Scotland - How much to offer

uberteeb

If it makes any difference I'll be buying in central Glasgow as a first time buyer.

I was talking to my dear mother today and being the fountain of knowledge that they are she said "oh but if they are asking for 100 you'll need to pay 115", a little surprised by this new nugget of information I quizzed her on it, she reckons that you almost always have to offer above the asking price and that the unwritten rule is that the buyer is expecting 10-15% more.

Now nothing I have ever read says this, none of the 'experts' I've ever spoken to have said this, none of my mates who have recently bought for the first time said this, etc so do I just file this in the "mother's don't always know best pile"?

The fact that most websites are geared towards England/Wales where not only is the whole buying process different but the markets are very different as well brought me here where I know people far more kowledgeable than me are always willing to help.

So a fixed price £100k will go for £100k if that is your offer.

But trying to look beyond the many variables involved in the market what would you be expecting to pay for a property listed at £100k at the moment.

On an 'offers over' or 'offers in the region of' what would happen then in terms of how much more you would expect to pay on a £100k flat.

I'm really hoping this extra 15% thing she was on about is nonsense.

Thanks.

PootleFlump_3

That used to be the case but not any more (so she is correct in that thats what used to happen but not now). From what Ive seen recently most people will go in around 10% below home report valuation to begin with. If its on at a fixed price go in below that and see what happens. In region of - same thing (very rarely does this mean they want more). Very few properties are on at offers over now unless their agent has suggested it to avoid people thinking you are "desperate" (although this does happen if its in a particularly popular area). If Home Report is out of date you can request, at their cost, that they refresh it.

themull1

Yes, you do offer more in scotland, its normally sealed bids, the highest offer subject to survey gets it. My brother bought a flat in \edinburgh and i'm sure his bid was 20 odd grand over the asking price, and they had already lost a load of flats before this one cos they hadn't offered enough!! Your mam is right!!

themull1

Mind that was three years ago, so don't know if its changed, reading other post.!!

PootleFlump_3

themull1 wrote: »

Mind that was three years ago, so don't know if its changed, reading other post.!!

Im afraid it has. That was in the good old days!! (or bad depending on whether you bought at that time or not and now trying to sell!!)

Closing dates are very infrequent these days.

LilacPixie

Isold a 2 bed flat in October.. value as per the home report was 100k I accepted offer of 93k. We had it on as fixed 95k as we really wanted to move. Place we bought was valued 135k and we offered 122k and has that accepted. It was being marketed at O/O 130k

myhouse_2

That was sometimes the case when everyone was having a feeding frenzy on cheap and easy credit. Prices were rising so people were happy to overpay and everyone was getting into the housing market so competition was keen.
That's all gone now - whether it's fixed price or offers over, most people are paying below asking price. Asking price is just an asking price now - selling price will be less most of the time.

googler

Get the Home Report for the property you're interested in. Find the valuation figure in the Home Report.

Consult with your mortgage adivisor or lender as to what deposit you'll require for that figure. If you have cash in hand to put down more than this deposit, then you can apply that to bidding above the valuation figure. If you've only just enough money to raise your deposit, then you won't be able to bid above the valuation figure, because your lender will only lend that amount.

Home Reports have been mandatory since Dec 2008, and I'll wager your mother hasn't bought since then.

As previous poster says, houses and flats are selling at below the asking price (whether Fixed Price, Offers in Region of, or Offers Over), and below the home report valuations

googler

themull1 wrote: »

Mind that was three years ago, so don't know if its changed, reading other post.!!

Indeed it has.

googler

OP; consult Zoopla or ourproperty to see what similar flats or houses have sold for in the street that you're looking to buy in, and the surrounding area. This will guide you.

You'll need a solicitor to act on your behalf with regard to your purchase. Once you've hired a solicitor, he/she should 'note interest' in the target property on your behalf, and find out if there are already any notes of interest. If you're ready to offer, consult with your solicitor about the level of your offer, and instruct him to make your offer. You don't have to wait for the seller to declare a closing date. You can offer at any time you want.

Your sol should get one of three responses from the selling agent; accepted, declined, or a suggested counter-offer somewhere between your (low) figure and the asking price - basically, a "can we negotiate?"

From there, you and your sol decide if a higher figure is acceptable to you, and he/she hammers out a deal with the selling sol.

You'll need to have mortgage agreed before your sol will make an offer on your behalf.

Ask more if you want. Hope this helps. Essentially, your mother is living in the past.

uberteeb

Really really appreciate all the posts above.

I’ve already had an MiP agreed and that was a couple of months ago so my deposit is actually bigger now but basically the bank are willing to throw loads more money at me than I actually want, I’m very conscious of not buying a flat for too high an amount and basically working to eat and pay the mortgage and do little else, my budget planner contained a sizeable proportion of my monthly outgoings as being reserved for ‘the weekends’! :beer:

One quick question I really should know the answer to, how long is a home report valid for and how do I ask the estate agent to see it or do I ask the seller when I’m viewing the flat?

Good to hear that, as I thought, you should be hoping to pay a little under the number in the estate agent window/on their website rather than the 15% over my mum was on about.