Nasty disagreement over house purchase

True
However the seller at this point hasn’t spent any money
The buyer however has paid for searches and a survey.

Ive walked away from buyers lowering the price at the last minute for a variety of reasons. They usually retract their lower offer in the end.
Ive never been in a chain though

For £2k if it's the house we wanted in the most perfect area, I would just agree. As house prices rise it would all even its self out in the end. But if you genuinely don't think it's worth it just leave your offer on the table and walk away.

HNRTT but if market prices in the location are dropping, if you are not willing to offer the sum they said is their minimum price then rather than increase your offer by £1k, I would sit on my hands and wait for them to look at the market then come back you.

Try a different technique. You say the house needs a lot of work doing, so list what that work is, come up with some basic quotes of what that work might be, and hit them with a couple of the improvement quotes. Don’t think about cosmetic stuff like redecorating, but stuff that really does need doing to make the house liveable. You can point this out, letting them know that you have a strict budget in mind and why you need to consider not increasing asking price. However, £2k on a half million house is chicken poo really, it does depend on if your OH is just being bloody minded, or thinking sensibly. If I got a hint as a seller of someone just trying it on I would just tell them to walk on by.

Whose paying for it?

An extra £2k on a house purchase for me would be a lot when you factor in stamp duty etc

It's not silly, you would have gained more vs offering a fixed price, and saved more offering lower.

it took me 3 years and 10 offers for different properties before I managed to buy one (last time around). It was hell.. There may be someone else willing to pay £2000 the seller is seeking so the property could be lost to you. Is he prepared for that?

And what if the survey does turn up a load of things? It's just another 10k?

You have to draw a line somewhere

It is not silly. It is a system for chancers, spivs and is a disgrace. It is the system in England and Wales only though, that in Scotland may not be perfect but is a lot better.

Yeah me too, how long is this sale going to take? Are they going to be like this with the onwards haggling over 2k? I'd say it's more of a risk to you.

This has been going on for a few weeks, so why are they risking everything for a better offer if they've not had one already?

How much were they originally asking?

Point of view

Part of me sees your husband's pow

If the seller will accept 558k why won't they accept 556?

Bizarre. I wonder how much they'll make on the sale? Probably hundreds of thousands.

I know I'm missing the point but your husband needs to stop with the insults.

Did you not ask him who the fuck he was calling a clown?

My husband was like this with house buying and it drove me INSANE. We had so many massive arguments about it.

@Alittlebyte

The British system is silly! "Making an offer indeed" - we have always when selling priced it fairly and indicated "fixed price - no offers". When buying we simply go at the asking price. All parties then know that they are professional about it. If my maths is correct I certainly would not fuss for 1%!

Your husband called you a clown bc you disagreed with him?

Is he usually so nasty?

You’ve offered twice already and assuming they were reasonable offers, I wouldn’t feel inclined to meet their price. I’d just leave £555K on the table and look elsewhere.

Why don't you say to the Estate Agent that you'll agree to meet the sellers half-way, split the difference, and offer £556,500? See what your DH says about that.

If he refuses to budge, then tell Estate Agents you'll leave the offer on the table for "x" amount of time,but you will be pursuing other properties in the meantime. There is always another house out there.

If you really want the house and are going to live in it for 5+ years then I'd agree the extra £2k and secure it. Over the lifetime you live in the property it likely won't make much difference.
There's a balance between getting a good price and alienating the vendor you then have to get to cooperate with you through legals.....
Our buyer of last house chose to be an absolute dick over £400....sale went through but I did absolutely zero cleaning before we left and all further favours like access for measurements were denied......

It goes the other way too.

The Buyer might offer £558k, then after the survey revise it down to £550k after the Seller has become invested in their onward purchase and would have concerns about the chain breaking if they refuse.

Yeah, are you really sure you want to buy a house with this nasty bloke?

Is there anyone else interested in the house? If there is, you both need to be prepared to lose the house over this.

I actually disagree, I think it’s useful in case the estate agent has to persuade a buyer to take your offer over others. Plus it obviously doesn’t signify you’ll pay more than it’s worth.