Negotiating price on a house that was sold this year

Mark14

Hi,

I have seen a property that has been put up for sale recently, doing some research the property was sold in February 2014 for £125,000 and the property is currently being marketed for £150,000.

Looking at the description and photos all that has changed is the walls have been painted and everything else is the same. (fixtures and fitting all the same)

I understand that house prices have gone up over the year but do you think I can negotiate the price?

If so how should I go about it? should I let the estate agent know that it was bought earlier this year or shall I keep this quiet?
How much should I look to knock off the advertised price?

Also is the fact the owner is looking to sell within a year a warning sign?

Any advise is greatly appreciated.

Mark.

Hoploz

Sounds like prices have gone up! There was a hike in Spring in most of the country.

Also, when the price was agreed on the previous purchase it could ave been months beforehand!

Does not sound out of line to me. You will know how it compares to other houses you're interested in.

Make an offer, not based on what was paid, but on what the market tells you it is worth now

stator

Make an offer solely on what it's worth to you.

It could have been a flipper, someone buying the property slapping on new paint and reselling it. They probably have an inflated idea of what they think it's worth. Ignore it and offer what you want. If you think it's still only worth £125k, offer £125k.

If you need a mortgage beware, some lenders don't like houses that haven't been owned for 6 / 12 months.

SG27

£25,000 on £125,000 is a a 20% increase. Prices have not risen by anything near that in the last 8 months. Maybe 5%? Could be someone trying to flip it for a quick profit. What's the location? I would tell the agent the price paid and ask them to justify the 20% uplift.

G_M

The historical price is irrelevant. It may have been sold cheap to family. The sellers may simply have under-priced it. There may have been improvements made that are not obvious. etc etc

Wht matters is

* what are similar, local, roperties advertised, and selling, for at present
* how much can you afford
* how badly do you want this property

The past is gone. Now is now.

ess0two

SG27 wrote: »

£25,000 on £125,000 is a a 20% increase. Prices have not risen by anything near that in the last 8 months. Maybe 5%? Could be someone trying to flip it for a quick profit. What's the location? I would tell the agent the price paid and ask them to justify the 20% uplift.

What does the agent have to justify?

davidwoody

ess0two wrote: »

What does the agent have to justify?

The estate agent is trying to sell a house to a prospective customer. Surely it's in their interests to try and make the buyer see that it's worth the price that is being asked.

Hoploz

How does it compare to other properties on the market? You were interested when you knew the asking price, but now you see what someone agreed to pay (possibly a year ago) you have decided it is not worth it.
How long has it been on the market? What are its competitors like? Presumably this is better, as you are interested in buying. If you didn't now what they had paid how would you feel? It is irrelevant!

Thrugelmir

davidwoody wrote: »

The estate agent is trying to sell a house to a prospective customer. Surely it's in their interests to try and make the buyer see that it's worth the price that is being asked.

The vendor sets the selling price. Purchasers must decide for themselves what the property is worth.

Mark14

Everyone thanks for getting back to me, I will take the comments on board and let you know how things go.

It is on for slightly more than similar properties in the area in terms of number of bedrooms (but smaller in room size and outside space). Also properties seem to be on the local market for longer now, compared to when I first started looking and more are being reduced.

Originally I was only looking for a 1 bed but there aren't many in the area that I am looking in and now that I have more of a deposit I can increase my budget (but not to the extent of the asking price).

It has only just been put on the market today and in terms of competition the others are in the same condition and are bigger but that is why I am looking at it because I am hoping to negotiate the price.

Mark14

Also I was wondering if it would worth asking the owner why they are selling so soon and with such a high markup rather than asking the estate agent?

Or would asking directly create an awkward/bad atmosphere?