Making yourself appealing as a private buyer

[Deleted User]

Hello,

I am a FTB who has been looking for the last couple of years, to not much avail. I missed out on a property last year because the eventual owners offered over the odds. After enquiring about properties coming to the market in the same village, I have been in touch with a seller who is looking to sell their one-bed property. It ticks pretty much all of my boxes and I am keen to proceed. It has not yet gone to market, but the estate agent has been round to value to property and, while the valuation was roughly as expected, they advised there were a lot of people looking in the village. I know this is true to an extent, but am also aware that there was a flux of viewings for the property I put an offer in for last year, and only two of us made offers so while there may be a lot of people looking in the village, they are likely not all looking for a one-bed. 

The property is due to go to market in the next fortnight. I am obviously prepared to pay significantly more than the estimated value of the property (to a point). However, I wondered if there was anything else that could make a private sale more appealing to the sellers than putting it on the market? They live down South and I am in Scotland, so presumably it would be a lot less hassle for them. However, money talks, and if there is the potential for a lot more money than I can offer (it's a small one-bed so I'm not sure it would go for LOADS more, but I can't account for this crazy market!) then perhaps they'd think the hassle is worth it. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thank you!

csgohan4

bottom line is money talks, careful about over offering if you need a mortgage, it may well get down valued. Unless you can make up the difference

[Deleted User]

csgohan4 said:

bottom line is money talks, careful about over offering if you need a mortgage, it may well get down valued. Unless you can make up the difference

Yes, you're right. It probably is as simple as that. I am prepared to go 20% over but I need to have somewhere to draw the line.

propertyhunter

The buyer can list it with the estate agent, just tell them to give your name to the estate agent so that they don't have to pay the estate agent's fee if they end up selling to you. The seller needs to ensure this is a part of their contract prospectively though.

While you can go 20% over asking, remember, your offer of £X amount will be worth X% more to the seller versus the same amount offered by someone who goes through the EA. 

Slinky

Have you asked the seller if there is a price which he would accept which would mean he doesn't bother to list it?

[Deleted User]

Slinky said:

Have you asked the seller if there is a price which he would accept which would mean he doesn't bother to list it?

I have asked if we can discuss this but the valuation was only done today so don't want to seem too eager! However, it is definitely something that will need to be discussed. I'm just wary that if I show too much eagerness, they'll wonder what else they could get (if that makes sense!)

[Deleted User]

propertyhunter said:

The buyer can list it with the estate agent, just tell them to give your name to the estate agent so that they don't have to pay the estate agent's fee if they end up selling to you. The seller needs to ensure this is a part of their contract prospectively though.

Ah, I didn't know this was possible, though seems that it would be more beneficial to the seller than the buyer as I could still be up against tough competition. 

propertyhunter said:

While you can go 20% over asking, remember, your offer of £X amount will be worth X% more to the seller versus the same amount offered by someone who goes through the EA. 

Sorry, I'm pretty new to this. Are you saying my offer would be worth more and it would be because of the lack of estate agent fees?

theartfullodger

Cash buyer no chain makes you appealing, in answer to your question.

getmore4less

No estate agents fees is worth 1% 1.5% if they did not negotiate.

With 20% over on the table insignificant.

propertyhunter

propertyhunter said:

While you can go 20% over asking, remember, your offer of £X amount will be worth X% more to the seller versus the same amount offered by someone who goes through the EA. 

Sorry, I'm pretty new to this. Are you saying my offer would be worth more and it would be because of the lack of estate agent fees?

Yes, sorry if I was wording it in a really obscure way. They're potentially savings thousands of pounds by selling direct to you rather than engage the services of the EA.

I bet what they are willing to accept for the house will be much less than 20% over the asking (I know you're just saying 20% because its your top budget and you're not expecting to fork out this much). Let them make the first offer of course, and negotiate accordingly. In the first instance they'll probably quote a higher price expecting you to negotiate down. 

[Deleted User]

propertyhunter said:

propertyhunter said:

While you can go 20% over asking, remember, your offer of £X amount will be worth X% more to the seller versus the same amount offered by someone who goes through the EA. 

Sorry, I'm pretty new to this. Are you saying my offer would be worth more and it would be because of the lack of estate agent fees?

Yes, sorry if I was wording it in a really obscure way. They're potentially savings thousands of pounds by selling direct to you rather than engage the services of the EA.

I bet what they are willing to accept for the house will be much less than 20% over the asking (I know you're just saying 20% because its your top budget and you're not expecting to fork out this much). Let them make the first offer of course, and negotiate accordingly. In the first instance they'll probably quote a higher price expecting you to negotiate down. 

This is great to read, thank you. A couple of people have advised me to go in with an offer lower than I would expect to pay, but I'd rather they made the first move and take it from there. It's difficult to know what would be 'reasonable' as I think the current market situation pushes people to pay well over what would ordinarily be reasonable for a property. As much as I like it, it's a one bedroom cottage with 4 rooms so it would be good to avoid going 20% over asking if possible!