Is it sensible to find out about a viewer before deciding to show a house

sparky130a

6am wrote: »

Where did I say I want to see your total assets? I am not interested at all. However I would like to know how quickly you can access your funds, are they in instant access bank account, are they coming from selling the other house, are they coming from divorce. It is not enough to say "I have/will have funds", the speed you can access the required funds matters as well.

To give you an example. Part of my savings are stored in USD. When I showed that to an agent, they took into account the posibility of USD collapsing and used a very unfavorable rate to make sure that I can proceed even if USD collapsed. That is prudent. What solicitor (that works for you) would write in this case? That they "saw the proof of funds" which is true but does not give a full picture.

For a start that's your concern.

Frankly, i'd laugh your property away. Mainly because you'd be a complete a55hat.

So no. There's your answer.

bertiewhite

I think all you'll be doing is limiting your market.

FBaby

Would you reciprocate providing evidence that you have the funds to buy another property, a job that takes you abroad, the credit score to get into rental? After all, maybe you are the one wasting their time when you won't be able to move on in the timescales you are leading them to believe you'll be gone?

6am

FBaby wrote: »

Would you reciprocate providing evidence that you have the funds to buy another property, a job that takes you abroad, the credit score to get into rental? After all, maybe you are the one wasting their time when you won't be able to move on in the timescales you are leading them to believe you'll be gone?

At the moment we are buying another house, so this one will be vacant if all goes according to plan. I am happy to discuss where we are and will inform them if our buying chain collapses. I will tell them upfront that if our buying chain collapses we will not vacate and we will not feel obliged to find another property quickly. It is up to them if they want to take a gamble.

-taff

shortcrust wrote: »

What on earth does that mean?! I can only imagine it means that it's overpriced.

Or that it isn't stupidly underpriced......

hazyjo

I sold twice to investors. One paid asking price (wanted it for a rental), and the other offered a few grand under, but not significantly - then dropped a grand and a half following survey (not gazumping).


If a vendor wanted to 'vet me', I'd not bother viewing.


If an EA says they have a cash buyer, just get them to ask if it's 100% cash, or if they mean 'no chain'. Some viewers mix them up. If it turns out they've lied, then you have every right to either continue, or tell them where to go.


Jx

DaftyDuck

You never can tell what a potential buyer will be like. I've bored you regulars before with this tale, but it bears repeating for others.

I was selling a lovely 13th century timber hall house. We generated a fair few of the goggle-eyed, enough that I should have ended the tour at a tea room and shop, flogged a postcard and a basket of soaps. Then had a viewer - elderly lady looked like Sister Wendy Beckett (Google is your friend), but half as attractive and twice as insane. She did the viewing backwards, facing me all the time, and was only interested in me/how I'd done something/what my regular job was. She was gurning the whole time, nodding like a toy doll, and mumbling incoherently.

On shoving her out, I slammed the door, and swore enough at my wife that Martin's store of ! would be depleted. "We.Are.Never.Showing.A.!!!!.Like.That! ! EVER!...." and we rapidly went under offer with a rich FTB (Papa's money), with endless further enquiries, requests for damp certificates (I did mention the age), reductions and whinges, until I finally gave up, and stuck house back on the market...

And the insane woman came back on day one, asking price offer, no survey, just ... bought it. Reason she'd wandered around like a drunk ghost was she had absolutely no need to see it; when we'd gone under offer to someone else, she was actually traumatised, heartbroken. She gave up looking, and decided she'd stay put in London. She'd decided on first sight she'd die in that house.

I suspect she will.

... and that nobody will notice for several months! Three years plus, she hadn't unpacked half her boxes.

Never judge a book by its cover, nor a potential buyer by his attitude.

steampowered

If you make life difficult for people, they are simply not going to bother, and you will lose out on offers as a result.

I recently bought a property in London. There were lots of similar properties on the market. I emailed agents with listings on rightmove for properties which looked suitable to arrange a viewing. If estate agents made my life difficult or failed to respond to my message, I simply wouldn't bother considering that property and would view (and end up buying) something else instead.

You could probably get away with vetting people if you were selling a truly unique property, like a £50 million mansion or a nuclear bunker. But for a bog standard house or flat forget it.

To give you an example. Part of my savings are stored in USD. When I showed that to an agent, they took into account the posibility of USD collapsing and used a very unfavorable rate to make sure that I can proceed even if USD collapsed. That is prudent. What solicitor (that works for you) would write in this case? That they "saw the proof of funds" which is true but does not give a full picture.

It is reasonable to vet buyers like this before accepting an offer, but not before a viewing.

Making people jump through ridiculous hoops like this before a viewing is only "prudent" if you are prepared to lose out on the vast majority of potential buyers, and end up selling your property for less than you could otherwise have achieved.

dlmcr

Hi there OP!

This won't really be an issue for you because you won't be selling your house.

You will spend months and months dithering over who should be "allowed" to view your house and will carefully vet these people giving the impression that you are being diligent but in reality pi**ing off your estate agent who will grow to despise you.
Then after several months with no offers you will refuse to drop the price because "that's what it's worth", eventually you will get an offer from somebody who you "approve of".
Then you will spend months and months dithering around trying to find another house that your like. Of course you won't like anything you view because the walls are too white or the floor is too dark or the furniture is too preppy or the person giving viewings said something that hurt your feelings and so on and so on gosh hey there's just *nothing* out there we want...
After a few months of being strung along your poor buyer will get fed up of you dithering over finding a place to buy and will pull out of the sale.
Then you will start again and of course your poor estate agent who is now fed up with you will probably actively discourage people from viewing your house because they know what a time waster you have been.
So.. yep do yourself a favour right now and don't bother putting your house up for sale.
Have a nice day

AnotherJoe

6am wrote: »

At the moment we are buying another house, so this one will be vacant if all goes according to plan. I am happy to discuss where we are and will inform them if our buying chain collapses. I will tell them upfront that if our buying chain collapses we will not vacate and we will not feel obliged to find another property quickly. It is up to them if they want to take a gamble.

So your house is overpriced, you want to vet buyers down to a handful with intrusive questioning, and you will tell prospective purchasers you may not be selling?

Good luck with that !