Why does the estate agent want to know my deposit %?

SuzieSue

timehastoldme wrote: »

We've said that when we come to sell (many, many, many years from now) we would avoid those estate agents that have that mad IFA policy, it must put off buyers.
.

Yes, that is what I said to the 2 large EAs who came round (re my post #5 below) and they both became quite aggressive. It made me realise that if they became aggressive with me when they were trying to get my business then I dread to think what they would be like with potential buyers who refused to see their IFA. I told them both that I would consider using them if we were going multi agency but there is no way I would use them as a sole agent as I didn't want them putting buyers off.

moneyistooshorttomention

From being on the other side of that equation, so that the EA can come back to the vendor (me in that instance) and go "Your prospective buyer has got £x as a deposit" and I went "HOW much? Cor...:T:D:T:D" and decide that they seemed like a pretty sound buyer to me.

Yep...they were the one I sold my house to.:)

Keekles

EA's and MA's in branch do half get some stick on here!

To be honest, EA's will often be targeted with having a certain number of clients (buyers) sat in front of their in-house Mortgage Consultant and there can be substantial pressure on them to perform. Their abilities to handle this process is key however. In the OP's situation; it's a pretty off-putting experience all round when EA's under-perform in terms of objection handling.

Ultimately the EA is asking about a deposit amount for two reasons, both of which are reasonable but the situation has been mishandled.

They'll want you to see their in-house adviser. The concept that they'd ever be referred to as "independent" is nonsense however and if that were the case, you'd do the financial services market a service by reporting it. The more 'bad' EA's and MA's worked out of agency-based branches is only a benefit to the system and reputation of the industry as a whole.

Secondly, as some sellers have addressed, it's easier to sell to someone with a substantially larger deposit than another buyer - especially if it comes to matching offer prices (say at full asking, for example). The EA has an obligation to act in the best interests of the vendor after all; this means obtaining the best price from the seller's perspective and a quick as sale as possible. A seller from one property is a buyer in another!

SuzieSue

Keekles wrote: »

Secondly, as some sellers have addressed, it's easier to sell to someone with a substantially larger deposit than another buyer - especially if it comes to matching offer prices (say at full asking, for example). The EA has an obligation to act in the best interests of the vendor after all; this means obtaining the best price from the seller's perspective and a quick as sale as possible. A seller from one property is a buyer in another!

Yes, that's fine, once an offer has been made then there is no harm in asking about deposits etc. However, as you say, the EA mis-handled the OP's situation. Even if a potential buyer has a small deposit there is no harm in letting them view the property as it might be the only offer the seller gets and so the seller may not have the luxury of selling to someone with a large deposit.

ValHaller

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

From being on the other side of that equation, so that the EA can come back to the vendor (me in that instance) and go "Your prospective buyer has got £x as a deposit" and I went "HOW much? Cor...:T:D:T:D" and decide that they seemed like a pretty sound buyer to me.

Yep...they were the one I sold my house to.:)

Of course you might not like it if the boot was on the other foot and you discovered the coercion which EA's apply

Yorkie1

Keekles wrote: »

EA's and MA's in branch do half get some stick on here!

What's your particular perspective here, Keekles? Are you involved on the EA / MA side at all?

gazter

Yorkie1 wrote: »

What's your particular perspective here, Keekles? Are you involved on the EA / MA side at all?

From my very light understanding of it, I find it very difficult to trust an house MA of an EA who was handling a property i wanted to purchase. The other way round i wouldnt mind. In fact, my EA i was using to market my property asked if i wanted to see their MA, i did. Seemed a nice guy, but didnt seem to have any special insight over and above what i could find on here.
As the EA was working for me anyway, it wasnt an issue. In the end my buyers ended up getting their mortgage through him. So it worked out well.

Buying a house is a lot like playing a game of poker. The seller wants to get as much and you want to pay as little.

Having a MA of an EA know how much you can borrow, is as good as the EA knowing. You reduce your bargaining potential enormously.

The old 'this is the absolute maximum the bank is willing to lend me' wont cut it when they know you could borrow an extra £10,000 with very little difficulty.

People who are successful at selling things for a living (and are paid a commission to do so) are by their nature sharks. They smell blood.

They have sharp killer instincts, the more information they have the more powerful they are.

Keekles

Yorkie1 wrote: »

What's your particular perspective here, Keekles? Are you involved on the EA / MA side at all?

I am indeed on the MA side and have certainly done some research since registering here!

I can completely understand the perspective of avoiding EA-based MA's but don't necessarily agree with it (if I did, be a pretty pointless job to be in!), as in this situation - the EA has acted out-of-line but, imo, it's very much a training issue. Had the EA explained the benefits (as mentioned here, larger deposit, likely better position with regards to a mortgage etc.) in the first instance, I'm sure OP would've been more receptive into disclosing information instead of being forced into it.

In my experience, the better sales people are the more humain and generally a pleasure to deal with - which in turn is why they make more sales.

gazter wrote:

Having a MA of an EA know how much you can borrow, is as good as the EA knowing. You reduce your bargaining potential enormously.

This shouldn't be the case but given the market at present (especially in SE London), I haven't seen a property sold under full asking price regardless. This may vary regionally but it's very much a seller's market given demand is so high with reasonably little supply.

Yorkie1

Keekles wrote: »

I am indeed on the MA side and have certainly done some research since registering here!

I can completely understand the perspective of avoiding EA-based MA's but don't necessarily agree with it (if I did, be a pretty pointless job to be in!), as in this situation - the EA has acted out-of-line but, imo, it's very much a training issue. Had the EA explained the benefits (as mentioned here, larger deposit, likely better position with regards to a mortgage etc.) in the first instance, I'm sure OP would've been more receptive into disclosing information instead of being forced into it.

I think you'll find on here that the universal suggestion is NOT to divulge personal financial details which provide the seller and the EA with the ability to make it a less level playing field (i.e. before offer accepted).

If you tried to 'educate' me with the 'benefits' - which essentially still amount to blackmailing the potential buyer because if they don't comply they won't get the property - then I'd still be ruddy angry at the manipulation, however well concealed you might think it is.

paye

I recently withdrew an offer on a property because the EA was asking for all kinds of information from me, Bank statements, Pay slips, passport, etc I told them I've already got an AIP and that was all i was prepared to show them but they insisted I had to see their mortgage adviser with all of my documents, before putting in a offer.

I walked away afterwards as I didn't have the time . I'm just concerned that some people who are not commercially acute will be forced into an expensive mortgage.

I had the same experience with another well known EA asking for exactly the same information I did eventually went to see them as I really liked the property. To be fair the MA did search the market for me to see if he could get a better deal, and he did say the rate that I found was much better compared to what he had to offer and advised me I was better sticking to the lender I found myself.