House purchase - how to reduce the offer?

[elizabeatle]

If buying a house, and the original offer was made subject to survey, and something comes up that makes you want to reduce the offer (before exchange of contracts), do you do that via the estate agent, via the solicitor, or both at the same time? And is it likely to increase the solicitor costs?

It sounds like you're a first time buyer. Is the thing that has come up massively costly?

I've noticed FTBs tend to think they should be able to ask people to fix things, or get a price reduction for all sorts of minor issues when in fact you can try, but the likelihood is they will just decide to sell the house to someone else who's willing to pay.

Unless it's something like a 30k roof replacement for example.

Either way you'd go via the estate agent if you did decide to change your offer.

Via the estate agents.
I did it, as my surveyor valued the house below my offer.
I just told the estate agent that.
I also said I’d pull out of the sale if it wasn’t accepted as I wasn’t prepared to pay more than the house was worth.
The sellers were fine about it.

Agree this is totally reasonable. However have seen a lot of FTBs lose the house they want due to quibbling about a few grand because of minor, normal wear and tear issues.

I would email the estate agent. It’s probably good form to let your solicitor know as well in case you need to pause anything. If it causes the sale to fall through, you’ll still need to pay the solicitor’s fees, but if you can halt anything now before it’s done, at least you can save possibly a bit of money.

Unless it’s something like it needs a £40k new roof or £50k worth of new electrics, it really isn’t worth it.

I'm not a first time buyer, just a first time offer reducer.

You would speak to the Estate Agent.

In my opinion, you should explain the reason behind the decreased offer too - though be prepared to have to 'walk away' if the decreased offer isn't accepted.

If it's 'the one that you want' and the survey issue isn't a massive amount of money, you should consider just leaving the existing offer as it is.

Some Solicitors have a clause written into the contract so you need to check what you have already signed.

Friends of ours just had a 20k reduction put forward post survey as they realised they'd want to redo the bathroom, no structural or plumbing issues, perfectly clean and fully operational just not to their tastes, they'd seen this bathroom twice on viewings. I think they'd planned to use something in the survey but nothing of note came up. I read this is happening more with FTBs now.

What are your grounds for the reduction and how much of a reduction are you looking at?

Usually you can only use the survey as grounds for reduction if there is something significant that will need remedying but which was neither visible nor disclosed at the time of making the offer - so, if it says the wiring is dangerous and needs to be redone throughout, or subsidence has been found etc. One of our buyers tried to reduce the price by £5k because the internal window ledge in the downstairs loo was a bit loose. We told him where to go.

Without more info on what it is in the survey that has alarmed you, we can’t advise you.

I didn't ask for advice, though I know the mumsplainers love to give it anyway 🙂. It was a process question, and it's been answered.

Well how fucking rude are you? OBVIOUSLY to speak to the estate agent and tell them you want to reduce your offer - BUT you need to have reasonable grounds to do so (as Mumsplained above) or the EA and vendors may get fed up and walk away.

If you approach them with the attitude you’ve just shown towards me, they will hopefully tell you where to shove your lower offer and put it back on the market, thereby losing the money you’ve already invested in legal fees and the survey. I know I would.