Putting in an offer - Help!

brooklyn07

Hi All

Saw a house last wednesday that i really like, saw it again on the weekend and decided i definitely wanted it.

Took my dad with me who is a carpenter by trade but also builds too albeit does not have the relevant certs etc so doesnt do it by trade but has successfully built his own home.

Anyway - took him with me, he pointed out that the chimney looks like its "exploding out" whatever that means so will probably need replacing/repairing at some point.

Gutters are blocked and next doors conservatory backs up against the wall of the house so would need some form of scaffold to get access to the gutters - basically not an easy job.

The house has been extended and has two bathrooms - the downstairs bathroom tiles are falling off around the bottom.

The house stinks of smoke so i would need to completely repaint as the ceilings are yellow.

The window in the lounge has condensation in between the glass so im guessing the gas has gone or needs replacing - no idea about windows.

The plastic windowledge in the kitchen needs replacing as it is covered in big holes and cigarette burns!

the boiler is very old so will need replacing and i want to change it to a combi system rather than the hot water tank they have.

the garage has been converted and has plumbing for a kitchen and shower but has not been finished - just has pipes coming into the garage but nothing else, no paint etc.

I asked the EA if there had been any other offers/viewings and was told that there had been viewings but i was the only one to have a second viewing as the other people were going to look at other houses and come back.

It has been on the market since feb 2013 but sold twice since then but the first people buying it their mortgage fell through and second people split up. this time around it has been on for 6 months and has been reduced by 10k.

It is on the market for 179 and there are no similar properties in that area to compare it to - everything else for sale is detached and much larger. This is a semi detached in wales. Have looked on zoopla etc but nothing in that area that is similar has sold for over 10 years so nothing to compare there either.

how much would you start off with? I have 170 as a max offer. What things could i factor into the reason for a lower offer?

THanks if you got this far!

Annie1960

I would offer at £160k.

The reason for this is because a house is worth what someone is prepared to pay for it. There are no other offers on the table, and not even any second viewings, and the house has been on the market a long time.

Whether your offer is accepted will depend on how much the vendors want to sell.

However, before I offered, I would ask the EA (in writing - by email) to confirm that neither of the previous potential buyers pulled out because of poor survey results. I would want to know if either got to the stage of having any form of survey carried out, and if so what was the result?

You mention that the first couple's mortgage fell through, so I would be wanting to be sure this was not connected to a poor survey.

If the answer to this is OK, then I would offer £160k.

You do not need to justify your offer to the EA (especially as you are not competing with outer buyers). Just say that it's worth £160k to you.

Annie1960

Sorry, just read it again, it's been on the market since Feb 2013!! I had read it as Feb this year.

I would start lower than £160k then.

brooklyn07

Thanks all - i telephoned them to make an offer and they said 160 was way too low as they had been instructed to immeditaely reject anything below 166 - so i went in with 166.

I've just had an email to call the office as the offer was rejected but they welcome a second offer from me.

Dont really know what to do now, whether to leave it on the table or risk losing it to the people that are viewing it tomorrow or ask them to call me if the people viewing it tomorrow make an offer??

it has been on since feb 2013 but did sell twice so technically has only been on 6 months this time around with no offers.

The viewing tomorrow is a second viewing so im guessing they are going to hold out to see if they get a better off from them?

Also just to add they are not buying another property - they are moving into rented.

aniahill

Don't worry about being in too much love with the house - try to stay as detached as possible (which can be hard). It could be your home but it's not yet.

Personally without knowing your situation and how long you can stay where you are, I would wait as long as possible. If it's not sold in a month, you could always try adding £500 on to the offer - it's costing them potentially if they're paying the mortgage, so be cheeky.

Another option is, when I bought my flat from a developer and he had developed nothing, I said "there's just too much for me to do which would need to be done straight away so I can't afford it" and he ended up replacing the windows, stripping out the carpets and hideous wallpaper so it was ready for me to go in and decorate straight away; maybe you could offer a little closer to your top budget if they have the connections to get some of the work done.

I would be concerned about whether it had been rejected on a mortgage as Annie1960 has said

brooklyn07 wrote: »

Thanks all - i telephoned them to make an offer and they said 160 was way too low as they had been instructed to immeditaely reject anything below 166 - so i went in with 166.

I've just had an email to call the office as the offer was rejected but they welcome a second offer from me.

Dont really know what to do now, whether to leave it on the table or risk losing it to the people that are viewing it tomorrow or ask them to call me if the people viewing it tomorrow make an offer??

it has been on since feb 2013 but did sell twice so technically has only been on 6 months this time around with no offers.

The viewing tomorrow is a second viewing so im guessing they are going to hold out to see if they get a better off from them?

Also just to add they are not buying another property - they are moving into rented.

Annie1960

It's difficult to know, as you don't know whether the other people are going to offer. You could increase yours by £500 and ask them to let you know if the other people make an offer.

Make it clear you are very interested, it is just a matter of arriving at the right price.

Alias_Omega

Go round....!

Go and Speak to the Seller of the house. Find out what they actually want, and deal with them direct. Agree a price, then submit it through the EA.

The next hurdle would be the valuation....

Also, if you are nearly at your Maximum, how are you going to afford the repairs and the new heating system?

Are you going to have a electrical inspection? If its not 17th Edition, you could deduct another £3k for a Re-wire... (A tip would be to look for a RCD fitted to the Consumer Unit & Bonding under the sinks etc).

hop3y

My simplest of advice would be offer what you think it is worth. Nothing more, nothing less (or even what you are prepared to pay!)

AlexMac

You describe £10-16k of work (esp if the electrics are shot) so what values does zoopla put on the house and comparable ones in the street or nearby? Knock the cost of repairs off , plus a few £k for the hassle. Or walk away

brooklyn07

thanks for your replies.

Ok so the original offer of 166 was declined - i havent put another offer in yet.

A couple went for a second viewing on tuesday evening to which the estate agent said they would ring me if they had put in any offers.

Although im not holding out much hope as everytime they confirm the number back to me they have on the system its always wrong :-S

So I dont know what to do now! I really do have a max of 170 that i can go to so i dont know whether to call back today and tell them that ive found another house that i will be offering on and hope that it will make them think twice before declining my next offer of 168 or whether to leave it until tomorrow??

I've no idea what to do!

kazwookie

As you have no idea what to do, I suggest you walk away, as it is not right for you.