Asking questions before the viewing?

AdrianC

RoisinDubh_2 said:

One of the reasons I've viewed places and not offered on many is that there have been dealbreakers which became obvious upon walking in. I try to gauge as much as I possibly can from the photos, but sometimes they're so altered that they give a totally false impression. One of my absolute must haves is natural light...I cannot tolerate a dark flat. I've been to a few places where the agent needed to turn the lights on during the day because it was so dark, which is a total 'no' for me! My question is, is it worth asking the agent to be honest with me about the light level? Because it's otherwise a waste of everyone's time if I go to see a place and it's dark. Doesn't matter how nice it is, I simply will not be happy in it so it's an automatic no. I've been worried that this will be seen as demanding so my attitude has been 'just go along and see it', but this is a big part of why I have viewed many....photos not giving a true impression and being artifically brightened.

Are you giving the agents proper feedback?

"Thanks for that one - I liked this and this and this, but the showstopper for me was that it was too dark, not enough artificial light."

Of course EA photos are manipulated, but surely you can figure from the size and orientation of windows and streetview of the surroundings what is likely to be light and what is unlikely to be...?

Another thing is price...from what I understand, it's pretty normal at the moment for people to offer 20K or even more below asking as the market is so slow. With that in mind, I've set the Rightmove filter to 25K above my true maximum. I'm guessing it's not at all the done thing to ask if the vendor would take an offer before I'd even seen the property, but if I view a place at 320K, love it, offer 300K and vendor says no, then I've wasted my time and everyone else's. 

Would it be a better strategy to enquire much more about a property rather than agreeing to a viewing asap? 

Again, are you actually TALKING to EAs? Or are you just responding to ads?

From the ads you're looking at, you know who the EAs in the area are. Are you saying to them "I'm not seeing exactly what I'm after, but this is my budget, these are my requirements, do you have anything coming up that you think might be suitable?"

£25k on a £300k budget is damn near 10%. That's a big gap. For that kind of cut, somewhere must be really slow in selling. I presume you've exhausted all those places - and they will all have a reason why they haven't sold - and are now waiting for new instructions. So are the EAs phoning you with those new instructions? If not, why not?

RoisinDubh_2

AdrianC said:

RoisinDubh_2 said:

One of the reasons I've viewed places and not offered on many is that there have been dealbreakers which became obvious upon walking in. I try to gauge as much as I possibly can from the photos, but sometimes they're so altered that they give a totally false impression. One of my absolute must haves is natural light...I cannot tolerate a dark flat. I've been to a few places where the agent needed to turn the lights on during the day because it was so dark, which is a total 'no' for me! My question is, is it worth asking the agent to be honest with me about the light level? Because it's otherwise a waste of everyone's time if I go to see a place and it's dark. Doesn't matter how nice it is, I simply will not be happy in it so it's an automatic no. I've been worried that this will be seen as demanding so my attitude has been 'just go along and see it', but this is a big part of why I have viewed many....photos not giving a true impression and being artifically brightened.

Are you giving the agents proper feedback?

"Thanks for that one - I liked this and this and this, but the showstopper for me was that it was too dark, not enough artificial light."

Of course EA photos are manipulated, but surely you can figure from the size and orientation of windows and streetview of the surroundings what is likely to be light and what is unlikely to be...?

Another thing is price...from what I understand, it's pretty normal at the moment for people to offer 20K or even more below asking as the market is so slow. With that in mind, I've set the Rightmove filter to 25K above my true maximum. I'm guessing it's not at all the done thing to ask if the vendor would take an offer before I'd even seen the property, but if I view a place at 320K, love it, offer 300K and vendor says no, then I've wasted my time and everyone else's. 

Would it be a better strategy to enquire much more about a property rather than agreeing to a viewing asap? 

Again, are you actually TALKING to EAs? Or are you just responding to ads?

From the ads you're looking at, you know who the EAs in the area are. Are you saying to them "I'm not seeing exactly what I'm after, but this is my budget, these are my requirements, do you have anything coming up that you think might be suitable?"

£25k on a £300k budget is damn near 10%. That's a big gap. For that kind of cut, somewhere must be really slow in selling. I presume you've exhausted all those places - and they will all have a reason why they haven't sold - and are now waiting for new instructions. So are the EAs phoning you with those new instructions? If not, why not?

Yes, I am talking to EAs and giving feedback, but I'm not often working with the same agency. There are lots of agencies around here, and each one often only has one property that meets my criteria at a time. This makes it impossible to build up a rapport the way you would if you lived in a small town with just a couple of agencies. 

I have also found them to try to push me into viewings 'oh well just take a look and see what you think' rather than them having to spend time answering my questions. I think they think it will be easier to talk me into buying once I'm there in person, but this is how I end up wasting time. I very much feel like asking too many questions in advance is seen as 'awkward' or 'difficult' and they would just prefer to get me in there so they can tell the vendor they've got a viewer and ultimately that's just wasting everyone's time.

It's extremely common at the moment for properties to be getting a 20-25K price cut on Rightmove, which makes me feel they are overpriced to start with. One place I had 'liked' on Rightmove just went from 300K to 275K after about 10 days on the market. I'm not sure what you mean by 'reason they haven't sold', but this year the market has generally been slow for one-bed flats in London with no outside space. One I viewed a month ago is still online, and the vendor seems to be refusing to lower the price by more than 5K, which I would imagine is why it hasn't sold. Nothing 'wrong' with it as such, but I don't feel 300K for a totally samey, average one-bed flat with no personality nowhere near a tube or Overground station is value for money when flats in much better locations are going for about the same. 

Tiglet2

RoisinDubh_2 said:

AdrianC said:

RoisinDubh_2 said:

One of the reasons I've viewed places and not offered on many is that there have been dealbreakers which became obvious upon walking in. I try to gauge as much as I possibly can from the photos, but sometimes they're so altered that they give a totally false impression. One of my absolute must haves is natural light...I cannot tolerate a dark flat. I've been to a few places where the agent needed to turn the lights on during the day because it was so dark, which is a total 'no' for me! My question is, is it worth asking the agent to be honest with me about the light level? Because it's otherwise a waste of everyone's time if I go to see a place and it's dark. Doesn't matter how nice it is, I simply will not be happy in it so it's an automatic no. I've been worried that this will be seen as demanding so my attitude has been 'just go along and see it', but this is a big part of why I have viewed many....photos not giving a true impression and being artifically brightened.

Are you giving the agents proper feedback?

"Thanks for that one - I liked this and this and this, but the showstopper for me was that it was too dark, not enough artificial light."

Of course EA photos are manipulated, but surely you can figure from the size and orientation of windows and streetview of the surroundings what is likely to be light and what is unlikely to be...?

Another thing is price...from what I understand, it's pretty normal at the moment for people to offer 20K or even more below asking as the market is so slow. With that in mind, I've set the Rightmove filter to 25K above my true maximum. I'm guessing it's not at all the done thing to ask if the vendor would take an offer before I'd even seen the property, but if I view a place at 320K, love it, offer 300K and vendor says no, then I've wasted my time and everyone else's. 

Would it be a better strategy to enquire much more about a property rather than agreeing to a viewing asap? 

Again, are you actually TALKING to EAs? Or are you just responding to ads?

From the ads you're looking at, you know who the EAs in the area are. Are you saying to them "I'm not seeing exactly what I'm after, but this is my budget, these are my requirements, do you have anything coming up that you think might be suitable?"

£25k on a £300k budget is damn near 10%. That's a big gap. For that kind of cut, somewhere must be really slow in selling. I presume you've exhausted all those places - and they will all have a reason why they haven't sold - and are now waiting for new instructions. So are the EAs phoning you with those new instructions? If not, why not?

Yes, I am talking to EAs and giving feedback, but I'm not often working with the same agency. There are lots of agencies around here, and each one often only has one property that meets my criteria at a time. This makes it impossible to build up a rapport the way you would if you lived in a small town with just a couple of agencies. 

I have also found them to try to push me into viewings 'oh well just take a look and see what you think' rather than them having to spend time answering my questions. I think they think it will be easier to talk me into buying once I'm there in person, but this is how I end up wasting time. I very much feel like asking too many questions in advance is seen as 'awkward' or 'difficult' and they would just prefer to get me in there so they can tell the vendor they've got a viewer and ultimately that's just wasting everyone's time.

It's extremely common at the moment for properties to be getting a 20-25K price cut on Rightmove, which makes me feel they are overpriced to start with. One place I had 'liked' on Rightmove just went from 300K to 275K after about 10 days on the market. I'm not sure what you mean by 'reason they haven't sold', but this year the market has generally been slow for one-bed flats in London with no outside space. One I viewed a month ago is still online, and the vendor seems to be refusing to lower the price by more than 5K, which I would imagine is why it hasn't sold. Nothing 'wrong' with it as such, but I don't feel 300K for a totally samey, average one-bed flat with no personality nowhere near a tube or Overground station is value for money when flats in much better locations are going for about the same. 

Actually you do need to view the properties.  Something that may not work for you online and streetview sometimes is better in the flesh.  I understand you feel that viewing is wasting your time, but consider that asking EAs lots of questions before you decide to view is wasting their time.

My own property is one that I had discounted based on the EA photos and streetview and I only went to view due to the persistence of the EA and the fact that I had viewed most of my other "possibles".  The minute I walked in, I knew it was the property for me.  It has needed substantial work, but room sizes, parking, garden and location were perfect.

RoisinDubh_2

Tiglet2 said:

RoisinDubh_2 said:

AdrianC said:

RoisinDubh_2 said:

One of the reasons I've viewed places and not offered on many is that there have been dealbreakers which became obvious upon walking in. I try to gauge as much as I possibly can from the photos, but sometimes they're so altered that they give a totally false impression. One of my absolute must haves is natural light...I cannot tolerate a dark flat. I've been to a few places where the agent needed to turn the lights on during the day because it was so dark, which is a total 'no' for me! My question is, is it worth asking the agent to be honest with me about the light level? Because it's otherwise a waste of everyone's time if I go to see a place and it's dark. Doesn't matter how nice it is, I simply will not be happy in it so it's an automatic no. I've been worried that this will be seen as demanding so my attitude has been 'just go along and see it', but this is a big part of why I have viewed many....photos not giving a true impression and being artifically brightened.

Are you giving the agents proper feedback?

"Thanks for that one - I liked this and this and this, but the showstopper for me was that it was too dark, not enough artificial light."

Of course EA photos are manipulated, but surely you can figure from the size and orientation of windows and streetview of the surroundings what is likely to be light and what is unlikely to be...?

Another thing is price...from what I understand, it's pretty normal at the moment for people to offer 20K or even more below asking as the market is so slow. With that in mind, I've set the Rightmove filter to 25K above my true maximum. I'm guessing it's not at all the done thing to ask if the vendor would take an offer before I'd even seen the property, but if I view a place at 320K, love it, offer 300K and vendor says no, then I've wasted my time and everyone else's. 

Would it be a better strategy to enquire much more about a property rather than agreeing to a viewing asap? 

Again, are you actually TALKING to EAs? Or are you just responding to ads?

From the ads you're looking at, you know who the EAs in the area are. Are you saying to them "I'm not seeing exactly what I'm after, but this is my budget, these are my requirements, do you have anything coming up that you think might be suitable?"

£25k on a £300k budget is damn near 10%. That's a big gap. For that kind of cut, somewhere must be really slow in selling. I presume you've exhausted all those places - and they will all have a reason why they haven't sold - and are now waiting for new instructions. So are the EAs phoning you with those new instructions? If not, why not?

Yes, I am talking to EAs and giving feedback, but I'm not often working with the same agency. There are lots of agencies around here, and each one often only has one property that meets my criteria at a time. This makes it impossible to build up a rapport the way you would if you lived in a small town with just a couple of agencies. 

I have also found them to try to push me into viewings 'oh well just take a look and see what you think' rather than them having to spend time answering my questions. I think they think it will be easier to talk me into buying once I'm there in person, but this is how I end up wasting time. I very much feel like asking too many questions in advance is seen as 'awkward' or 'difficult' and they would just prefer to get me in there so they can tell the vendor they've got a viewer and ultimately that's just wasting everyone's time.

It's extremely common at the moment for properties to be getting a 20-25K price cut on Rightmove, which makes me feel they are overpriced to start with. One place I had 'liked' on Rightmove just went from 300K to 275K after about 10 days on the market. I'm not sure what you mean by 'reason they haven't sold', but this year the market has generally been slow for one-bed flats in London with no outside space. One I viewed a month ago is still online, and the vendor seems to be refusing to lower the price by more than 5K, which I would imagine is why it hasn't sold. Nothing 'wrong' with it as such, but I don't feel 300K for a totally samey, average one-bed flat with no personality nowhere near a tube or Overground station is value for money when flats in much better locations are going for about the same. 

Actually you do need to view the properties.  Something that may not work for you online and streetview sometimes is better in the flesh.  I understand you feel that viewing is wasting your time, but consider that asking EAs lots of questions before you decide to view is wasting their time.

My own property is one that I had discounted based on the EA photos and streetview and I only went to view due to the persistence of the EA and the fact that I had viewed most of my other "possibles".  The minute I walked in, I knew it was the property for me.  It has needed substantial work, but room sizes, parking, garden and location were perfect.

I don't understand why people can bash me for viewing 40 properties when EAs don't seem happy to answer even a few basic questions about the property. How is it 'wasting their time' to ask them a few questions? London is massive, and even viewings 'nearby' can take 2 or 3 hours out of my day. It's really frustrating to walk in and realise it was never going to work

I'm not talking about things that could work in the flesh...absolutely, some places are better in person when they looked 'meh' online. But if the property is dark, it's absolutely 100% not for me. No amount of painting the walls lighter will change that, and if the vendor has misrepresented the light level in the pictures then it's a waste of everyone's time for me to view. 

If the lease length is very short, that's offputting as well. If it can easily rectified, then it's a maybe, but this is something I want to know BEFORE viewing, not when I've spent time doing a viewing and getting a second opinion and getting my hopes up only to find out there's going to be a load of hassle involved because of the lease length. 

Another issue here is that it can be really hard to know which areas suffer from anti social behaviour unless you're very familiar with the immediate area on a street by street level, which is really unlikely in London. I went to see a lovely place a few months back, cute little flat, nice block, good location near tube, all looked lovely online. Got there for the viewing and had to push through a gang of teenagers smoking weed to get into the building (the door of which had been propped open...good security!) and the view out of the back was of a fly tipped mattress and sofa. You often just can't know this stuff until you're physically there for the viewing, and it can make a really promising property turn into an immediate 'no'.

fiveacre

RoisinDubh_2 said:

Another issue here is that it can be really hard to know which areas suffer from anti social behaviour unless you're very familiar with the immediate area on a street by street level, which is really unlikely in London. I went to see a lovely place a few months back, cute little flat, nice block, good location near tube, all looked lovely online. Got there for the viewing and had to push through a gang of teenagers smoking weed to get into the building (the door of which had been propped open...good security!) and the view out of the back was of a fly tipped mattress and sofa. You often just can't know this stuff until you're physically there for the viewing, and it can make a really promising property turn into an immediate 'no'.

We found this issue quite regularly when looking to buy - we always did a "drive-by viewing" before booking in a viewing properly, and in many many cases the drive-by was enough to make a decision based on the area alone. Clearly a bit more difficult if transport is an issue or the property is a long distance away.

ele_91

Have you wondered if what you are looking for doesn’t exist in your price point?

RoisinDubh_2

ele_91 said:

Have you wondered if what you are looking for doesn’t exist in your price point?

No. Some of the places I saw early on were places I absolutely would have offered on, but I felt like it was too early and I had nothing to compare them to. Later there were a couple of places that fell through for other reasons. There are plenty of good places within my budget. 

RoisinDubh_2

fiveacre said:

RoisinDubh_2 said:

Another issue here is that it can be really hard to know which areas suffer from anti social behaviour unless you're very familiar with the immediate area on a street by street level, which is really unlikely in London. I went to see a lovely place a few months back, cute little flat, nice block, good location near tube, all looked lovely online. Got there for the viewing and had to push through a gang of teenagers smoking weed to get into the building (the door of which had been propped open...good security!) and the view out of the back was of a fly tipped mattress and sofa. You often just can't know this stuff until you're physically there for the viewing, and it can make a really promising property turn into an immediate 'no'.

We found this issue quite regularly when looking to buy - we always did a "drive-by viewing" before booking in a viewing properly, and in many many cases the drive-by was enough to make a decision based on the area alone. Clearly a bit more difficult if transport is an issue or the property is a long distance away.

Yes, this is definitely a big problem in London. I'm either needing to take public transport or walk a significant distance. Even properties in the same general area can be over an hour away on foot! 

RoisinDubh_2

RatInACage said:

RoisinDubh_2 said:

RatInACage said:

For the light, it might be worth asking what direction the windows face so you know if it gets strong sun, morning sun, evening sun or no sun (same as many people do with gardens). Some colours will suck the light out, so if has a lot of grey or dark walls, it's going to feel darker.

I think your price strategy is fine if that's what properties are generally going for. The vendor's reaction is out of your control. The only thing you can do to improve your chance is making sure you have idea of what things are worth, so you're not offering under asking on a property that's already priced reasonably.

Yes, I just wasn't sure if this would be seen as overly demanding or weird. I would MUCH prefer to weed out properties that definitely won't suit so I don't waste my time. I can paint walls and decorate but if it's a north facing living room with tiny windows, nothing is really going to help. 

I find it hard to know what places are going for because there's so much variation. I've seen a place at 275K and then a worse off in the same area for 300K. Of course no agent is ever going to be honest, but talking to colleagues who have recently bought, nobody is going above asking price at all and plenty are going under.

I think it depends on your wording.

Not demanding/weird: "Having a bright living room is really important to me. Can you tell me what direction the windows face, please?"

Demanding/weird: "I must be bathed in light at all times! The windows must face exactly due south!"

Also bear in mind that a flat with huge south-facing windows might get a bit hot in the summer, so you could find you're having to close the curtains during the day to keep the temperature down.

Yes, that is very true...where I am right now I have full length balcony doors which are south facing, so it heats up quite a lot on hot days. Not too much of an issue given the very few days of really got weather we get though IMO.

Falafels

You can check the orientation of a house - or at least get some idea - by looking on a map.

My old house was dazzlingly bright at certain times of day, and dull at others. That's because it was east/west orientated. If you want something that's going to be permanently bright, you need south-facing windows - but be aware that the north side of the house is then going to be relatively shady. The EA's photos will tell you whether the windows are large or not.

Thing is, only one person from the EA will have actually viewed the property, the others certainly won't know offhand, and even a property with huge, south-facing windows will appear gloomy on a very overcast day.

As for anti-social behaviour, have you checked websites like these https://www.police.uk/ ? 

When we were looking to buy, we did loads of research before even considering booking a viewing, including flood risk. It's a sensible thing to do and saves a lot of time.