Strange offer received on flat

ProDave

We are in a slightly similar position that when we tried to sell, there was no interest other than one person who wanted to buy but would not be in a position to do so for 2 years.

Eventually after no more interest in the property, we are renting it to that potential buyer on a short assured tenancy. The expectation being that gradually the price will reduce by the net (after any tax due and expenses) rent we receive. So if she is true to her word, in 2 years she will buy it for less than todays price. If not, we have still had the rent and it will go for sale again.

enthusiasticsaver

tori.k wrote: »

Is it in a coastal area ES? If so it will be because we are coming into the summer holidays the market will pick up once again with people looking into purchasing second homes, most likely he hasn't been seriously house shopping just keeping an eye on the area he really wants to live in, and your place ticked all his boxes, hence the rush to get his own place on the market.
What area is he selling from as you will know the market has been pretty stagnant in some areas of pre owned, mostly down to the massive amount of new builds and there help to buy offers. I'd personally have more confidence in the offer if he was selling a freehold property rather than most likely a leasehold flat himself. Your savvy ES go with your gut feeling.

Our flat is on the coast Tori but he is selling a flat inland. The agent said he did not want to put his flat on the market until he found somewhere which ticked all his boxes. If we accepted his offer I just worry we would be waiting forever for him to find a buyer maybe missing out on a buyer in a better position. I know leasehold flats are maybe not so easy to sell. Ours though has a share of the freehold. My gut says steer clear of this type of agreement.

moneyistooshorttomention

I'd be investigating further in your position.

Yep...check out what his existing property is like.

Give some thought to giving him a written deadline as to how long he has to find a buyer for his place and then proceed as per normal with buying your place.

If, say, you'd given him 3 months (for the sake of argument) in which to find a buyer for his place and this non-refundable deposit would be yours to keep anyway (ie even if he didnt proceed with buying your place) = I'm guessing you'd not have much to lose and might land up gaining a freebie few thousand £s from this deal.

I can see why he might be making such an offer in his position - as, if one finds somewhere that ticks a lot of boxes, then I can see why the attempt to lock out anyone else from being able to whip it out from under his nose.

LadyGMadameToThee

I can't belive the cynicism and suspicious exuded by somthe of the people on this thread. Try to have a little bit more faith in people!

theartfullodger

LadyGMadameToThee wrote: »

I can't belive the cynicism and suspicious exuded by somthe of the people on this thread. Try to have a little bit more faith in people!

Very true: I have every faith in the person making this offer being treated with the gravest suspicion.

tori.k

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

Our flat is on the coast Tori but he is selling a flat inland. The agent said he did not want to put his flat on the market until he found somewhere which ticked all his boxes. If we accepted his offer I just worry we would be waiting forever for him to find a buyer maybe missing out on a buyer in a better position. I know leasehold flats are maybe not so easy to sell. Ours though has a share of the freehold. My gut says steer clear of this type of agreement.

I wouldn't touch it either, being inland he appeals to a much smaller group of buyers than your own property , a gated development offers more security then a freehold house a good selling point, Inland at the moment there is also as little as 10k difference between a house and a flat at the moment in some areas. If it is meant to be his your flat will still be there when he's in a position to buy.

enthusiasticsaver

LadyGMadameToThee wrote: »

I can't belive the cynicism and suspicious exuded by somthe of the people on this thread. Try to have a little bit more faith in people!

It is not really a question of us being cynical or suspicious of his offer which I am sure is genuine. As he is not in position to proceed though we would not like to be in the position of hanging around waiting for him to sell his flat. It could take ages and in the meantime we could miss out on a cash buyer or someone who already has a sale agreed on theirs and a completed chain. It is just a case of us not being happy with the arrangement he suggests. That is our prerogative as sellers.

saajan_12

Are you actually happy to wait several months or would you have a use for the money sooner rather than later?
IF you do entertain this, I would
a. agree a backstop that you can remarket if he is not in a position to complete within a certain time e.g. 1 year
b. not agree to a £10k deposit or any sums which come off the purchase price, but that the full £280k is due upon completion on top of an agreed monthly amount before that. Otherwise, you have no benefit to offset having to wait for the buyer while you cannot use the £280k and are still paying for the upkeep / running costs of the property.