Should we accept this offer?

[pinksky]

Our flat has been on the market for 4 weeks, on at 220k. We've had two people in to see it. Both have offered. The first made an offer at 210 but have pulled out subsequently after finding out that they couldn't have a dog here. The second have just made a third offer of 208 after we told them that we would accept at 210 (1st was at 200, 2nd at 205).

We need every penny at the moment and I feel that it's still early days, plus we're chain free so flexible etc. However, it seems silly to quibble over 2k and I would hate to regret not taking it if we get no more interest.

Has anyone got a crystal ball? Failing that, any thoughts on whether we should accept the 208?

Thanks in advance

[AnnoyingOrange]

I'd take it

[Mama1980]

I'd take it tbh. For the sake of 2k

[pinksky]

Thanks very much, AnnoyingOrange and Mama1980 Unanimous!

[lalalonglegs]

I third taking it.

[financialwizard]

I fourth taking the 208k

[pinksky]

thank you both also! OK, I'm going to go and say yes. Phew.

[aufaniae]

Definitely take it. If it's only £2k short that's not worth losing a real sale over, to chase another offer which might not be forthcoming.

Unless you're in London, prices may well fall anyway, they seem to be round here (south coast), so it may seem like a good offer in a few months!

[frostyfingers]

Take it, but maybe put a condition on exchange and completion dates. It would be deeply frustrating to accept it and then have them mess you around and keep you waiting.

[aufaniae]

Cross posts! I see you've made a decision :) have you started house hunting yet? Hope it goes well :)

[pinksky]

Thank you aufaniae and frostyfingers. Putting a condition on it is not a bad idea.
Desperately want to start house hunting but don't think we'd get a mortgage until the new year (HB new job, I'm on a fixed term contract) so we're moving into rented for a while.

Thanks all for the advice

[pinksky]

*we also thought it would be wise for stress and finances to split selling / moving if we could...

[lalalonglegs]

I think putting conditions on it regarding speed of transaction is pretty futile at the moment - I have sold two properties in the past year, both chain-free to keen FTBs and solicitors have become so pernickety scrupulous about pursuing every last detail that it has taken four months in each case to get
to exchange. If you hit Christmas in the middle it could be anyone's guess .

[frostyfingers]

Well you could always try "if we aren't exchanged by such and such a date then it's back on the market....." Although you would have to be pretty confident to do that.

Make sure you have all your paperwork, absolutely everything you can think of, ready and waiting and with your solicitor so there's no hanging about, and don't be shy about keeping in contact with the solicitor. If they say they will ring back and don't, then ring them, get them to email and fax as much as possible rather than post and don't be afraid to ask them to do the same with your purchasers solicitor. Our purchasers solicitor refused to email or fax anything, it all had to be done by post and he was a complete and utter pain in the neck. He refused to talk to our lovely, newly qualified (well she's only been qualified 2 years he said) lady solicitor, and would only correspond via his secretary. He was a tosser of the first order but we got their in the end.

See what they say - if they do start messing about you can always pull out. Lala, four months is terrible. We accepted an offer on 1st March and were gone by 30th April, and I thought that was long enough!

[CuddyMum]

Take it! I'd bite their arm off for an offer so close.

[1605]

I'm in London and I'm not counting on prices rising for normal homes.

In fact in the last two weeks I'm seeing a lot of price cuts. Everything under a million or so seems to be stuck. I'm wondering if anyone who was in a position to buy did so when rents rocketed and interest rates plunged; now the only people left in the market are the ones who can't get mortgages or don't earn enough to pay the kinds of eyewatering 2007+ prices we were seeing at the beginning of this year.

(I appreciate that a £1m house still sounds like a lottery win property to anyone elsewhere, but here in Zone 2 it buys you a terraced house in need of modernisation).

[pinksky]

thanks everyone for your insight & advice, I really appreciate it. We have actually settled on 209 after a second offer came in. Fingers' crossed this all goes through fine and relatively quickly.

Thanks to Property Bee we've seen a lot of houses going from under offer/SSTC back to available, and huge price cuts - one house we looked at had been reduced three times from a starting price of 345 to now 269, ouch.

I was surprised that those coming through our door were not very young people/first time buyers (as we were back in 2006) but people in their 50s wanting to downsize - our flat is expensive for a one bed in our area, and I guess these are the only people who can afford to consider houses at the top end.