Told wont accept anything less then £200k on a 200k house!

missile

PRINCESSKERRY wrote: »

It seems that down here even 5% under offers aren't being taken massively seriously.

Asking price can be very missleading. When some sell, they set a low price to attract viewers. Others set a high price so you think you have negotiated a bargain. Maybe these sellers were realistic and asked for the price they expect to get?

I rarely take notice of estate agent "advice". I do my research ask / offer what I think a property is worth.

LisbonLaura

Quote OP:- "Renting isn't a option either as OH really doesn't want too and realistically OH's wages are the best they have ever been so buying makes more sense."

It's the statement that makes no sense.

Ditch the emotively driven thinking!

The smart money got out of owning & into renting last year.

You have been lucky to be able to follow.

Invest the money (assuming you were not foolishly MEWed to the eyeballs) & go rent......live in a caravan......anything.

Now sit back & wait a least a couple of years, preferably longer.

I bet you wont though..........

missile

I fully understand your desire to own your own home and is it really worth the upset, stress and disruption for your family just to save a few thousand looking for a bargain / waiting for prices to fall. Investing in bricks and mortar is not like the stock market and to my mind quality of life is more important.

merlinthehappypig

missile wrote: »

I fully understand your desire to own your own home and is it really worth the upset, stress and disruption for your family just to save a few thousand looking for a bargain / waiting for prices to fall. Investing in bricks and mortar is not like the stock market and to my mind quality of life is more important.

Therein lies the problem for anyone wanting to buy a home, rather than an investment at present.

We have many reasons for wanting to buy, rather than stay renting, now and the dilemma is causing upset, stress and disruption as you mention.

However it's not just a few thousand pounds that will be saved either. If we had bought last year when we first started looking I would have had to have double the mortgage that I would need for a similar property now.

Give it another 6-8 months and I'm confident that the same property will be available with no mortgage.

So it's another 6-8 months of stress or a £50000/£60000 15 year debt. Sounds a straightforward choice, but it isn't.

Toto

We looked at a house a few months ago which was ok... quite nice. It's on for 365,000 and has been for over 18 months now. They keep changing agents, I think they have been through every one locally now, it's now on with 3 agents at the same price.

When the agent called for feedback i told them that the house is ok, but not worth the price they are asking. He told me they had recently refused an offer of £350,000 and would not consider anything under the asking price but they are getting very tired of trying to sell. So, he suggested I offer £360,000 and hope for the best. I told him to shove it

SallyD

I have posted the below on "housebuying moneysaving tips" but reading through this thread thought you may offer me some advice.

Looked at a re-possessed house up for £164,950, just under two years old - records show sold in September 2006 for £197,995 on an estate that is nearing completion. Similar brand new are £170k + (claim to have knocked up to £10,000 lately of their prices) What kind of reduction could I be looking for off the price - I am keen to go for it. Your thoughts would be welcomed.

Thank you

EdInvestor

What annoys even more is we took a 8% drop on our house and secured a sale within weeks.At present I feel we are going to have to pay close to someones asking price to secure a property when we took the drop on ours.

Perhaps the OP can see that one reason she is having problems is that other vendors don't wish to be in the position she has got herself into?

IMHO another reason why prices are sticking is that everyoine knows the fall in UK house prices is caused by the credit crunch - ie the shortgage of mortgage money - rather than the kinds of property oversupply problems seen in other markets like the US, Spain and Ireland.

So sellers may be calculating that if they just exercise a little patience and allow the banks to sort themselves out, things might take a turn for the better as more normal lending patterns resume.

Gorgeous_George

Generally, people like to negotiate.

Forgetting the current market turmoil, it is better to put your house (or car etc.) up for sale at 5% above 'valuation'. Then, when a would-be buyer makes and offer at 10% below, you can either accept it or negotiate a deal that leaves both parties believing that they got a good deal.

I understand that in a falling market there is temptation to pre-empt further falls but sellers will want today's price and a stand-off is inevitable.

If I like the person I'm selling to I will accept a lower offer. Insult me by offering too low and I'll be less flexible. Make a fair offer, close to valuation and I might just accept it without further bartering.

GG

PRINCESSKERRY

LisbonLaura wrote: »

Quote OP:- "Renting isn't a option either as OH really doesn't want too and realistically OH's wages are the best they have ever been so buying makes more sense."

It's the statement that makes no sense.

Ditch the emotively driven thinking!

The smart money got out of owning & into renting last year.

You have been lucky to be able to follow.

Invest the money (assuming you were not foolishly MEWed to the eyeballs) & go rent......live in a caravan......anything.

Now sit back & wait a least a couple of years, preferably longer.

I bet you wont though..........

If the choice was mine solely I would be renting, it is OH putting his foot down and categorically stating we are not. I also do not have family backing behind my opinion either.
They all state and show me rents on properties that would be suitable for us which will set us back around £800 a month. For us to purchase a property our mortgage will not be much more then that.
I mentioned his wages as they are at the best level they have ever been and will continue to grow therefore making a jump to a bigger house now wont affect us much more then our mortgage is now.
We have a good size deposit to put down, never remortgaged in our lives.

As far as living in a caravan etc, my family is my priority and personally I wouldn't sacrifice our quality of life by renting a smaller property then we have now. But each to their own.

missile

merlinthehappypig wrote: »

Therein lies the problem for anyone wanting to buy a home, rather than an investment at present.

We have many reasons for wanting to buy, rather than stay renting, now and the dilemma is causing upset, stress and disruption as you mention.

However it's not just a few thousand pounds that will be saved either. If we had bought last year when we first started looking I would have had to have double the mortgage that I would need for a similar property now.

Give it another 6-8 months and I'm confident that the same property will be available with no mortgage.

So it's another 6-8 months of stress or a £50000/£60000 15 year debt. Sounds a straightforward choice, but it isn't.

You must be expecting prices to drop by a lot more than I do. If you want to put your family through 6-8 months of renting in the expectation you will save £50/60K, I think you may be disappointed.
IMHO if you want to own a house now then you need to pay the market price today. For me, owning my home is not about investment, it is about putting a roof over my family. My quality of life / family is important to me.