

I don't understand why people feel the need to behave nonchalantly. Especially as you haven't asked many questions because you didn't want to be too interested! Completely honestly, I would bend far more for someone that loved the house I was selling over someone who appeared that they couldn't care less. If I don't like someone or don't really get the right feeling from them myself then I am far more likely to quibble with them because it's evident that they are holding something back.

Sorry I wasn't particularly clear on my attitude. I did respond positively to the tour, and throw about comments such as "hmm, that’s nice" etc etc. I even went off for a wander on my own to look over the place again. I didn't walk in there dragging my heels and I was genuinely excited to see the place I just didn't want to make it obvious. At the end of the day they are sales-people, they could be selling a toaster or a car, they just want the sale (but that's not a licence to be rude!)

I expect to get a call tomorrow and I will start to ask about prices etc but I am still unsure how to but forward a sensible offer. The mid-terrace property is priced at £125K (inc appliances, carpets, tiles etc), should I say I want to offer £105K and just stick to that? Doesn't make sense to me. Obviously and like everyone else I was a good deal and most importantly pay a sensible price.

While viewing that property I stopped by another development, I didn't really like the houses but the sales lady there said "there were cash incentives" available. I will probably mention this and see how they respond.

Another question, is all the negotiation done with the sale people on the site or do they step back and hand-over to someone else?

Thanks for the all the responses so far, any further tips?