How can I ensure that I don't overpay on a house?

Loopy28

It might sound obvious but I want to offer on a house that is in an area where all the houses were built in 2003. There is very little sales history for that area to make a comparison.

This particular property was purchased new in 2003 for 139k and sold again in 2005 for 158k. Zoopla says it is worth 176k.

All houses on the street are a different design and as there is little sales activity I can't compare.

The property has been on the market for two months and has an asking price of 182k.

I know my mortgage valuation will stop me from significantly overpaying but would be interested in others input on what to offer?

G_M

The amount it is worth depends how much you want the property. Offer something below asking price and then increase your offer till either

* you can afford no more or
* you close the deal or
* you feel you can do better elsewhere with the same money

agrinnall

There's only one way to guarantee it: don't buy at all.

McKneff

Offer what you want to actually pay for the house.


Its only worth what someone will pay for it.

stator

Ignore the style and shape of the building and just compare it to other properties with the same number of bedrooms. You could always pay for a professional opinion prior to making an offer.

w00519772

Look for local comparables. This tool is useful: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-value.html/svr/3121;jsessionid=6A52A8A77ABD1D4489F71170D712ACA3.

Also if you are buying with a mortgage then the surveyor will value the property. It does not really matter what prices sold for in the past. A house nearby sold for 145K at the peak (2007). It sold recently for 158K (Lincoln). Perhaps offer 175K, then 180K. I suspect they want 180K if it is priced at 182K.

Nick_C

Look at house price indexation for that area and apply it to the last sold price. Try to identify any work done since the last sale through historic adverts on line. Take Zoopla valuations with a very large pinch of salt.

Only a guide though. As others have said, its worth what someone is prepared to pay for it. We lost a nice property earlier this year by my stubbornness to only pay what I calculated it to be worth.

2nd_mortgage

Ignore Zoopla. The price of the property also depends on how it has been maintained, has any renovation been done to it, state of kitchen, bathrooms etc & Zoopla has no idea of that.

At the end of the day, no property has just 1 price. It may suit someone to the tee & they will be prepared to pay a little bit more for it while others may think, it's neither great nor too bad, but I could live here. They will probably want it for a bit less.

You need to come up with a list of all things important to you & then see how many boxes it ticks & decide what it is worth to you.

enthusiasticsaver

You need to take Zoopla valuations with a pinch of salt as you should using past sale prices and house price indexes. House prices are arrived at for all sorts of reasons, including how quickly the person wants to sell. The only way you can gauge value is to look at other houses with similar numbers of bedrooms/reception rooms etc and condition in same area and see whether it is vastly different to them.

theGrinch

do the research