House viewing - Vendor or EA?

Albala

We plan do let the agent do ours, as we may not be around all the time. But we also plan to provide them with a file of basic info in case of questions (how old is boiler? etc.) and leave it on the kitchen table....


Also, the agents we plan to use bring round all the staff who may do viewings for the house and they go through the house with you so they all know what's what.


Our experience of the viewings (and the rest) for our purchase (not generally at all good experiences) has made us think a lot about EAs and how they vary, which is why we're choosing an agent to sell our own house very carefully, and not going for the cheapest.

Davesnave

The sort of property we sought and own (smallholding) is almost always vendor led, or we've been given keys on a few occasions and told to walk around the empty ones. In one, a spring had erupted in the newly fitted kitchen.....

When agents led the viewing on a few occasions, they did the house bit and then legged it, leaving us to traverse the acreage. One was wearing high heels and couldn't even make it down the garden. That level of preparedness and assistance we can manage without.

I don't mind doing viewings. Apparently, it was either me or my OH who 'sold' the last house, but the couple were so disinterested-looking we don't recall exactly which of us did that first viewing.

I much prefer vendor led viewings myself. Once people relax, they say more than they intended, so one may pick up clues about things like neighbours, dodgy drains etc...anything that might be useful to know.


I think a file of useful data is a great idea for those situations where the agent is totally useless.You shouldn't employ one like that anyway, but everyone has had the Saturday girl/boy some time.

shinytop

Thanks for the replies. I like the idea about leaving a file with the EA of written answers. I'm leaning even more towards letting the EA do it. I can be warm and personable (if I really have to be ) but I understand people want to have a good poke around on their own.

When viewing in the past, we've walked in houses where, if it were the EA doing the viewing, we'd have just said no thanks and walked right out again. That's a bit harder to do with the vendor.

agrinnall

Most of my sales and purchases have been owner views, although that was in Scotland, where as David says it's the norm. I did have one time where my neighbour rang me to say that someone had turned up on spec and could they let them in to have a look at the house (they had a spare key), lucky that they did as those viewers eventually bought the house.


But when I was house hunting on my return to England every one I saw was with the EA present, some with the owners around and some not.

Albala

I figure that buyers can ask all sorts of odd things that an EA may not reasonably be expected to record/remember, and which could be far more detailed than most buyers would expect from the usual tour, so a file might help.



I thought a file could also double as something you'd leave for the buyer at completion, too- a sot of 'Handbook of the House'- with stuff in the back about where we buy our oil from and who we have service the boiler, how to operate the central heating controller, stuff about what's where in the garden, where the nearest post office is, and where the central heating drain !!!! is....

Grenage

Vendors every time. We once had a viewing with the EA, but a second viewing with the owner. I asked many of the same questions, and received wildly different answers.


The EA had bent the truth in places, and flat out lied in others. Most people aren't as proficiently deceptive as estate agents.

littleblue735

I prefer to speak to the Vendors as they will know the answers to the many questions I'll have.
My experience with EA last time I viewed a bungalow went like this -
Why are the owners moving? No idea.
How old is the house? No idea.
How old is the boiler? No idea.
Has it been serviced recently? No idea.
Any problems / issues with neighbours? No idea.
What are their plans re moving on? Time scale etc? No idea
Is the driveway private or shared? No idea

I know I can do research about the local area ie bus route, schools, shops, takeaways etc but I prefer to hear about the area from the people living there!

babyblade41

I prefer viewing with an agent, anything that I need to ask is irrelevant as owner may not answer truthfully.

I like to ask pertinent questions, check water pressure from the shower , especially if I'm not doing a renovation

Move things away from the walls, I know all the tricks !!!

KatieDee

I much prefer viewing with the vendor, as I can ask them specific questions about the property that the EA might not necessarily know. In addition to this, I do not trust EA's as far as I can throw them, and don't think I have ever met one that didn't get my back up. That said, they always seem to be hugely overstretched with their viewings, and I always feel rushed. It's a huge decision to buy a property, so when you only have a couple of minutes to view before the estate agent is inching towards the door, it can be quite off-putting.

I can see how challenging it might be showing potential buyers around your property though - I am not sure I'd want to do it!

quotememiserable

For my first two house sales, viewing with the vendor was the only way anyone did it. Somewhere down the line, EAs starting pushing hard that they should do it. I think it's to justify the fee.