Estate Agent requirements for making an offer... seem a bit over the top...

sleepybee

Hi all

Have been reading this forum for a while and its been incredibly useful. Now have a question that it would be great to get some advise on; we have seen a house that we would like to put an offer in. Went to see it on Friday for a second viewing and wanted to put an offer in however the EA say that they have a policy that I must go in to see their mortgage advisor and listen to him tell us about all their deals before I can put my offer in... I have to wait till monday to go into their office, spend an hour listening to him and then am allowed to give them my offer. I have said to them that I already have my mortgage (first direct) and solicitor in place and am ready to go- however they are still insisting. They also want me to bring in my mortgage offer and proof of deposit. Obviously this is their way of strong-arming people into their products however my worry is that;
1) I dont want to waste time going through their process and showing them my wages etc because I have already found the product for me, and
2) I dont want them to know how much I can afford (first time buyer) as its more than I want to offer for the house

Does anybody know whether EA's can insist I show them all this stuff and also whether they can insist I sit through their mortgage spiel?

Thanks in advance!

pinkshoes

Utter rubbish! And don't even think about telling them what you earn and how big your deposit is, as it's like showing the world your hand of cards!

Tell them you have a mortgage deal in place, so no thank you , you don't require any financial assistance. Be firm.

They HAVE to pass your offer on. If the vendor lives in the property, then you could just put your offer in writing to the EA, and tell them you're also giving a copy to the vendor.

princeofpounds

Submit your offer in writing, tell them you are aware they have a legal duty to pass it onto the vendor (they do if in writing), tell them you have finance in place and will not be seeing their mortgage advisor. Be assertive or they will continue to think you are a mug.

They do have a duty to make sure you have some financing in place so you are proceedable, but that doesn't require being inquisitorial about your financial affairs. I forget exactly what is sufficient to prove this (haven't been through the process myself) but it's quite basic.

googler

The TPO and NAEA codes of practice both say that EAs must not discriminate against anyone who chooses not to use their ancillary products such as mortgages etc. Google them and read for yourself.

If they are members of either organisation, ask them why they're acting contrary to their own code of practice.

If they're not members, ask them why they think it's OK for them to do this when industry best practice, as outlined by the codes, dictates that they shouldn't?

sleepybee

Thanks guys.. that is what I was feeling but hadn't been sure whether they could actually make me do anything.

I think i'll drop by on monday and drop my offer off in writing. I'd love to give it to the vendor myself however its a probate property so I don't have access to them.

I do want to be assertive (thanks pinkshoes and princeofpounds) but should I be a little worried about !!!!ing them off in case they make things difficult for me?

Thanks googler for the info re: codes of conduct- anyone know what I need to show them to prove the offer is proceed-able?

g_attrill

It's likely that if you hand over a written offer and politely decline their mortgage advice eg. ("I am quite satisfied I have the correct mortgage already thank-you" or "I have already saught financial advice thank-you") they will back down.

I had it myself when looking at repossession properties, one time I managed to just speak to the guy over the phone for a few minutes, the other time I half-deliberately left my house too late and missed the appointment. Either side can pull out at any time until exchange, and them pulling out after accepting your offier would be perfectly ok if they didn't believe you have the finances in place for whatever reason, so their argument doesn't hold water. It would save a bit of wasted time while agreeing a price, but as you realise at the expense of exposing your financial position and wasting your time with their advisor.

sleepybee

Thaks g_attrill, they were quite pushy but hope thats enough for them to back down.

I'm thinking of putting in writing that I'd like to offer £x subject to them removing the property from sale within 24 hours and subject to survey. Does that sound about right? I'm not missing anything am i?

dexter_fan

Last year we did some majar renovations on our house. When the work was finished, we got a few EA's around to give us a valuation (from our side purely to see what value we had added). Obviously the EA's bump up the value a bit, because they think they would get our custom. Now, we haven't moved house for about 13 years so I knew we'd be out of date with processes etc but one EA said that they would filter all offers on our place and make sure prospective purchasers had to have a chat with their mortgage person to ensure they were proceedable! Now if I was a buyer that would put me right off.

They also said that they offered buyers £2k cashback on purchase, which basically was added by me to the asking price! As well as possible implications for the buyer, from a vendors point of view I thought that I am paying the EA commission, plus adding £2k (which could easily be 'lost' in negotiations) to give back, whilst the EA get the sale! It also meant that if I had been serious about moving, I wouldn't have gone to them for our purchase.

pinkshoes

sleepybee wrote: »

Thaks g_attrill, they were quite pushy but hope thats enough for them to back down.

I'm thinking of putting in writing that I'd like to offer £x subject to them removing the property from sale within 24 hours and subject to survey. Does that sound about right? I'm not missing anything am i?

I would perhaps even put your position on the offer i.e. first time buyer, no chain, mortgage in place, able to proceed straight away etc... (or whatever it may be).

You won't p*ss the EA off being assertive. Just say you've already seen a financial advisor and have a mortgage in place, so it's not in your interests to repeat this process, but thank them for the offer.

(they'll be on commission to push their own mortgage deals)

missrlr

Baloney - the nice polite words for what my response really is. They are obliged to pass on the offer, as others above have said. Be firm and clear in what the offer is and your position, await the response. If you don't get a response then write direct to the vendor (you have thier address after all!) and copt the EA in. I am sure the vendor will be less than happy with an off putting service of the EA when they should be acting in the vendor's best interests!

sleepybee

dexter_fan wrote: »

Now if I was a buyer that would put me right off.

Thats exactly what I was thinking-- wonder if the vendor realises this tactic is would put off potential purchasers (if they even know its happening).

Thanks pinkshoes about the reminder to include the good buying position i'm in... thanks for all the advise... i'll let you know what happens when I speak to the EA :-)