Only offer on table...but rejected!!

Cakeguts

You might be well advised to stop looking for houses at the top of you budget but ones a bit cheaper so that you have got room to offer more if you need to?

emskiness

170 is well within my budget but we didn't get it as too many bids. And to be fair 210 is our max but this house was advertised as offers over 200 so we didn't know the sellers would then change their minds and want 212k. Not sure why you are presuming we are viewing houses over our budget? We are new to all this but we are not idiots. We are not going through buy a house we can't afford which is why we didn't go any higher than our threshold. Thanks

Cakeguts

emskiness said:

170 is well within my budget but we didn't get it as too many bids. And to be fair 210 is our max but this house was advertised as offers over 200 so we didn't know the sellers would then change their minds and want 212k. Not sure why you are presuming we are viewing houses over our budget? We are new to all this but we are not idiots. We are not going through buy a house we can't afford which is why we didn't go any higher than our threshold. Thanks

They didn't change their minds. Advertised as offers over 200 is just that.  It doesn't specify how much over 200.  It could have been 30k over 200 and it would still have been what they said in the listing. 

From what you have written it looks as if offers over 200 is going to be outside you budget because you only have 10k to play with.  Offers over 180 or 190 might have been better for you? 

emskiness

Yeah maybe you're right. But just wish the vendor s had been upfront and stated that. I think because it's a grey area they can get away with it as like you said, offers over could mean anything. I just think for the area they were going a bit too high and obviously we didn't have a cushion should there be a shortfall between sale agreed and valuation. But like someone else said, we haven't lost anything either. We could have paid for surveys etc and either us or the vendors pulled out. We have been looking from 170 to 200 but think with offers over 200k we may have been a bit green thinking a little over 200 especially as we were the only offer left but it obv wasn't enough so it's not meant to be. If someone has a figure in their minds it's hard to disuade them from it unless they are desperate to sell and the vendors weren't in any rush to. We have lowered our expectations and only looking at properties suiting our budgets. Thanks for the advice

AdrianC

emskiness said:

But just wish the vendor s had been upfront and stated that.

They did.

I think because it's a grey area they can get away with it as like you said, offers over could mean anything.

None of these words - or even the numbers - carry any weight whatsoever.
They're a ballpark to show what might be accepted.

Obvs, if the first person says "Here's £X", and there's a stack of other viewings booked, they may think "Hmm, I wonder if we can get more?"... no matter WHAT it says on the ad.

Even if it said "Offers over £100k", there's no obligation on them to accept a £208k offer...

I just think for the area they were going a bit too high

Such is your prerogative. Somebody else clearly disagreed.

emskiness

AdrianC said:

emskiness said:

But just wish the vendor s had been upfront and stated that.

They did.

I think because it's a grey area they can get away with it as like you said, offers over could mean anything.

None of these words - or even the numbers - carry any weight whatsoever.
They're a ballpark to show what might be accepted.

Obvs, if the first person says "Here's £X", and there's a stack of other viewings booked, they may think "Hmm, I wonder if we can get more?"... no matter WHAT it says on the ad.

Even if it said "Offers over £100k", there's no obligation on them to accept a £208k offer...

I just think for the area they were going a bit too high

Such is your prerogative. Somebody else clearly disagreed.

If the price is too high then yes you can end up in negative equity so I do think the price was a bit too high but that's why I said "I think" it's too high. Which is my opinion so you don't need to state that it's my prerogative lol. Read my previous posts. I just said it's not meant to be so we are moving on. Thanks

Grumpy_chap

emskiness said:

Yeah maybe you're right. But just wish the vendor s had been upfront and stated that. I think because it's a grey area they can get away with it as like you said, offers over could mean anything.
We could have paid for surveys etc and either us or the vendors pulled out

Indeed, "offers over" does mean anything - the only certainty is that they don't want to sell below...  They still could if the best offer is 199.  Or, if they get much more, they'll accept that.  The same as anyone else with any other phrase to describe the price such as "guide price", "fixed price" etc.   None of these phrases mean anything.

You don't pay for surveys etc until an offer is accepted.

AdrianC

emskiness said:

If the price is too high then yes you can end up in negative equity

Negative equity does not mean it would sell for less than you paid.
Negative equity means it would sell for less than you still owe your lender at the time of the sale.

Basically, you would walk away after the sale still owing the lender.

You don't say how much equity you have - but I'd presume you're looking at 85-90% LtV? So prices would have to fall by 10-15% immediately, or more over the longer term, for you to be in -ve equity. That is massively unlikely.

emskiness

I was under the impression you pay for surverys and valuation once an offer is accepted but if a house gets downvalued and you can't make up the shortfall then that would have cost you if you pull out, which was the danger I was facing. I think it's best I speak to my broker for further advice as these different responses are confusing me. Thanks

emskiness

The house sold so it's best I move on. Appreciate all the advice but think best I speak to my mortgage broker and decide next steps.