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

THI

If its a repo, the agent will be taking instructions from the lender. Speaking as an agent, it is quite usual and intensely annoying to get several offers on one property, you can only sell it to one person and people start to think they are being played.

Agents should not really be disclosing other offers to other people. If they are instructed to seek a better offer they will do just that - the agents duty is to get the best possible price for their client, the seller. An offer which is not acceptable today, may well be acceptable in 2 weeks time, especially in the case of a repo, where the lender will review the situation at regular intervals and may indeed be interested in the lower offer 2 weeks later.

It is entirely up to you how much you choose to offer/can afford to pay! However it is not legal for an agent to make up offers just to pursuade you to increase, and it is required that all offers received are provided to the seller 'promptly and in writing'. I hope that helps..

princeofpounds

I'd be more inclined to think this was a game if it wasn't a repo. Offers on repos are generally advertised and a written offer can flush out another offer or two.

But my general advice on these matters is offer what you think the house is worth and no more. If the other offer exists, you lose the place, but you didn't overpay. The existence of another offer should, in theory, be meaningless to your own internal estimate of worth.

jockosjungle

How much was your offer? It'll help put the £3k difference in perspective.

Maybe you are being played, maybe the offer is genuine but considering you have already put in your final offer then where is there to go? You want to increase the offer now, so maybe the EA assumed that your first offer is never going to be the final one.

If its a good price you offered, consider yourself lucky. You could have been outbid after you'd paid out for a valuation and a solicitor fee.

I put in an offer for a repo a while ago, offered £46k on an £48k asking price, someone else offered asking price and was rejected and then offered £2k more and were acceoted. They badgered me for a good fortnight to increase my offer, which I didn't do. The property is still on rightmove and was never advertised as an offer being made.

The house was a wreck though and in the end we're exchanging contracts on a similar property which is nice for more money but less hassle, as we met the seller and knew we were dealing with a real person.

R