Reducing Offer Price Due To COVID-19 Financial Uncertainty

Crashy_Time

RelievedSheff said:

Crashy_Time said:

MaxiRobriguez said:

craig1123 said:

Realisitically to compensate for the financial uncertainty and potential for reduced income you would need a massive discount to ease those concerns. If I was the seller and you came to me asking to pay 9000 less I would think you were taking adavantage of the situation. How much cheaper would your mortgage be if you paid 9000 less. About £40? If things are so tight that this would be the difference between affording the mortgage and not then you shouldnt be buying.

I agree with Craig. 

If you have genuine concerns over your financial situation (which in times like these is completely warranted) then £9,000 off a mortgage is not a game changer and reeks of trying to take advantage of a seller who needs the chain to maintain.

If I was the seller, I would tell you to do one, primarily because if you'd act like that with a month to completion then I'd expect you to come knocking for another discount closer to completion when quarterly GDP figures are known and furlough schemes have potentially ended, causing more public worry.

If you want to lower your offer for genuine reasons that that amount helps you have confidence in your own finances then you should probably attempt it (because what you've agreed to pay is clearly now too expensive for you). Just don't be surprised if your seller who isn't your mate isn't happy with the proposal.

Alternatively you can just walk away.

As most people will be looking for a further discount at that point though you don`t have very much power as a seller in these circumstances?

You kind of do though. You can always just take the property off the market. 

Yes, but then you are not a seller, other houses that actually do sell will be creating the market whatever you choose to do, the buyer has the power to look elsewhere, an ex-seller off the market is just kind of stuck in limbo.

Crashy_Time

petec22 said:

royalmike said:

If I was in your shoes would definitely be looking for a large discount, probably more than 15 percent though.
That being said though the house buying process in England needs changing, think all offers should be legally binding like in most of the world.  

I totally agree with this I was in the process of selling my house, buyer had all his surveys, valuations done etc. We should have completed 23rd of march but he was just dragging his feet and coming up with excuses until eventually on monday he pulled out completely no reason given. We were using the equity from this house as the deposit for our new home so it could have stopped our house move too. Absolutely nothing we can do about him wasting our time though as due to the current situation the solicitors wanted to exchange and complete on the same day 

The reason won`t be hard to guess though? No one is obliged to put themselves into a bad financial position in the face of the biggest economic crisis in living memory IMO.

Disjoint

A bit surprised at some of the comments. My buyer came back to renegotiate two weeks ago, I would have thought them to be complete idiots had they not done so.

Prices from today are either going to collapse due to the ramification of this crisis or trickle along the way they have for the last few years. You have no upside in buying today, just potential downside. I have just advised a friend of mine to pull out from her sale last month. Wait for the light at the end of the tunnel to show and then look for a house again.
This is your biggest purchasing decision, it's huge, the rules in the UK are such that both buyer AND seller can pull out at the last moment. It's a set of rules and you are allowed to play as you wish.
The seller is not your mate  - you owe them nothing. If you feel uncomfortable and not attached to the property just offer 10%+ down and see what happens. Never get attached to property and be absolutely cold hearted with your decision, that or just be the sucker being taken advantage of.
If the seller is offended so be it, they are in a chain and need to complete with you so take advantage of that. Be polite, always explain your reasoning but don't drown on too much about it. If it's too much they'll tell you and look at renegotiating. I would offer a large price cut in exchange to have a nearer exchange date so that they know you won't retrade soon enough. 
Again, I have a few properties myself and I negotiated back and hard with my buyer. I did not need to sell, but I see the market and I am not an idiot. Consumer confidence is not going to come back over night. I'd rather have liquidity at the moment and protect my other assets from the crisis my business is currently going through.

When all those people who have been put on furlough are fired, it's going to be real fun... I don't understand the comments full of confidence about the future. No one knows, but there clearly is a potential for a hell of a down move.

petec22

Crashy_Time said:

petec22 said:

royalmike said:

If I was in your shoes would definitely be looking for a large discount, probably more than 15 percent though.
That being said though the house buying process in England needs changing, think all offers should be legally binding like in most of the world.  

I totally agree with this I was in the process of selling my house, buyer had all his surveys, valuations done etc. We should have completed 23rd of march but he was just dragging his feet and coming up with excuses until eventually on monday he pulled out completely no reason given. We were using the equity from this house as the deposit for our new home so it could have stopped our house move too. Absolutely nothing we can do about him wasting our time though as due to the current situation the solicitors wanted to exchange and complete on the same day 

The reason won`t be hard to guess though? No one is obliged to put themselves into a bad financial position in the face of the biggest economic crisis in living memory IMO.

I can see why you think that could be the reason but he was messing us around before this all kicked off fully. I just think its ridiculous that he can pull out so far down the line with no come back at all

Ftb2019_3

petec22 said:

Crashy_Time said:

petec22 said:

royalmike said:

If I was in your shoes would definitely be looking for a large discount, probably more than 15 percent though.
That being said though the house buying process in England needs changing, think all offers should be legally binding like in most of the world.  

I totally agree with this I was in the process of selling my house, buyer had all his surveys, valuations done etc. We should have completed 23rd of march but he was just dragging his feet and coming up with excuses until eventually on monday he pulled out completely no reason given. We were using the equity from this house as the deposit for our new home so it could have stopped our house move too. Absolutely nothing we can do about him wasting our time though as due to the current situation the solicitors wanted to exchange and complete on the same day 

The reason won`t be hard to guess though? No one is obliged to put themselves into a bad financial position in the face of the biggest economic crisis in living memory IMO.

I can see why you think that could be the reason but he was messing us around before this all kicked off fully. I just think its ridiculous that he can pull out so far down the line with no come back at all

"Kicked off fully" suggests it was still during coronavirus. Maybe he just seen what was coming before you did?

Intenso

I just love all these bears salivating over the prospect of a house price crash. There may be a short lived correction but nothing that will likely be sustained. All credible commentators are already predicting that within a very short period of time the economy will recover and prices will return to they're usual pattern.  There will no doubt be a few buyers who snag a bargain from an anxious seller, the rest may be left wishing they hadn't negotiated themselves out of a forever home....

Wkmg

Disjoint said:

A bit surprised at some of the comments. My buyer came back to renegotiate two weeks ago, I would have thought them to be complete idiots had they not done so.

Prices from today are either going to collapse due to the ramification of this crisis or trickle along the way they have for the last few years. You have no upside in buying today, just potential downside. I have just advised a friend of mine to pull out from her sale last month. Wait for the light at the end of the tunnel to show and then look for a house again.
This is your biggest purchasing decision, it's huge, the rules in the UK are such that both buyer AND seller can pull out at the last moment. It's a set of rules and you are allowed to play as you wish.
The seller is not your mate  - you owe them nothing. If you feel uncomfortable and not attached to the property just offer 10%+ down and see what happens. Never get attached to property and be absolutely cold hearted with your decision, that or just be the sucker being taken advantage of.
If the seller is offended so be it, they are in a chain and need to complete with you so take advantage of that. Be polite, always explain your reasoning but don't drown on too much about it. If it's too much they'll tell you and look at renegotiating. I would offer a large price cut in exchange to have a nearer exchange date so that they know you won't retrade soon enough. 
Again, I have a few properties myself and I negotiated back and hard with my buyer. I did not need to sell, but I see the market and I am not an idiot. Consumer confidence is not going to come back over night. I'd rather have liquidity at the moment and protect my other assets from the crisis my business is currently going through.

When all those people who have been put on furlough are fired, it's going to be real fun... I don't understand the comments full of confidence about the future. No one knows, but there clearly is a potential for a hell of a down move.

The upside is clearly that your get the house you want. If it’s your dream home, I say hold tight till nearer exchange. If you aren’t that set on the house and there are plenty of similar properties around, you should definitely renegotiate.

jimbog

Disjoint said:

A bit surprised at some of the comments. My buyer came back to renegotiate two weeks ago, I would have thought them to be complete idiots had they not done so.

How much did they knock you down by? What sort of percentage?

Disjoint

jimbog said:

Disjoint said:

A bit surprised at some of the comments. My buyer came back to renegotiate two weeks ago, I would have thought them to be complete idiots had they not done so.

How much did they knock you down by? What sort of percentage?

They came at 5÷ originally. The amount is quite substantial as it's a property in London. I refused as I can keep the property and wait for better weather. In the end looks like we are going to settle for a 2.5÷ discount. Property is empty and I am losing rental income every day. I could put it back on the market but given I've done all the work already I'll take a small hit rather than the hassle of leasing it or selling it again.

I put myself in their situation, I would have 100÷ asked for a discount. If I had given nothing and I was in the buyer's shoe I would have walked out.
The day we agreed on the price there was no covid around, today the situation is completely different - as a buyer you SHOULD expect a retrade.

[Deleted User]

jonnygee2 said:

I think there may be some disappointed people when this is over if you're holding on to hopes of a big market crash

Only a complete idiot hopes for a market crash anyway. We all live in the same economy, a big crash is ultimately good for no one.

Nonsense!
my son a FTB with a 50% deposit from me is hoping to get a bargain when it all crashes and landlords need to sell sell sell their portfolios 
Im certainly not a “complete idiot” lol