Offering on a reduced house?

dann_

Hi there,

My gf and I would like to buy a house and have found a lovely little 2bed cottage. It was originally put up for £120k April 2018(!!!) and has only been reduced by 5k (in June 2018) since then!

We think due to the area being out in the country they probably don't get much interest from new buyers, and it's also probably very overpriced. The estate agency is a very local one and there aren't any others around.

Would offering £85k but have a secret max of £95k be fine? Or would 85k be quite cheeky and they may refuse to haggle, considering its a 30% decrease from the asking price?

Thanks,
Dan

Thrugelmir

dann_ wrote: »

so they're probably fine sitting around collecting their fees on the unsold house.

What fees? EA's only get paid when a sale completes. Until then it's a drain on profitability.

dann_

Thrugelmir wrote: »

What fees? EA's only get paid when a sale completes. Until then it's a drain on profitability.

Edited and corrected.

AFF8879

You can offer anything you like, but the fact it’s been on the market over a year now with only a 5k reduction suggests that the seller is in no hurry and is quite happy to sit there until they get the amount they want. But you won’t know until you try...

Have you actually spoken to the agent though, or just seen it online? As sometimes agents are very slow to update listings and previously sold properties languish online for eternity

pattypan4

OP, £105k, anything lower and I would be booting you out the door while laughing my head off. Aff is probably right, no hurry to sell

Flugelhorn

I agree - there is probably 10% at the most

Davesnave

A week may be a long time in politics, but selling in the countryside can take well over a year and no one thinks it's unusual.

If this cottage is so lovely, why would the owners sell it at a fire-sale price?

In the country, as elsewhere, if owners are in a fix or desperate to secure something else, they will do what it takes to get sold. Otherwise, the fact that they're rural and with a small agent makes no difference in the internet age.

davidmcn

dann_ wrote: »

Would offering £85k but have a secret max of £95k be fine?

How have you arrived at those figures?

AnotherJoe

If its a secret maximum how would you ever offer that?

NaughtiusMaximus

dann_ wrote: »

Or would 85k be quite cheeky and they may refuse to haggle, considering its a 30% decrease from the asking price?

Cheeky is an understatement, the phrase I would use is taking the p***.

If I was the vendor I would dismiss the offer out of hand and wouldn't bother with a counter offer, just as we did when someone came in with an offer of 25% below asking price on the property we sold in 2017.

trf1960

Jeez, I certainly hope I don't come across people like you when I come round to selling. I agree with Pattypan 4 and would start with £105K assuming of course that you are serious about buying?

Have to admit, people's opinion on this site has made me think that when we eventually put our property up for sale, that we need to have a long hard chat with our EA to agree and confirm what the advertised price should be and what the 'we will accept' figure is (hoping and assuming that the EA has sound knowledge of the area and what other similar properties have sold for). At least then the EA knows not to bother informing us of ridiculous offers and wasting everyone's time.