Offer made on a flat without viewing

Earthling_1

Hi

I've made an offer on a flat without viewing it. The reason I did it was because the current tenant is not allowing viewings, although the property has been on the market for about 9 months.

The offer was accepted by the vendor but I'm unsure about the normal cautionary procedures I need to take before proceeding with my solicitors.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Tabieth

Are you buying it as a landlord to rent out to the current tenant? Or is it for you to live in? 

LeafGreen

Sounds like a very bad idea to me.

Ayr_Rage

Don't buy it without seeing it.

theartfullodger

Buying it does not end tenancy nor compel tenant to leave.  You will just become landlord.  Any idea about how to be a landlord?

That owner is selling with tenant in place a strong indication that owner doesn't have all paperwork to evict - so you wouldn't have paperwork either.  Old tenancy simply continues, just landlord changes.

Which country? (Wales, NI...?).  Laws vary.

But it can work out.  I stuck my hand up & bid at an auction for a house I had only driven past in 2000.  But I could afford the gamble.  Views of sea lochs & mountains., - from sitting room, 2014...



Sold it a few years ago. Bought £18.5k, sold £116k. Mainly rented out   It washed it's face 

Earthling_1

Thank you all for the comments.
The property is in England, just 5 min away from where I reside currently and I'm not planning to be a landlord, I'm buying it to live in. The acceptance letter from the vendor does not mention being sold with 'tenant in situ'. Anyway, I'm still waiting to receive the draft of the contract and will not sign anything until I've been able to view the flat.

Tabieth

I would be very reluctant to buy as a landlord without a viewing. I wouldn’t entertain making an offer to buy my home. Set aside the issue that there’s a sitting tenant who may not leave for many months, you’ve not seen it. I’d keep looking if I were you. 

swingaloo

Do not just rely on looking round the flat. You need the tenant gone before you start spending money. The tenant could still be there in 12 months+

DullGreyGuy

Earthling_1 said:

Hi

I've made an offer on a flat without viewing it. The reason I did it was because the current tenant is not allowing viewings, although the property has been on the market for about 9 months.

The offer was accepted by the vendor but I'm unsure about the normal cautionary procedures I need to take before proceeding with my solicitors.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks

How much is your offer?
How much would the property be realistically worth in A1 condition?

I only know one person that bought a property sight unseen, in their case it had squatters in it. He paid well under half the market value at the time, he was betting the market value would go up in the long term and he knew people who could "help" with the squatters. Last valuation it was a few million now.

Getting a tenant out can be hard and take months, your solicitor will probably recommend you dont exchange until it's vacant. The rest depends on how much you're willing to spend on searches etc whilst it's unseen and how long the vendor is willing to wait before remarketing if you arent making progress on buying. 

It's a massive risk and only should be done if you know what you are doing and the price makes it worth while else keep looking. 

Stubod

If you are planning to live in it yourself, I would not commit any expenditure until the tenant is out....but that's just me....

What plans does the current Landlord have for removing the tenant, or are they selling it with the tenant in situ and leaving it up to the buyer to do what is necessary??

theartfullodger

If landlord had plausible plans to evict he would have done so already and got a higher price as vacant.

This stinks.