Can I offer on two different properties

Simon_Pugsley

I find myself in a bit of a predicament, any help would be appreciated.

I have made an offer on a property and we eventually came to an agreement on a price which was 8% less than the asking price. This agreement would only be accepted if our sellers could secure a lower price on the house they were buying, which I totally understand, the problem being the end of the chain lives in foreign lands and is very difficult to contact.

It has been over a week since this happened, and still we have no news from the estate agents. Normally this would be no problem, however my partner has 16 weeks before she gave birth, and so I do not have too much time to wait for my offer to be accepted.

We have also seen another house however the owner will only start looking for her new house when she has an offer on her own property, so my dilema is...

Should I wait for my original offer to be accepted and hope it happens soon, or should I put an offer in on the other house, although that will mean pulling out of one of the offers I have put it in.

Thanks

Hippychick

Legally you can, morally may be another question.

Perhaps call the EA tomorrow and explain your position that you've seen somewhere else and need an answer soon. Bear in mind the second property may take ages to find a house and if you're in a chain 16 weeks might be pushing it to complete.

Simon_Pugsley

Morally it does not sit well with me, and I would hate someone to do it to me.

There are 3 houses in the chain, I am the start of the chain and I have got a cash buyer, and the end of the chain has no need to buy a house.

I have tried explaining to the EA and they just say that they are waiting for people to get back to them. Could I set a deadline with the EA for my offer to be accepted, if not I will leave my offer on the table but will have to start looking at other properties.

Anacrusis

Simon_Pugsley wrote: »

Could I set a deadline with the EA for my offer to be accepted, if not I will leave my offer on the table but will have to start looking at other properties.

That's what I would do

MegaMiniMouse

If I understand this correctly, your original offer has not yet been accepted, so of course you can offer on other properties - make as many offers as you like, it's like buying clothes - you shop around

Is the second property with the same estate agent as the first? If so, then that is a pity, because the estate agent will begin to play games in an effort to maximise his profit - he will not fall victim to any kind of moral considerations about the rightness or wrongness of the situation

MMM

Simon_Pugsley

If I understand this correctly, your original offer has not yet been accepted, so of course you can offer on other properties - make as many offers as you like, it's like buying clothes - you shop around

This is correct, my offer has been accepted provisionally on the proviso that he could secure a lower price on his next house. All houses in the chain are with the same estate agent.

Is the second property with the same estate agent as the first? If so, then that is a pity, because the estate agent will begin to play games in an effort to maximise his profit - he will not fall victim to any kind of moral considerations about the rightness or wrongness of the situation

The second house we have seen is with a different estate agent. Is it possible the estate agent is making me sweat it out in the hope of a higher offer?

Can't help but feel guilty, but not only am I racing against the clock so we are settled before my wife gives birth, but also I have no desire to frustrate the buyer of my house.

eddddy

If you're concerned about the moral aspect, you can tell both the EAs what you plan to do and why.

For example, tell both the EA's that you are making two offers on two properties, and you will go with the first one that accepts your offer. (Although it sounds more complex than that - it sounds like one property has a complete chain and the other doesn't - so one can probably move faster than the other.)

Bear in mind that the EA may not being straight with you. If he knows about your 16 week 'deadline' he may have advised his client to delay answering (perhaps with made-up stories of people overseas), in the hope that you will panic and increase your offer.

(I know that the EA that handled my last sale sold me a pack of lies about what was happening elsewhere in the chain. I found out the true situation by phoning the EAs further down the chain. But in your case, that's not possible, as one EA has the whole chain.)

MegaMiniMouse

Simon_Pugsley wrote: »

Is it possible the estate agent is making me sweat it out in the hope of a higher offer?

As I understand it, all Estate Agents are obliged to pass on all offers to the Vendor - the decision about whether or not to accept any particular offer is the Vendor's alone

But Estate Agents have many tricks up their sleeve which they will use as necessary to influence any particular situation

MMM

Hailstorm

In my opinion there is nothing morally wrong with putting offers on different properties at the same time as long as you are upfront to each EA that you are doing so.

I did it but my situation was slightly different in that I had seen both properties before I put an offer in. There was so little to choose between them I thought would put an offer on both. I did get an answer from both EAs within the same day. One accepted my initial offer, the other didn't and that decided which one I ended up going for.

As time is quite important to you the second offer might put the rocket up the estate agent's bum that is needed to get things moving. Saying they need to push the reduction up the chain might be true but it might also be an excuse. It might be them trying to outstare you to see if you blink and up your offer. Also by saying they need to push the reduction up the chain to someone who is out of the country gives them the perfect excuse not to get back to you and it won't seem like anybodies fault.

Nenen

Having been in a similar position to your family, i.e. I was pregnant, my oh had a new job 70 miles away and we were desperate to try and secure a move before the birth, my sincere advice would be to rethink trying to move before the birth, or at least not let agents etc know you want a quick move.

We were totally honest with everyone and all that happened was the other parties concerned (EA, our first buyers and 2 lots of vendors) used our honesty to string us along, telling us they wanted a quick move and wanted to fit in with us when they intended nothing of the sort. It became so stressful that my blood pressure shot up and I was hospitalized for a while. Even then the EA colluded with our buyers who were lying to us and the vendors kept stalling on the exchange and pushing the completion date forward. It ended up with us re-marketing our house, pulling out of one sale and finally managing to move with 4 weeks to go until the birth. This made booking midwife appointments and the hospital etc really tough. I can honestly say that, with the benefit of hindsight, I really wish that we had stayed where we were until after the birth, even if that had meant my dh staying away overnight for work for part of the week.

In our experience, some people think they have you over a barrel when they know you are pregnant as they think you will agree to anything as the date gets nearer. For example, the vendors of the place you are currently waiting for a reply from, may agree a price drop at first, then string you along a bit, wait until you have the survey done etc and then put the price up or drag their heels anyway. If you do decide to go for it, I wish you the very best of luck but please do not take anyone at their word until contracts are signed and exchanged. IME, there are some lovely, moral buyers and sellers out there but unfortunately they are in the minority.

Simon_Pugsley

I really appreciate all your replies.

Moving is the last thing that I want to do before my wife gives birth, however we have received a good offer on my house and I would not want to lose that.

We have already asked the midwife if we can change to a hospital which is only a few miles from where we are going now, (Our new house is not more than 15 minutes away).

What is clear to me is that I have been far to trusting with estate agents, however I believe with having two properties that I really like it puts me in a slightly stronger position, and hopefully not over a barrel.

Thanks