We accepted an offer! :) Now have a new dilemma. Advice please?

[SparklePrincess]

Offer is 7500 less than I paid for the property 3 years ago. Im ok about it. It could of been worse, & our buyers are chain free! :)

The new dilemma is: We have found a house through a leaflet drop we did in the area we like. It could all work out perfectly. They are not part of any chain, so it would literally be us, them & the people buying ours.

The vendors have had 3 valuations done, & are having another done on Thursday. We have arranged to go round there on Friday. They have agreed to wait for us to decide before marketing the property.

We are keen to make an offer, but unsure at what level to go in at. Its a bit awkward face to face, & they are lovely people who have bent over backwards to accommodate.

The valuations so far have been 275k 285k & 290k. Recent sales in the street are at 250k, but we know this house has had a lot of money spent on it in the last year & could walk straight in & start living. It also has a much larger garden than one house which we know sold for 250k, & a better kitchen, garage, new bathroom, stunning new drive & decking too. It really is lovely, & I would say definitely worth more than the other house, its just how much more?

We were thinking of offering 270k, which we feel is a good offer for them bearing in mind they would save at least 6k in Estate Agents fees, & is probably more than they would get offered if it was on for 275k anyway.

Of course, we'd rather get it for less, but im concerned that the EA valuing it on Thursday will agree with the higher end valuations.

We know that the people had the house on the market last year at 275k (before doing any improvements) & it didn't sell so they took it off the market. They have stated that if we dont want the house & it doesn't sell in 6 weeks they will rent it out for a bit. This makes me think that a complete bargain is not to be had on this one.

Our other options are limited. There is another house currently on at 279,950, very similar size, but smaller sitting room (which is an issue) would need to get a conservatory put in at a cost of around 15 to 20k, which bearing in mind if we drop them to 260k even still takes it over & above the other property, & it doesn't have the fab new drive bathroom & decking, & needs new flooring in the hallways.

Opinions please?

[Gonzo33]

I think your right, I think a bargain is not going to be had on this property. Going by what you have said I would go with an initial offer of 270k and prepare to go higher, if you can.

[kittensliveupstairs]

Agree with Gonzo.
Good luck.

[Imnotaslimjim]

I agree too, 270k sounds like a fair offer, good luckq

[Thromdimbulator]

With your comparable that sold for 250k, remember that this is a stamp duty threshold and it may (or may not!) have sold for a little more if there wasn't such a massive disincentive in tax terms.

I agree with your conclusions - can't see how you could gain a position of strength unless you are not in a hurry, prepared to risk loosing it and can wait for them to test the market. (Don't know where you live but renting it from them in 6 weeks might be the most ££ efficient!)

[mrsbabookaloo]

Sorry slight thread hijack, but was planning to start a thread asking about exactly what you've done: a leaflet drop.
There's a particular street near us which has maisonettes which match our requirements exactly: three beds, eat in kitchen, some have gardens, exactly the right area. We put in an offer on one which needed an enormous amount of work, but were beaten by a cash buyer who offered much closer to the asking price.
After looking at various other places, have realised that these are the only places which would work for us, and was thinking of leafleting.
So, it worked for you....what did you say in the leaflet? Isn't there a risk that they've got you over a barrel because they know how much you want the property and can up the price accordingly?
Any info gratefully received!

[microserf]

mrs bookaloo - you just described my street exactly! are you looking in London? i'd always read a leaflet drop, but as I have just bought, I'd probably file it away for reference. i'd mention it to my neighbours though.

[microserf]

oops. mrs babookaloo. sorry!

[Ealingkate]

Have they found somewhere??
I might be inclined to call one of the estate agents and say you live in the road that you want to buy in, describe your 'imaginary' house to be v similar and say you are interested in getting a valuation, but what kind of money do they think you would realistically get for 'yours', being that you know they have valued your near 'neighbour' recently. Depends if you think you could pull of the conversation??

[gettingeasier]

Whats the market in your area like ?

Different background but I was in the same position as you ie had the chance to buy before the house went on the open market

Very few houses like it for sale with demand far outstripping supply

Far more expensive than others sold on the street but then I always think unless you have actually been in them how meaningful is that

I knew if I didnt buy it at just short of asking price someone else would and it took a lot of stress away knowing that I wasnt in competition or in danger of being gazumped

Had a survey and he confirmed house correctly valued

If any of this rings true for you make a strong offer and get the house you want

[SparklePrincess]

Thanks people. :) This house would be chain free. They are buying a property, but are doing it independent of this sale, so it is great for us & worth paying a bit extra for. I think you have all pretty much confirmed what we were thinking. We'll go in at 270k & be prepared to pay 275k if necessary.

Although it could all be immaterial as our agents are now flapping about whether the people that offered on mine can actually afford to go ahead with it. I think its partly my agents wanting to get me a buyer who is using their mortgage advisor so they get more commission My buyers were previously going to buy another property up the road from mine, & when those vendors couldn't find anything & took the place off the market they came to see my house. My agents are keen to discredit the previous agents & their mortgage advisor who arranged these peoples mortgage agreement in principle. I find it very hard to know who to believe at the moment. I think its partly my buyers being concerned about proceeding until they know we have found something ourselves after their previous experience. Any thoughts on this one?

[SparklePrincess]

I am buying in a different more expensive area to where I currently live btw. One of the houses we saw (before we were in a position to proceed) actually went to sealed bids & got over the asking price, while others, which are imo overpriced are hanging around... Think our feelings over offering 270k on the house we like are the right ones. Only hope they accept it & it doesnt go t*ts up with our buyer.

[mrsbabookaloo]

hi, sorry I posted and then forgot to return! SparklePrincess, any advice on the leaflet drop? Did you put your phone number on it and risk getting a lot of time wasters? Should I ask an estate agent to do it for me?

Mircoserf, yes in SE London.

[microserf]

damn, we're SW - was about to put you in touch with a neighbour!

i get lots of estate agent drops where we are (we have buyers urgently looking in your street) and we assume they're a pack of lies to be honest as some agents around here have told us they're desperate for properties and are about to start door knocking to get them.

i'd definitely remember a personal leaflet. could you use a pay as you go mobile for the number maybe? avoid giving out your personal details?

[SparklePrincess]

Hi mrsbabookaloo, definitely do it yourself & your seller can save on EA fee's & pass on the benefits to you too hopefully. We put something along the lines of: "We are a young family looking to move into the area. We recently lost out on a house in your locality & were wondering if you, or anyone you know were interested in selling your home in the near future. If so please get in touch with on Tel or MOb Hope to hear from you soon.

So something along those lines. We dropped off 200 leaflets & got 2 responses. One was from some guy whose house is already on the market but more than our budget, the other from people considering marketing their property but not got round to doing valuations yet. We are hoping to buy their house! Good luck. :)

[mrsbabookaloo]

Hi again and a very belated thanks for your responses!
Can't decide what to do really, which is pretty typical for me!

[PigletJohn]

speaking as a current seller, I got the house valued by a couple of local agents, we got a lot of interest, and ended up accepting the best offer, which was 20% above the price they thought (and had put in the ad).

So if you are selling a house that people are likely to want, my experience says, put it on the open market. If I had sold it to one of the leafletters, they would have got by far the better end of the deal. Let the agent earn his money.