Diary of a House Search

moneyistooshorttomention

Definitely agree on ruling out flats. I lived in one prior to this house and it wasnt nearly as bad as some of the ones that get described on this Board (eg the one with the Nutter living on another level) but it was bad enough.

I didnt even think about leasehold problems. I just thought "Noise - and what about the communal area maintenance" and went straight through to a starter terrace house.

In my area 2 bed flats cost pretty similar amount to cheaper terraces anyway - so why on earth would anyone get a flat?

lessonlearned

And how did the EA's perform this week.

Well on balance I would say not too bad.

As far as I am concerned, selling starts right from the moment the "prospect" makes that first initial contact, whether in person, or by phone or by email. So let's start there.

First Contact

All phone calls and emails must be dealt with properly, and all promises must be kept, phone calls must be returned, and emails answered.

My EA's generally performed well in this task, with the exception of our friend "Daniel" whom I had to chase.

Viewings

Only one EA viewing. The rest were all with the Vendors - for me always a preferred option.

The EA was punctual, pleasant and reasonably knowledgeable. However, there were two questions which she did not know the answers to and which I needed clarification on. I asked her to find out the information I required and get back to me. She has failed to do so. A black mark there and a lost opportunity.

Yes I am perfectly capable of finding out the information I need, however, my point is, I shouldn't have to. That is the EA's responsibility.

Viewing Follow-ups

All EA's did ring me back to request feedback. I had already requested a 2nd viewing but with the other 2 I told them that the properties did not meet my requirements. There was no attempt made by the EA to offer alternative properties for me to view or to ask me to clarify my requirements. Another black mark.

Cancelled Appointments

As discussed yesterday - no attempts to engage me further or offer alternatives. Another black mark.

Request for Financial Advice

Appt made for next week. Task completed.

So as you can see - a bit of a mixed bag. The performances and service is patchy but not dire. (so far).

Looking at their performance through professional eyes I would have to say most of them were a little amateurish. Yes, they were all unfailingly polite, reasonably knowledgeable and for the main part careful to maintain contact.

However, what strikes me most is that they missed so many opportunities to engage fully with me and to work towards actually selling me anything........

That is really quite alarming. I don't think it's laziness I just think it's down to very poor training.

They just don't seem to understand the concept of "buying signals". They can't grasp that when a prospect asks for further information they are in fact actually signalling real interest in a property.

They do not listen enough to what is being said. When I said no flats thanks, I was not saying, I've changed my mind I don't want to buy.

So at the end of Wk 1 - the Verdict is - Could do better.

It's all very well being pleasant etc but failure to recognise buying signals is a very serious failing.

Next week - a couple more viewings - 2 booked so far. And a couple of meetings have been scheduled with their own in house financial advisers.

We'll see how they perform......

lessonlearned

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

In my area 2 bed flats cost pretty similar amount to cheaper terraces anyway - so why on earth would anyone get a flat?

All sorts of reasons why people prefer flats - especially singletons who like the idea of secure entry systems.

Generally the square footage is roughly the same as a terraced house but some flats can be quite a lot bigger.

Terraced houses in and around city centres - especially the older Victorian styles can have issues with parking.

Generally new build apartment complexes will have designated parking spaces, a gated complex with secure parking is a very valuable asset.

Many new build apartments - especially those constructed after 2007 are very wheelchair user friendly, easy access, lifts, wide doorways, wet rooms.

The average 2 bed terraced house will prove utterly useless to wheelchair users.

There are more advantages to apartments than you might imagine.

However, there are caveats.

Methods of construction to ensure good sound insulation and no problems with damp or condensation.

The quality and cost of maintenance.

Not all apartments are bad. Some are fabulous.

lessonlearned

Damn and blast.

I have a really busy day planned today, got appts booked.

Solicitor for me, house viewing and then a broker appt for DS2.

So the snow decides to return:eek:

It's not the day for traipsing round. My preferred choice would be curling up on the sofa with a snuggle blanket and a good book.

Hey ho.

jibbyboo

I have news!

I offered the "acceptable offer" today and... it was accepted! :eek:

However, I now understand what the vendor was doing by telling me what she'd accept - they haven't taken the property off the market, as it's £2k below what they ideally wanted.

The EA has told me that once I get the survey organised they will take it off the market, as they will not market a property where money has been spent. The woman I spoke with was really helpful, trying to encourage the vendors to remove from the market, and keeping me informed as she did things. She also told me what to do next in terms of solicitors/ mortgage etc.

Had big issues with mortgage this morning, but managed to iron that out and now I have one with slightly heftier than ideal monthly repayments - 5.9%. Affordable with a *very* frugal lifestyle.

C'est la vie though, I get the property so long as it all goes well!

lessonlearned

Wahay :j:j Great news.

lessonlearned

Well have spent a busy day, took DS2 to view a property, ok (ish) but layout upstairs was a bit weird.

Think we might need to rethink either the budget or go for a cheaper area. I'm a bit loathe to do this - you can always improve a house but you can't really improve the location.

Whilst in the area we called into what would be his local pub, actually the bar of a rather nice hotel for lunch. We made a point of telling the girl behind the bar that we were house-hunting in the area and quizzed her about the locality. She was a mine of local information, told us all the best streets. Great stuff.

Whenever house hunting get out there and chat to the locals. ;)Go into the local shops and pubs, spend some time getting the feel of the place.

You can't do this sat in the car doing a drive-by.....

Anyway we hit the streets again and I have now booked two further viewings for this weekend in our most favoured streets.

Have you heard of the expression the "ripple effect". This is where an area becomes really hot and this in turn uplifts the surrounding areas.

If your budget is really tight and you cannot afford your desired location then look at areas neighbouring that location. You need to try and catch an area that is just at the beginning of the ripple and that is just starting to be gentrified.

How do you know it is being gentrified - look out for the skips and scaffolding.

The other thing to watch out for is the shops. Nice restaurants, coffee shops, delis - good, betting offices and charity shops - bad.;)

Well this is what I am searching for re properties for my sons. An area that is starting to benefit from the ripple effect and which is beginning to be gentrified.

We'll find it.

I shall be viewing Cat Lady's house on Monday, unless of course she postpones again.

lessonlearned

Under a blanket of snow here today and it's still coming down.

So - all house viewings cancelled for the time being.

After all I need to be able to see what I'm looking at, ie what does the roof look like, state of brickwork etc. You can't see that when it's all covered in snow.

Met with the first broker yesterday. He was part of the EA set up. He was "whole of market" so not tied to any particular financial institution.

For any of you concerned about revealing too many details to an EA's broker I would say this. Don't be scared.

Your initial meeting with the broker is as much about you interviewing them as it is about them trying to sell to you.

I've heard a lot of nonsense on some of these threads about how if you see an EA's broker you will somehow be forced into offering more for the property than you want to.

Absolute piffle. The broker couldn't give a monkey's how much you offer he just wants to sell you a mortgage. It makes no difference to him. His fee is generally fixed so the price paid for the house is irrelevant. Even if the broker is commission only, pushing you another few thousand or so is not going to increase the commission enough to make it worthwhile risking losing your business by pushing you.

The broker, by law, has to lay out his terms of business at the outset, so you will know whether there is a fee for the service or whether they receive commission.

The argument that the EA will get more commission when you see a broker is also irrelevant.

The full commission from the actual house sale goes to the EA's office not the negotiator who is doing the deal. The amount of commission the negotiator receives is far less than you might think.
(New build developers pay a lot more).

An extra £10k or so on the final selling price is not worth much to the negotiator, he or she doesn't really benefit very much. So, to argue that they will push you and push you is a bit far fetched.

Your consultation with the broker is free. You can reveal as much about your personal finances as you please at this stage.

I am prepared to help my sons get on the housing ladder. I have not at this stage revealed how much I am prepared to chip in.

The purpose of our meeting yesterday was to see what they can do for us, what products are out there and whether or not we would be happy to work with this broker.

We are looking for 2 mortgages and a possible commercial development loan. Whoever gives us the best deals and provides the best service gets our business.

We met yesterday's broker in his office. We have appts next week with two more who will be doing home visits in the evening.

Can you guess which ones stand a better chance of getting my business.......:rotfl:

moneyistooshorttomention

Errrmm...the one you saw in his office....?

Nope...I think I know you by now....wrong guess then...:rotfl:

lessonlearned

Getting ready to make a deal.:D

As you know, probably like the rest of the country, we are more or less snowbound here today, so houseviewing and pounding the streets is not on my agenda.

So I spent most of last evening and much of this morning doing my homework, and have this morning spoken to the agent who is handling the property we viewed yesterday.

This property is for DS2 who is on a very limited budget and who needs quite a bit of input from me, both in terms of cash, knowledge and house buying expertise.

TBH he is punching above his weight on this one, but I think it is important to buy the best you can afford. So he needs all the help he can get on this one.

So I have been teaching him how to "Property Bee", how to compare prices in the area, how to check out a house's history.

The house does need a new staircase and a bit of a re-jig upstairs but it is not critical. The house we are interested in is a classic "worst house, best street" potential diamond in the rough.

Fix the staircase and it sends it into another price bracket, so well worth doing. As always a house like this is attracting interest.

I have booked a 2nd viewing for Monday, weather permitting and have quizzed the EA at length. There is an investor sniffing around - he also has a 2nd viewing on Monday with his builder in tow.

So I'm going to have to make a fairly quick decision, it's going to be a quick call. I know more or less what figure the owner will settle for, so if the house passes the 2nd viewing test then I'm ready to go.

I need to outbid the investor whilst at the same time not paying too much over the odds. A delicate balancing act.

I have indicated to the EA that, if they find DS2 the right mortgage, then I am happy to use their broker. This means everything is kept in house and the EA can reassure the owner that it will be a smooth sale.

(I dangled the carrot that I am also searching for a property and a mortgage for DS1).

That should help our case......;)

Wish us luck.