Is the estate agent trying to get more money out of me than necessary?

lee636

Blondeclaire37 wrote: »

I do really want this place and the other offer is still 5k less than the asking price, 10k less than the original asking price. Should I offer say £500 less than this other offer pushing the fact I'm a ftb? The max I can do is £1 more than this offer!

If you go in at £500 now and you can offer £501 you have no leeway when the EA comes back.

Stick by your original offer and put a timeframe on it to be accepted or again rejected and walk away, keep looking as loads come onto the market every week.

Blondeclaire37

Sorry I meant 1k extra than the offer

sonastin

If its a repossession, have you had confirmation in writing of a) your offer and b) that your offer has been declined? If not, this is a trick from the EA. Don't be bullied into offering more than you can afford.

If your offer has been declined in writing, it is probably a genuine unfortunate co-incidence that there is someone else offering at the same time. If you can afford to increase your offer and you are prepared to pay that much to get the house, then increase your offer. Beware though that with a repossession, it will stay on the market until you exchange contracts so someone else can come in with a higher offer at any time. If there is really another interested party, you do run the risk of being outbid.

lee636

That is your decision im afraid. It does seem like the EA is playing a game, its just so convenient how no offers, you come along, FTB ready to go and all of a sudden another offer has come in over yours.

Have you come across really eager to get this property? Desperate? (and I don’t mean that in a rude way, as FTB I know how it can get when you put a offer in and really want a place etc.).

Try and keep as cool a head as you can. It’s a repo so I believe they can take a while to leave the market, I might be wrong but as ILW said they have to notify of an offer and wait for others to potentially bid.


Edit*Sonastin basically summarised what i was trying to put across!

jennihen

Henry_P_Chester wrote: »

This is definitly a tactic used be EAs. I made an offer on a house in febuary which had had no other offers and been on the Market a couple of years! I am a FTB too. I made my first offer which was rejected upped it to my final offer and was told by the agent that another offer had just been recieved 2k above mine but with the other agent (it was marketed by 2) I said no I can't go higher then phoned the other agent who told me that no offers had been recieved. The house is still on the Market 6 months later!

My advice would be the same as lee636. Stick to your guns if you lose it there will be another that you like, probably cheaper.

Good luck. Let us no how you get on.

Same thing happened to me! After only one serious offer that fell through 2 days before completion, in 2 years, my EA rang to say that 2 days after my offer (6K below asking price) that another party had made an offer 'on or above' the asking price. I told them the max I could go to was 2K below asking price and would walk away as I couldn't compete. Strangely enough I got a call from EA at 9.00 the next morning to ask if that was a formal offer as the vendors were willing to accept it!! Why would they when they'd already dropped 29K in the last year?
Going to wait for sale to complete and make a complaint!

Blondeclaire37

Thanks for all you advice and experience! My plan is to call tomorrow late morning so I don't look to keen, tell them the max I can go is 1k below the other offer but emphasise I'm a ftb so can have the money quickly. I'll make sure they have to advertise an offer of notice publically and tell them I will reasess my situation then. That will show me if the offer is serious and if it is I can act accordingly. If not hopefully they will accept my offer. Sound like a plan?

Evilm

Get them to reject your first offer in writing (even by email) - they should do this, if they won't its probable they are playing you.

jennihen

Evilm wrote: »

Get them to reject your first offer in writing (even by email) - they should do this, if they won't its probable they are playing you.

Wish I'd thought of that!!

lee636

Any update??

Riq

As it's a repossession there are different rules. The estate agent needs to contact interested parties to tell them about the offer and the exact amount you have bid.

This is my understanding anyway.

It's perfectly likely someone has been waiting and waiting then had their hand forced by your bid.