Any Estate Agents out there....?
Daughter has been bidding on an apartment which has been on the market since Monday. Serious bidding started yesterday with 4 bidders and has now reached £11,500 more than the asking price. Is it best not to get into a 'bidding war' or hang back until near completion of the deal. (When she told the clerk at the estate agents today that she wanted to be kept informed of all bids the clerk informed her that she couldn't keep phoning my daughter as it wasn't fair to the rest of the bidders - is this the way it works? or was the clerk putting the pressure on?)
Would appreciate advice please, especially from Estate Agents.
Answer:
When you say 'bidding' it seems she is making higher offers in competition with other would be purchasers. The agent is legally bound to put ALL offers to the vendor, as a higher offer with complications might be rejected in favour of an hassle free, quicker sale. I would ask to see the senior partner of the agents and explain what the clerk said, again on the basis you asked to be kept informed surely suggests to the clerk they could get a still better price for the vendor. Now I wont even think that the clerk is trying to keep your daughter out of the higher offers to help some one else - they wouldn't do that would they - or would they !!?? There is very little that's 'fair' to the others as the agents duty is to the vendor and I wonder what the vendor would think if their agent wasn't working hard to get them the best price. Completion is a phrase used after contracts have been exchanged, to make the final arrangements to hand over the money, move in and out etc. That is too late for your daughter. Why not visit a conveyancing solicitor and explain what is happening, you shouldn't get a bill as you are a potential client of the solicitors if not for the present property but another one. Also ask amongst the solicitors what their charges are likely to be, some give better deals than others.
Further info for you: as far as your daughter is concerned she is an ideal purchaser, don't underestimate the strong buying position that will often put her into, all most vendors want basically is their money and the fact that your daughter needs finance shouldn't be a big hurdle unless they think a cash offer at a lesser price will be almost instant. Virtually every chain needs a first time buyer in it to unlock the knock on log jam which you get when people need to both sell and buy. I would suggest your daughter sees an INDEPENDENT mortgage advisor and gets a preliminary assessment of the level of loan she could expect, she can do this without waiting for the ideal property, armed with that assessment she knows what property price band to go looking in and will be able to move quicker when she finds what she wants. An independent mortgage advisor ( IMA) gets paid by the lending building society and should declare any fees upfront to you, in practice I've found you will get a good range of options. It's tempting but don't overstretch your repayments, leave a bit of slack for the inevitable unexpected bills and perhaps even an interest rate rise. Finally ? ! get a PROPER survey, no disrespect to property developers out there but its amazing what serious flaws can be hidden over by new wallpaper and a lick of paint, the building societies own survey is not sufficient if you are new to the property game. Get the IMA to explain. Other Questions and Answers: