First offer advice

Housebuy12345

Assuming the letting agent isn’t lying.

SunnyCat

We were in the same position recently - saw a house we loved and between first and second viewing discussed how much below asking we were going to offer, thinking we'd go about 5% below. At the second viewing (next day) the agent told us there was an offer made that morning for the asking price (We think it's true because we talked to two different agents from the same company and they both said the same thing). We decided to make an offer for asking +5k. We felt it was a price we were happy to pay - we probably could have gone another 5k if needed. We were quite decided not to get dragged into a bidding war though. The sellers accepted our offer, saying that they were happy to proceed with is also because we were FTB. Not sure if the other person wasn't and whether it would have been sufficient to match the other offer and not overbid... but at this point it doesn't matter, we feel the house is worth the price we are paying.

ddc79

I’m a London FTB and after seeing a number of properties in the area, I saw one that ticked most of the boxes. Was surprised it was on the market at the listed price.

Saw it on the Saturday and by Monday there were two offers down.

The vendors were away so the agent naturally managed things.

I put my offer down at 3pc under asking on Tuesday. By Wednesday the agent took things to closed bids, last and final. He said someone went above asking and that there were three offers on the table ex mine.

I ended up going 1.5% over asking and went up against a BTL investor who would lease it back to the vendor. My offer as a FTB was accepted. No chain, mortgage pre-approved, flexible completion date and solicitor lined up are good positives for a FTB.

Never truly trust an agent, just trust what you think a property is worth to you.

Best of luck and do let us know how you get on.

D

steampowered

Personally I would call up the agent. The agent might give you more information over the phone.

You shouldn't let the fact that another offer has been received affect your judgment.

Just offer what the house is worth to you. If the offer gets accepted, great. If it gets rejected, no worries, just keep looking.

You are going to be competing against other offers - or other offers the vendor might receive in future - on every property you look at.

ddc79

It’s also good to purchase a property that’s in demand!

Mickygg

ddc79 wrote: »

It’s also good to purchase a property that’s in demand!

Or one that you’re told is...

ddc79

100% agree!!

Askalaba

my advice would be to use the fact you're a first time buyer as a real selling point. As you say, they want to sell quick and you're first in the chain.

I reckon if you offer £5k below asking value there's a good chance you'll get it. But saying that, if you think it's worth it then offer the asking price and get it over with

Surrey_EA

Askalaba wrote: »

my advice would be to use the fact you're a first time buyer as a real selling point.

Although, as has already been mentioned further up, a FTB is not always something considered to be an advantage.

A little like encountering a learner driver out on the road, we were all learners once, require the other party to be more patient and prepared for unpredictable actions.

Kernowl

Thanks for the input from all of these replies, its been very helpful. We called the agent and offered the asking price first thing this morning, they said there had already been an offer 'over the asking price' on saturday, and this afternoon had another call for best and final offers by 5pm. We'd decided in advance (after some reflection and number crunching over the weekend) that we would stretch to £265k in this situation. That's what we went for, but no news yet on the vendor's decision. Fingers crossed its good news tomorrow, but we're also content that if they go for someone offering anything over £265k - then its out of our price range anyway... someone else wants it more than us and has more money to throw at it!