Buying House I'm Renting

enigmo

LL has informed me they are wanting to sell the property I am currently renting, but I might be in a position to buy it myself. I have an agreement in principle for an amount that should more than cover it, but is there anything I should be aware of that might be unusual given the situation?
There is also a high likelihood that the selling agent and the current rental agent will be the same company.
Are there any risks to asking the agent roughly what amount the LL might be wanting for the place, or is getting my own valuation a good idea?

elsien

In that respect, it’s no different to any other purchase. You do your research and you pay what you think it is worth. 

You might also want to see if you can negotiate a discount, based on the fact they don’t have to spend time and effort evicting the current tenant if the current tenant is the one who buys it.
So the usual compromise with what you are willing to offer, and what they are willing to accept.

Mr.Generous

In a situation like this I'd suggest 3 valuations, then negotiate. You'll get a ball park figure - but look at sold prices on Rightmove to get a realistic figure in mind befoe you get into it.

RHemmings

I'm not sure I can see the problem in you asking the LL approximately how much they want to sell the place for. It would start negotiation, and let the LL know you're interested. 

While there may be a discount possible due to you not having to leave the property, if I was the LL I wouldn't want to sell under market price without trying the market first. But, a demonstrably reasonable price - that could be quick.

If you approach the LL before they sign up with the agent, could that mean that they avoid paying fees to the agent? 

Haven't we seen a number of landlords here mentioning (in a positive way) the possibility of selling to the sitting tenant? 

enigmo

RHemmings said:

I'm not sure I can see the problem in you asking the LL approximately how much they want to sell the place for. It would start negotiation, and let the LL know you're interested. 

While there may be a discount possible due to you not having to leave the property, if I was the LL I wouldn't want to sell under market price without trying the market first. But, a demonstrably reasonable price - that could be quick.

If you approach the LL before they sign up with the agent, could that mean that they avoid paying fees to the agent? 

Haven't we seen a number of landlords here mentioning (in a positive way) the possibility of selling to the sitting tenant? 

I would give it a go if I could, but I don't have any direct contact with the LL. Everything has always been done via the rental agent so I may have no choice but to go through them for everything. Personally, while I'd appreciate a decent price based on speed and convenience for the LL, I'm not looking to lowball anyone. At the moment, ensuring some sort of stability and continuity for the family is more important.

RHemmings

enigmo said:

RHemmings said:

I'm not sure I can see the problem in you asking the LL approximately how much they want to sell the place for. It would start negotiation, and let the LL know you're interested. 

While there may be a discount possible due to you not having to leave the property, if I was the LL I wouldn't want to sell under market price without trying the market first. But, a demonstrably reasonable price - that could be quick.

If you approach the LL before they sign up with the agent, could that mean that they avoid paying fees to the agent? 

Haven't we seen a number of landlords here mentioning (in a positive way) the possibility of selling to the sitting tenant? 

I would give it a go if I could, but I don't have any direct contact with the LL. Everything has always been done via the rental agent so I may have no choice but to go through them for everything. Personally, while I'd appreciate a decent price based on speed and convenience for the LL, I'm not looking to lowball anyone. At the moment, ensuring some sort of stability and continuity for the family is more important.

Your landlord's name and address should be on the rental contract. However, the address may be the address of the EA.

If you sent a letter to the landlord c/o the EA in a sealed envelope, then surely the EA should pass it on without opening it. 

Albermarle

enigmo said:

LL has informed me they are wanting to sell the property I am currently renting, but I might be in a position to buy it myself. I have an agreement in principle for an amount that should more than cover it, but is there anything I should be aware of that might be unusual given the situation?
There is also a high likelihood that the selling agent and the current rental agent will be the same company.
Are there any risks to asking the agent roughly what amount the LL might be wanting for the place, or is getting my own valuation a good idea?

You have not said if the house is in good condition, problems with the neighbours, leasehold, or anything unusual about it ?

enigmo

Albermarle said:

You have not said if the house is in good condition, problems with the neighbours, leasehold, or anything unusual about it ?

Freehold, no real neighbour problems. Not been redecorated in a decade and needs some work at the front on a small damp issue, but nothing terrible.

YBR

We bought from a landlord many years ago. Windows were in poor condition, kitchen was old and there was no central heating but we knew these and other issues and it was good to save moving costs.

We did all the usual process - searches, survey and so on - even though we knew the place.

It seemed to take forever to go through - I think that with no need to fix a moving date there was less pressure on everyone to keep it moving!

We also had a glitch with the landlord who decided he wanted us to pay and additional amount for the new gas fire - he'd recently had to fit a new one as the old one was condemned. It left a sour taste so we called his bluff and told him he could come and take it away. Moral of the story - make sure you're clear from the fixtures and fittings forms that there's nothing unexpected!

njkmr

I would say your the landlords dream.
If you buy it you will be paying rent right up to the point of completion so there will be no void period of rent for the landlord.
I would definitely try and speak with him and get some form of discount as you may save him thousands in lost rent if you were to move out whilst he /she then trys to sell it.
Good luck.

InMyDreams

RHemmings said:

If you approach the LL before they sign up with the agent, could that mean that they avoid paying fees to the agent? 

We would like to buy the house we are renting too (but our LL is not interested in selling, unfortunately).

Before we approached him, we found online the standard contract his letting agent uses which unfortunately included a clause about exactly this. If he was to sell to us, the letting agent would get a percentage anyway. So I assume this is standard as it must happen often enough for the letting agents to all have this covered in their T&C. Easy money!