Is there such a thing as a fake offer

sniperpenguin

Im currently looking at a repo and put in a cheeky offer as work needed doing to the place.

Asking price by the bank was £109,000, I offered £82,500, then £88,000 as various repair work will ocst extra (kitchen roof, generic plastering etc etc.) From my previous experience looking at repo's and their prices, they usually have a lot of "give" in their prices... During this offering / looking etc, the estate agent said the vendor was really looking at offers around £100,000 ...

During the phone call back from the EA stating my offer of 88K had been turned down, he mentioned that they had received another offer of 98K for the property. I was surprised since the property was only on sale for a week or so, and I've had the only keys for the last 4 days before Xmas day! Co-incidence?

I like the property, as does the wife (we can see the potential, and have access to the resources to fix), unfortunately we only have £5,500 deposit and a 92K mortgage promise

Do I just give it up?

WestonDave

You can't beat the offer on the table so you have little choice but to wait and see what happens. If the £98k doesn't pan out for whatever reason (someone not seeing the repair implications you have and pulling out on an adverse survey) then you might be in with a second chance, but in all probability its a case of forget it and move on. In any case even if you got it at that price you'd be stuck for funds to do it up so all the potential in the world won't get you an enjoyable home.

sniperpenguin

!!!!!! - the vendor declined his 98K and he's gone to 100K ... this isnt looking good for me

Vendor must still be living in rocketing house price land, or may have put it up at an honest price (shock!)

Debt_Free_Chick

But how has the asking price been arrived at?

It could be that it takes account of the required work, so to discount it would be like deducting the cost of the work twice.

It sure ought to be a buyer's market .... but then markets rarely do what we think they should be doing

there are still plenty of FTBs looking to get on the ladder and £100k will be a steal to many of them. Especially if they can "live with" the property in its current state and take their time to do the work.

m00m00

there are certainly plenty of 'fake offers' around, but it's extremely unlikely to have been one in this case. Fake offers usually come about from individual sellers trying to ramp up a price and force a buyer to increase their offer. A bank couldn't do this, as the damage if they are discovered would be severe. It would be more likely that the bank would just automatically reject offers below X value, which seems to be the case.

Fulham_Mark

Fake offers can be created by the estate agent if they think you really want the place and will pay more than it is actually worth.

I've experienced it and heard of it from so many other people too. One estate agent even complimented me on not being fooled by his fake offer.

I'd leave your original offer and move on. Don't get emotionally attached to places if you are trying to get value for money rather than the perfect home.

If you start asking estate agents questions that indicate that you are imagining yourself living there or have had discussions about it with your other half it's a real give-away that you'll offer more money.

I was up against a fake offer on a flat that looked out on a concrete wall and some cars. The next day I was fed up with losing it and went to see another place. The place I saw was amazing and my offer (same price as the other) was accepted. Instead of a concrete wall, I have had a property company pay me £50 to use the view from my flat in their brochures.
When the estate agent called me back to tell me that the "fake offer" was looking shaky I had the best revenge ever by telling him what I had just bought.

Running_Horse

As I said on another discussion, these places tend to go to builders with cash to invest.

Poppycat

On the housy programs buying a house isnt just about the price its also about being in a position to make an offer and carrying it out quickly for some sellers

sniperpenguin

Running_Horse wrote: »

As I said on another discussion, these places tend to go to builders with cash to invest.

Looks like you were right.... to quote the e-mail I received from the estate agent today...

"From what we understand the prospective buyer has no property to sell and finance agreed. He is looking to renovate and place property back on the market. To have any chance the offer needs to be above £100,000"

moneygrabbing b*st*rds... doesnt even want to live in the damn place, just make a quick buck and push up the price of the house! GRRRRRRRRRRR :mad:

Turnbull2000

sniperpenguin wrote: »

Looks like you were right.... to quote the e-mail I received from the estate agent today...

"From what we understand the prospective buyer has no property to sell and finance agreed. He is looking to renovate and place property back on the market. To have any chance the offer needs to be above £100,000"

moneygrabbing b*st*rds... doesnt even want to live in the damn place, just make a quick buck and push up the price of the house! GRRRRRRRRRRR :mad:

When the market has turned and he becomes a distressed seller in 6 months, offer the same again and thank him for the 'free' improvements

hearts

sniperpenguin wrote: »

Looks like you were right.... to quote the e-mail I received from the estate agent today...

"From what we understand the prospective buyer has no property to sell and finance agreed. He is looking to renovate and place property back on the market. To have any chance the offer needs to be above £100,000"

moneygrabbing b*st*rds... doesnt even want to live in the damn place, just make a quick buck and push up the price of the house! GRRRRRRRRRRR :mad:

If he is a builder then his price is obviously a realistic valuation given that he will also be looking for a profit when work completed.