Note of interest in Scotland

amr_scotland

Hi,

Sorry if this has been asked before, I am a FTB and so never been through the buying process before. I viewed a house this weekend that I am interested in and this morning I got a phone call from the Estate Agent asking if I was interested, as they had received a 'note of interest' from another party. I told the lady I was interested and said I would like to make an offer but she said she could not take offers at this time.

I have contacted a solicitor and have set up a meeting in order to submit my 'own note of interest'. My question is, the property is on for £115,000 but I only want to make an initial offer of £105,000, if I make this offer then will I get chance to revise it up later on? Obviously I do not want to pay over the odds but at the same time I do not want to loose the property either. Help and advice would really be appreciated.

googler

amr_scotland wrote: »

I viewed a house this weekend that I am interested in and this morning I got a phone call from the Estate Agent asking if I was interested, as they had received a 'note of interest' from another party. I told the lady I was interested and said I would like to make an offer but she said she could not take offers at this time.

However, you, as your solicitor will tell you, can submit an offer at any time, regardless of whether or not the selling agent says they can take an offer or not. Your sol puts a date and time by which the seller should respond. However, with another note of interest in place, the seller may want to declare a closing date for offers to encourage competing interest between you.

amr_scotland wrote: »

I have contacted a solicitor and have set up a meeting in order to submit my 'own note of interest'. My question is, the property is on for £115,000 but I only want to make an initial offer of £105,000, if I make this offer then will I get chance to revise it up later on?

When the seller's solicitor receives your offer, they can accept or decline, or if they have other interest, defer this to a closing date.

If they accept your offer, all good and well.
If they decline outright, and don't invite negotiation, consult with your solicitor as to whether to revise and resubmit
If they come back to your solicitor with a figure that would be agreeable to them, i.e. renegotiate, consult with your solicitor as to whether you revise your offer to that figure, or somewhere in between that and your original figure.
If it goes to a closing date, consult with your solicitor as to whether your leave your original offer in place or revise it.

You'll most likely get the chance to negotiate if you get your offer in before the other interested party does.

Have you found out what the Home Report valuation is for the property, and what others have been selling for in the same street, neighbourhood, and town?

As you've found out, it's best to have hired your solicitor in advance of viewing, so that when you like something, you're only a phone call away from having them note interest on your behalf....

amr_scotland

googler, thanks for the information.

I had selected a solicitor but not yet arranged anything, as I did not realise I needed to do this so early in the process. Never mind, I have a meeting set up for first thing in the morning so I should be in a position to submit a note of interest.

I have looked for other sales in the area but none come up for the last 4-5 years, the area seems to be occupied by retired individuals/couples who have no intention of moving. My first offer is 10K below the Home Report valuation as the property needs fully redecorated and carpeted, new bathroom, W.C and kitchen (which looks about 20 years old). This it wise to offer below the Home Report valuation ... ?

googler

You're welcome - let us all know how you get on.

BTW, I think the "she said she could not take offers at this time" is a load of dingo's kidneys.

It's on the market, they're inviting offers for it - they can't be actively inviting offers then saying they can't 'take' offers at a particular time....

LilacPixie

I agree with googlers assesment and i'm in scotland just bought and sold. Nothing is going for home report valuation. 8-9% under typical in my area.

amr_scotland

Just wanted to post an update.

My solicitor called the estate agents to put an offer in but before he could do so they told him the seller had just set a closing date, I've now got until next Tuesday to get my bid in. I guess now I just have to submit my best offer and then wait to see what happens. There have been no sales in the area so I have having to go with the Home Report valuation, given the amount of work required to get the property up to date i'm probably going to bid 5-8k less than the valuation and hope that someone doesn't put in a stupidly high offer. I'm going to crunch my numbers and see what I am comfortable with ...

LilacPixie

good luck.