Offering asking price in hope surveyer undervalues

TSmith92

Hi, 

We have recently sold our property and looking to buy. We have put an offer in on a property that we feel is way overvalued. No house around the area has ever gone for a price so high and the last one a year ago went for 30k cheaper and in better condition.

We offered 15k below the asking, which we thought was generous, that was rejected. Our estate agent advised that we could offer the asking price in hope that the survey would come back and be valued at less.

We can easily afford this house and the work involved but we don't want to be ripped off. We love the house. 

Is this a dirty trick or a common method people use so that they don't miss out?

MultiFuelBurner

As long as you are prepared to lose the survey and fees up to the point of your revised downward offer then nothing illegal about it.

Morally, well that's between yourselves.

RogerPensionGuy

For context, can you advise the actual price or just approximately in that zone, 30K isn't much on 900K but a lot on 300K?

I have a few people I know selling and buying currently, the sellers are slowly reducing their prices often behind the curve downwards as they cannot sell anywhere near last summers prices. 

The buyers are being very selective and only putting in offers on properties that they really really want presently. 

Some areas house prices move up and down more than others due locations and various items.

It sounds like the valuation will come in 30K or more below asking price, if you happy just offer valuation price.

Prices move up and down, its just we have got used of them generally going up for the last 11/12 years and now they are generally going down. 

The banks and government have done so much to allow people to over extend when buying properties and somehow hoping super low interest rates of 1% would be here for decades, now we are going back in to the average historical zone of interest rates and this will cause some bumps.

However the amount of adverts temping parents to get loans or do equity release on their homes and pass money to these so called lucky children to attain huge deposits to allow the new LTV criteria to buy properties at last years prices. 

Off the top of my head mortgages are about 5.5/6.8% now and these figures need to be stress tested to at last plus 3% or offer very long fixed mortgages of say 7.5% for a minimum of 10 years, just beware these long fixed deals can be very expensive to get out of.

Anyway, it will be good to see what the valuation comes in at.

TSmith92

The house is listed at 280k. Last one to sell in the same street was last year for 251k. 

lookstraightahead

Just offer what you are happy to pay, and be prepared to walk away if they say no. Don't get into games, there's lots of choice aroundz

eddddy

TSmith92 said:

We offered 15k below the asking, which we thought was generous, that was rejected. Our estate agent advised that we could offer the asking price in hope that the survey would come back and be valued at less.

I guess one way of looking at it is...

What if you suspected your buyers had pulled that trick on you? How would you react to your buyers?

prettyandfluffy

Even if the survey values it for less than the offer price or the advertised price, the vendor is under no obligation to drop the price in line with the surveyor's opinion.  They may need to achieve a certain price or be happy to wait for as long as it takes.

jj_43

Oldest trick in the book. Get you invested, less likely to pull out.

ThisIsWeird

Hi TS.
Has the EA given you any hints for why the vendor is asking seemingly too high a price? 
It might make a difference when it comes to your plan. If, for example, they need the high amount in order to move on -  eg buy a more expensive property - then I guess they'll stick to it, and just not sell unless the sum is realised. But if they are simply deluded about the value and condition of their beloved house, then possibly a frank report might sober them up a bit.
It might not make any difference to their decision, but possibly one 'reason' has a slightly better chance of being negotiated with.

gwynlas

The EA  works for the seller so must have had some input into the asking price or they are wasting their time on marketing a house where they will not receive commission.From what you have said it sounds as though the seller might have decided on  a high price and the EA would rather a third party surveyor down value it rather than get the seller to be realistic. House values are falling but if you can afford it why not go for it? People make large purchases all the time without shopping around eg buying brand new cars rather than a low mileage trade in.

Herzlos

Are you willing to lose the house over £30k?