Do your local agents all know each other's business? Who's offered on what etc??

[faraday]

Curious (but not cross!). We have an accepted offer in on a local house. Thing is since the acceptance (July 7th) we've heard NOTHING from our vendor's solicitor.

We think it's a fair assumption they've either got cold feet or are playing games (ie getting themselves set up with a purchase before moving on us). Understandable, but not impressive as we're cashed up and renting BUT buying in God's Own Catchment. House was 'sold' thru agent 1.

We went away for a week saying to agent 1 that we expected the fixtures list by the time we got home. Nothing.

So today I called agent 2 to see if a couple of properties they'd advertised over the absent week were still available. (no!)

Imagine my surprise when he (agent 2 with whom remember we have no dealings other than looking!) called, an hour later to say 'You've offered on Gasworks Road, haven't you, which agent 1 is selling- ARE you still looking as you said this morning?- I've been calling agent 1 for the last hour but can't get a reply (Sat)...'- all polite etc but HOW DOES HE KNOW? Apart from the fact our alleged vendors were today putting in an offer on one of agent 2's properties. Fair enough but even so I can't see why our vendors would need or want to tell agent 2 (with whom they have no dealings except as lookers)who WE are! DO they confer at that level? Or does agent 2 have a means of CHECKING a potential buyer's position ie For Sale, Under Offer, Sold- PLUS the name of a potential buyers OWN buyer??

OK, this all actually works in our favour in some ways. We're annoyed that we've been lured into someone's chain as we're chain free (I guess it was inevitable) BUT at least now BOTH agents know we're getting pee'd off at waiting (thus are 'looking' again) AND we know our supposed vendors WILL now act as they need our money to buy the house they offered on (and were accepted) today!

However, it actually seems a bit unethical- that agent 2, and I imagine, therefore agent 1 will know EVERYONE'S position by Monday!

[LIZS]

If your vendors are going through Agent 2 , part of putting in place an offer is showing that they are in a short closed chain (makes them look more viable and attarctive) so yes they would know and would speak to Agent 1 to verify what they have been told. Perfectly normal practice in negotiating a sale.

[faraday]

Ah, I see! I guess that that never happened to us in that we're cash buyers (though haven't been asked to prove we can stump up the full price from our account).

SO you're saying our vendors will have been asked to show paperwork proving they had a buyer which would have named us? And agent 2recognised our name as I'd only spoken to him a couple of hours earlier?

[LIZS]

Not sure they need paper evidence but there would certainly have been a conversation between agents to establish the proceedability of the offer your vendors would make before it was put to EA 2 's clients.

[NoseyHelen]

Our vendor's vendor's agent wanted to speak to our agent about our buyer to ensure our chain was as short, and far progressed, as we claimed.