First Time Buyers - Disillusioned

joujou

ccbrowning wrote: »

Well, in the theoretical case of someone putting up a semi detached 1930s on the same street and in the same condition as the one that sold across the street a month earlier, but at 20% more, I think a prospective buyer would be smart to only offer the same as the one that sold recently?

I pressed one of the estate agents today on this. Working on a sunny Sunday and feeling more chatty I guess than she usually is, we discussed the market at length. She certainly does feel that a lot of people are hopeful that the market will pick up again and so are too optimistic with their asking prices.

If I widened my search area I would certainly find it very easy to find suitable properties. The area I'm looking at right now though lies right in the weet spot between my and my SO's commute, and we're honestly probably too emotionally attached to it.

She did say that things tend to move more swiftly once the seller finds something they are interested in and feels more inclined to sell.

One interesting thing is that her manager, sitting to my right, had a white board behind him with all the offers they had in the last few months on hilarious. I think he did catch me looking at it a few times.

penguingirl

Possibly it is to do with the area you are looking at? One of my work colleagues is looking in Sale at the moment and has had fairly similar experiences to you- not that much on the market, some sold very quickly (before she could view) and vendors being unwilling to negotiate.

lessonlearned

My feeling is - we are on "the cusp" of what may well turn out to be the next "bubble".

The new government initiatives re deposits etc and helping people to buy has made people sit up and take notice. Ever since the government announced these new plans the housing market has begun to gather momentum.

Now is this just the usual Spring Surge amplified or is it indeed a sign that the market is about to take off again.

Too early to say however it is certainly the case that there are pockets around the country where sales are brisk and property values are rising.

There is still a lot of dross around - properties which have been languishing on the EA's books for months if not years. However, the good stuff is going fast, especially when the asking price is realistic and the vendors are flexible.

jou-jou - it sounds as if your local market has changed and that property is starting to sell more readily.

This means that asking prices will be more or less realised and in some cases exceeded.

It could well be that the days of driving a hard bargain in your area are rapidly drawing to a close. You need to view the houses you like as quickly as possible and then don't dither around too much before making a decision.

joujou

Is there an easy way of finding out asking price vs accepted price information on a location?

Zoopla and Rightmove don't reliably match previous ads with their land registry information. I can work it out sometimes but takes a bit of work and messing about with search engines. If there was a more straightforward way I'd love to know!

kiddy_guy

ccbrowning wrote: »

Well, in the theoretical case of someone putting up a semi detached 1930s on the same street and in the same condition as the one that sold across the street a month earlier, but at 20% more, I think a prospective buyer would be smart to only offer the same as the one that sold recently?

Absolutely. But if the seller is asking 20% more you'd have to ask why.

Unimproved house vs. finished article, desperate seller vs. one without any need to rush, incorrect pricing (too high) vs. incorrect pricing (too low)

All of these are factors.

Sellers might be optimistic, but equally a 20% swing is huge.

If a cheeky buyer came in 20% under I'd think they were a P taking time waster, and wouldn't countenance a 2nd offer from them.

DRP

The thing is most buyers (OP included, seemingly) want things to happen ASAP, whereas the vendors can often afford to wait for 30 or 40 viewers to pass through their door until someone comes up with an acceptable offer.

Eventually, it will happen for them, even if 99% of viewers don't take a nibble..

Ivana_Tinkle

The market's exactly the same where I am. The majority of houses for sale here at the moment were on the market 18 months ago when we were looking to move and are wildly overpriced (often 20%, sometimes more). In the meantime, sensibly priced properties have come on and been sold. Actual sold prices seem to be more or less static here, so I just don't see that the higher-priced properties are ever going to sell. It's not exactly a "bubble", because none of the expensive properties are actually selling. I suspect new properties coming on the the market now are having their asking prices set with reference to other properties currently for sale, so they're unrealistically priced too, and so it goes on. It's enormously frustrating when you actually want to buy a house but nobody seems to want to sell, but you will find a realistic vendor eventually!

brit1234

Joujou you have also got your timing wrong.

At present we have had the spring bounce propaganda campaign on mass in the media. Sellers all think prices are going to increase despite of reality. Your best time to start looking to buy is about late July as we go into the holidays. Sellers will become more realistic/disillusioned then. Its also only matter of time before we get some more bad economic news which will effect seller sentiment.

Avoid September (mini bounce in asking prices) and start looking Mid October up to Christmas. Next January will be bad if 2nd part of Help to buy comes in but hopefully it will be scrapped.

In the mean time just keep saving and stop showing your hand to estate agents.;)

sinbad182

brit1234 wrote: »

Joujou you have also got your timing wrong.

At present we have had the spring bounce propaganda campaign on mass in the media. Sellers all think prices are going to increase despite of reality. Your best time to start looking to buy is about late July as we go into the holidays. Sellers will become more realistic/disillusioned then. Its also only matter of time before we get some more bad economic news which will effect seller sentiment.

Avoid September (mini bounce in asking prices) and start looking Mid October up to Christmas. Next January will be bad if 2nd part of Help to buy comes in but hopefully it will be scrapped.

In the mean time just keep saving and stop showing your hand to estate agents.;)

Why would a FTB take your advice Brit?

You've never bought a property in your life.

You've never sold a property in your life.

In fact all you've done relating to property is waste the last 5 years trying to convince everyone (and yourself) that the London property market is going to crash, and we'll be able to buy houses on Sloane Square for 15k.

I_have_spoken

I sold up last year after 8 weeks, the only buyers for 2-beds were BTL LLs so I knew the price would be set by the yield and I marketed and priced it accordingly.

A 3-bed opposite me sold for £98k just before Xmas 2012. Other 3-beds were on at £115-£125k and are still for sale at that price. Some sellers are dreaming.