Any point in viewing a property with an offer accepted?

trini

Hi,

I'm a first time buyer and a bit stuck so any help is greatly appreciated.

I have a very small budget (about £60,000) and have seen a house I wanted to view.

The estate agent called me to arrange this today but informed me that a sale is proceeding on the property however I can still view if I want to??

Is there any point if the sale is proceeding (or the offer has been accepted) and can I ask how much the offer is that they have accepted?

I know this might seem a bit of a stupid question but as I say I'm a first time buyer and quite confused.

Thanks

googler

So, if you view it, and like it, and put an offer in which is higher than the current offer upon which the sale is proceeding, and the seller accepts your offer, putting the first offer (and all that buyer's effort and expense) to one side.......

then all I ask is that you put yourself in the other buyer's shoes, and imagine how you would feel, having found the house of your dreams, put an offer in, had it accepted, and had hired a solicitor, paid for a survey.... only to have the rug pulled from under you.

If the seller and EA are willing to accommodate you making an offer after the first buyer has had his accepted, how likely is it that you will succeed in eventually buying the house if ANOTHER viewer comes along and makes another offer? Where's the seller going to draw the line?

danlojo

Somebody with more knowledge will come along .....

however, we have had an offer accepted on a house we want to purchase and the survey is today (eek). The EA has said that if anyone comes along and is interested then they will take details and contact them if the sale falls through but they will not allow anyone to view it.

I'm not sure if they would tell you of the accepted price of the offer either as this would be that awful word of 'gazumping'.

I would be extremely miffed as we have just forked out on the survey if this were to happen.

Maybe each EA is different but thankfully the one we're dealing with wouldnt allow anyone else to view.

Good luck with your house hunting......it's a complete nightmare isnt it!!

Blacksheep1979

yup - surprised by this as I've had several EAs in London refuse to show me houses that have offers in on them. Also look at it in reverse, do you want to go through an EA that will happily let other people look at a property you are trying to buy and risk extra expense (survey/solicitor costs) by them showing others round after your offer has been accepted?

Fairdo_2

If the condition of the offer from the current buyer was that the property should be taken off the market, then that is what they should have done with the Vendors consent.

However, it can be left on the market at Vendors request if the offer has been accepted, IF they were concerned about the current purchasers position. i.e. if they have not proven how they are going to fund the purchase, not given solicitors details in a reasonable time, etc. I would hope that would have been made clear to the buyer, but it has to work on fairness to both parties and either could vote with their feet at any time up till exchange of contracts.

The EA has a duty to put through any offers that come on the table from, say, previous viewers that have decided to offer later on, but fairness should normally guide them to take the property off the market if all reasonable steps have been taken by the buyers.

In terms of telling you what the previous offer was, I would be very concerned if they are prepared to divulge that information. For one, it breaks their code of conduct rules, but also, would you feel comfortable buying from an EA who is prepared to give that information to you and therefore likely to do the same to others about your situation if you were successful????

I am concerned that they are actively marketing this to people as it would undermine my confidence as a potential buyer if I got wind that this was happening to my purchase, so they are risking wasting their own time showing you around and risking losing their existing purchaser aswell. Therefore risking their commission!

C_Mababejive

It just illustrates the parasitic nature of some EAs.

They will do anything to try and waft the embers of a bidding war, no matter that people are lashing out on surveys and arranging their lives around a potential house move.

trini

Thanks everyone - to be honest I couldn't have done it anyway I would have felt awful if I was able to offer more than the people who have been accepted i was just mega mga confused by the estate agent.

Also prob should have said it's vacant possession don't know if that means it was/is a repossession or just that the seller has moved (or passed away).

mchale

googler wrote: »

So, if you view it, and like it, and put an offer in which is higher than the current offer upon which the sale is proceeding, and the seller accepts your offer, putting the first offer (and all that buyer's effort and expense) to one side.......

then all I ask is that you put yourself in the other buyer's shoes, and imagine how you would feel, having found the house of your dreams, put an offer in, had it accepted, and had hired a solicitor, paid for a survey.... only to have the rug pulled from under you.

If the seller and EA are willing to accommodate you making an offer after the first buyer has had his accepted, how likely is it that you will succeed in eventually buying the house if ANOTHER viewer comes along and makes another offer? Where's the seller going to draw the line?

Sorry, but much as I dislike EA's, its down to the vendor if the above situation arises, you can not blame a buyer trying to get a property they like, the vendors should have morals and stick to the original offer.

OP, I would go ahead and view it, it will give you a idea of what you get for your money.

harrisandreeman

Sounds like a repo, in which the EA is usually duty bound to continue marketing the property until completion.

trini

Hi, found out today it's a repo and arranged to go see it on Sat cos really want to know what its like thanks for all the help off everyone