Estate agents tricks

chirp

I have found that quite often estate agents stop buyers from putting in an offer by saying that so and so offer will not be accepted without even contacting the owner of the property. Sometimes even when the owner is in quite a hurry to sell, the estate agent puts off the buyer and does not convey the offer to the owner. And most of the time it is not possible or right to contact the owner directly. Do the estate agents get a % of the actual sale price as commission which makes them refuse some offer prices which the owner may actually be ready to accept? A couple of times we knew the owners were in a hurry to sell but the estate agent was not willing to convey our offer to them saying it was too low. I think the right to refuse an offer should lie with the owner and not estate agent. Have any of you as buyers experienced such agents?

Nynaeve

The agent has a obligation to pass on any offers, unless they have been instructed by the vendor not to pass on anything below a certain value.

blacksta

Unfortunately there is no way you would find out unless the agents informs you of an offer. Maybe listing the property with multiple agents might reduce the risk agent craftiness and i also think it is in the best interest of an EA to sell a property , why they wont tell you about any offer beats my imagination.

geoffky

Ask for written receipt that the offer has been passed on..or knock on the door and explain

tbs624

It is usually at the request of the vendor that offers below £x are not to be entertained.

There is nothing to stop you copying your letter containing the offer ( subject to contract) direct to the vendor however.

breadlinebetty

Nynaeve wrote: »

The agent has a obligation to pass on any offers, unless they have been instructed by the vendor not to pass on anything below a certain value.

That's correct. Estate agents are obliged to tell the vendor what offers have been made - whatever the offer is.

cattie

When selling I always instruct EA not to pass on offers that are lower than the minimum price that I will consider. This saves my time & everybody else's being wasted. I just don't see the point in the EA contacting me unnecessarily. He can tell the person making the offer that the answer is no straight off.

tbs624

breadlinebetty wrote: »

That's correct. Estate agents are obliged to tell the vendor what offers have been made - whatever the offer is.

Your post contradicts itself: Nynaeve's post is as the law says (" correct", as you say) The second sentence (my bolding) of your post ergo is not true.

Once more....EAs have to record all offers but if the vendor states in writing to the EA "any offers under 215K and I am not interested" the EA does *not* have to pass those offers on.

Of course, in the current market, some vendors may well regret that decision if the figure they and their EA have plucked from the sky does not subsequently materialise. EA may have to look back at his full list including the lowly offers and make some grovelling calls

hcb42

no, never experienced this

callmechar

Had this today, EA refused to accept our low offer "as the seller had had higher in the past" and would not accept any less, so offered an amount 15k below asking (started at 25k below) and thats being considered

Yorkie1

tbs624 wrote: »

Your post contradicts itself: Nynaeve's post is as the law says (" correct", as you say) The second sentence (my bolding) of your post ergo is not true.

Congratulations go to tbs624 for the best use of the word ergo all day :T