Estate agents tricks?
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we viewed a property on a Sat and liking it rang back on the monday to book a second viewing. It has been on at 197000 for several months and is ex rental so we were considering starting at 10% under given the current market and our position as ftb.
Then a few hours before the second viewing the estate agent rang and basically said he wanted to gauge how much we might offer as if it was "only" 185 then there was no point in viewing and that they had another interested ftb so I would need offer about 193 to get the seller to "swap". I said I wasn't interested in getting into a bidding war and didn't think it was worth that much. (2 weeks later there is no change on right move)
Last night we went to view another place and the estate agent seemed to guess we liked it as by the time we had viewed it had gone from "a repossession" to "we have several offers the highest being a cash buyer with 183000" (its on for 189000)
Am I just being cynical thinking these are tricks or is this what i should expect? any advice appreciated.
Then a few hours before the second viewing the estate agent rang and basically said he wanted to gauge how much we might offer as if it was "only" 185 then there was no point in viewing and that they had another interested ftb so I would need offer about 193 to get the seller to "swap". I said I wasn't interested in getting into a bidding war and didn't think it was worth that much. (2 weeks later there is no change on right move)
Last night we went to view another place and the estate agent seemed to guess we liked it as by the time we had viewed it had gone from "a repossession" to "we have several offers the highest being a cash buyer with 183000" (its on for 189000)
Am I just being cynical thinking these are tricks or is this what i should expect? any advice appreciated.
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http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=2693791
I can understand the EA trying to make you think its a much sought after property so you will put in a fab bid which increases the commission or it may be that the vendor has said they will only accept offers over xxx so the EA doesnt want to miss Corrie doing a viewing but either way there is no excuse.
If all else fails, knock at the door of any house you are interested in. Its how Ive bought all my houses (and Im an ex estate agent).
the first house is also on with another estate agent so out of curiosity I rang to enquire. They have offered me a viewing on Sat!
We have a situation like this right now.
Client A offers X
two days later Client B offers X+2
Client A is informed and asked if he would like to increase his offer, which he does to X+5
Shortly after Client A asks for an email to confirm we have recieved an offer after his first offer!!!
I can only assume that he thinks we are lying, which we are not. However I can see you suspect it looks! Its really going to hit the fan when Client B returns from holiday and offers X+10 or something!!!!
You should note that this site doesn't check my status as a Mortgage Adviser, so you need to take my word for it. This signature is here as I follow MSE's Mortgage Adviser Code of Conduct. Any posts on here are for information and discussion purposes only and shouldn't be seen as financial advice.
Basically, work to your own timescale and try to accept the fact early on that if you lose something, you lose it. If you want to make an offer, do so. Don't be influenced by what they're saying others have offered. It's not all about money in this market - are you in a chain? If not, you're a better bet than someone who is, even if they can pay another £10k or whatever.
Jx