House Buying Frustration

amieloustew

Hi all
Does anyone else feel extremely frustrated with properties being listed for sale, seeing the listing within 24 hours and setting up a viewing as soon as humanly possible and getting a call hours before to say the viewing is now cancelled as an offer has been submitted and accepted. I work full time Monday - Friday and most viewings are conducted during these hours so I'm finding it very hard to even get through the front door of properties in my area. I feel like I can't win.
Anyone got any advice? Or need a place to moan too?

I think I feel better now haha

csgohan4

take a day off and cram the viewings during that day, no way round it if it is a fast moving area

yksi

They're being sold before the listing even goes live - they've put the listing up just to show how great they are at quick sales and are pretending it was available. It has a side effect of leaving you disappointed and now you'll pay over the odds because you're scared you'll miss yet another one. Contact all the local agents, tell them what you are looking for, explain you have an AIP or are a cash buyer etc, and ask to be called when something suitable comes up.

walwyn1978

yksi wrote: »

They're being sold before the listing even goes live - they've put the listing up just to show how great they are at quick sales and are pretending it was available. It has a side effect of leaving you disappointed and now you'll pay over the odds because you're scared you'll miss yet another one. Contact all the local agents, tell them what you are looking for, explain you have an AIP or are a cash buyer etc, and ask to be called when something suitable comes up.

This. We bought a house once from someone we vaguely knew and we found it it was going on the market on Monday. We went round on the previous Saturday, looked round, rang the EA on the Saturday, agreed a price and it was ‘sold’ to us. Still went online and in the paper on Monday, but obviously it was sold by that point.....

Chilli6

I told my boss I was house hunting and could I do flexi last minute if I needed to, for viewings. Fortunately my boss is very understanding and happy as long as the work gets done. It meant I was the first viewer and secured it before others could view and potentially start a bidding war. Would that be possible for you?
I also found (as others have said) estate agents knowing you're in a good position helps as they may just let you about a house about to come on the market

hazyjo

What's your position? Do you have somewhere to sell?

PasturesNew

I've been waiting for awhile.

My main property type was a specific type, in a specific/small area, at a specific budget.

I was registered with the local agents. I'd even been into the agents' offices. They have called me every month to check I am still looking. I am a cash buyer, sitting in lodgings. I can view any time/day.

I saw one come online, I phoned, it'd been sold. Sold the day before, the day before it'd even been listed on RM ...

So, was it sold to somebody "more important than me?" - why hadn't I had a call "we've not typed the details up but ... this matches 100% what you said you wanted" .... why had I had nothing?

Somebody'd seen the board being put up, phoned them, viewed the same day and offered immediately.

Sometimes... it happens.

Luckily, for me, I'd actually decided I didn't want it as it was too much work - but I was going to view it.

MysteryMe

Sounds like the OP needs to be contacting agents a few times every week so they can get a heads up on properties that have just come in. That's how the other buyers are finding out about them.

amieloustew

hazyjo wrote: »

What's your position? Do you have somewhere to sell?

Me and my partner are FTB's with nowhere to sell as living with parents. We have an AIP/DIP and are very flexible with completion etc. I always try to make this clear when approaching agents and have tried to register with as many as possible in my area.

amieloustew

MysteryMe wrote: »

Sounds like the OP needs to be contacting agents a few times every week so they can get a heads up on properties that have just come in. That's how the other buyers are finding out about them.

I have registered with agents, I reckon you are are correct it's just people getting in there before me. I will keep trying and registering.

AdrianC

MysteryMe wrote: »

Sounds like the OP needs to be contacting agents a few times every week so they can get a heads up on properties that have just come in. That's how the other buyers are finding out about them.

This.

The EA gets a call from a potential vendor, along with several others. They see it, they give their opinion. They get the instruction. They get the photos taken, the floorplan and EPC done, and the guff written. The details go back to the vendor for approval. They put them on RM etc (which may have a delay). Then you see them on RM the next day, and phone the day after that.

By that time, the people who were given a heads-up "We might have this soon" or "We've got this, but haven't taken the pics yet" have had a week or more head-start. They've seen it, liked it, thought about it, put an offer in, and been accepted.

Everybody's happy at a quick sale. Except you, because you missed the bus because you didn't know it was going to be there.

Make sure you're one of the people the EA contacts. Chase them. Ask them regularly what they might have coming up.