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AIBU?

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Original poster

To reject this womans offer? (More of a WWYD)

29 replies

curiousgeorgie · 21/02/2012 10:57

DH and I are currently selling our house. Its been on the market about 10 weeks and today after some haggling we've got an offer 15 under the asking price from a lady who viewed 3 times last week - and seemed very lovely.

The price is great and actually more than we thought we'd get, but the agent has worried me by saying 'Mrs X is a very very nervous buyer, shes pulled out of sales with us twice before'

Now I understand the ups and downs of buying houses, she could have got something unpredictable on the survery / something happened with funding etc. But I'm pregnant and really would like to at least have a moving date in sight by the time this baby (DC2) is born. I'm just worried that so much time will pass, then she'll drop out, and we'll have to start all over again.

Is it stupid to reject a perfectly good offer just because of a comment the estate agent made?

(Sorry if boring!!)

OP posts:
jeee · 21/02/2012 10:59

I would worry about the estate agent's comment. If you do decide to accept her offer you need to keep a very close eye on her. If she starts dragging her feet over surveys or solicitors I'd drop out of the deal very fast.

CailinDana · 21/02/2012 11:00

Would she agree to let you keep the house on the market until completion? That way you have an offer but the floor is still open for other offers to come in. Tell her that the offer is a little low (white lie) and you'd rather keep it on the market but if no other offer comes along before completion then it's hers. Hopefully that'll give her a boot up the arse to get moving with the paperwork and at the same time you won't miss out on any other possible offers. If she says no, and backs out, well then the decision is made for you.

Lueji · 21/02/2012 11:01

You could accept but still leave on the market, or ask her to increase the offer to remove the adds.

WorraLiberty · 21/02/2012 11:01

I don't know

I think I'd ask the Estate Agent to check when her mortgage offer runs out. As far as I know, they only last about 6 months so hers might be nearing the end.

It's a tough one really...if you refuse to sell to her, you might not get another buyer for months.

dressmeplease · 21/02/2012 11:02

You could accept the offer but mutally agree that you would not tale your property off the market untill a financial commitment has been made ie surveys carried out and solicitors instructed. - bitter experience speaking!

GlueSticksEverywhere · 21/02/2012 11:03

I think you can agree a time to complete by but I am not exactly sure how you make her stick to it.

saintlyjimjams · 21/02/2012 11:05

Accept but tell her a previous experience with a flakey buyer means the house is on the market until exchange. Or you could take it off and put it back on at first sign of flakiness.

TreacleSoda · 21/02/2012 11:08

hmmm, I hate to make things worse but the 'she has pulled out of sales with us ' bit makes me think 'and that's just the one's that this particular estate agent knows about'.

I saw a colleague go through hell with a woman like this a few years ago, it wasn't pretty. They ended up paying the woman's stamp duty for her out of their own savings because she tried to pull out after contracts were signed and everything. When she tried to pull out, even after signing a legally binding contract, her family got in contact to say that if they (the vendors) tried to sue her, they would fight to have her declared not mentally competent. In the end it was easier for them to pay her thousands from their own pocket just to make the sale go through.

Sorry to be the bringer of doom, I really hope your 'buyer' isn't like this, but its a cautionary tale.

lashingsofbingeinghere · 21/02/2012 11:10

If you agree to the sale ask for exchange of contract within 28 days. That way you won't lose too much time if she does pull out.

OlympicEater · 21/02/2012 11:17

Hmm there is a woman in our village with a somewhat chaotic home life who has gone through every Estate Agent in town putting her house up for sale, and making offers on houses and then pulling out just before exchange - it cost my friend a fortune as she had paid for survey, mortgage arrangement fees when she wanted to buy her house. I wonder if it is the same woman.

I think your EA has tried to warn you about her reputation and you would be wise to heed it - sorry.

Original poster
curiousgeorgie · 21/02/2012 11:27

lashingsofbingeinghere - How do I do that? Doesn't it naturally take quite a long time with solicitors going back and forth?

OP posts:
PopcornBiscuit · 21/02/2012 11:38

I'd steer clear. The agent wants to sell your house too - they profit from it after all - so it was good of them to warn you about this person.

If you do go for it, make sure you give very strict stipulations about when you expect things to be completed by. Then if that doesn't happen, move on.

GlueSticksEverywhere · 21/02/2012 12:10

Why not have a chat with the agent about why they think this woman dropped out twice.

chunkythighs · 21/02/2012 12:27

I 'spent' over ?5000 on solicitors on people like this when I was trying to sell my house. Your estate agent is clearly telling you to stay away. Take his advice IMO.

PomBearAtTheGatesOfDoom · 21/02/2012 12:43

The estate agents fees will have some component that depends on them actually selling your house I think? that's what they do. For the agent to actually mention that they have doubts about this woman being bona fide in her offer would worry me a lot - they didn't have to say anything at all and I can't think why they would, unless they genuinely feel she will back out. I'd turn her down - you have a ready made reason in that her offer is so far under the asking price.

BettySwollocksandaCrustyRack · 21/02/2012 12:53

If you can accept the offer but leave it on the market until the deal is sealed........

Borntobeamum · 21/02/2012 12:54

What about asking for a deposit as a goodwill gesture?

PeppyNephrine · 21/02/2012 12:56

Pretty unprofessional of them to be telling you that at all.

SoupDragon · 21/02/2012 13:01

"Pretty unprofessional of them to be telling you that at all."

Not at all. They are employed by the seller, not the buyer. If she has proved to be unreliable in the past I think they are right to warn the seller.

Deliaskis · 21/02/2012 13:04

Agree you should accept but advise you will be leaving it on the market until exchange of contracts.

We've been let down by this kind of person in the past, and if it was just that they were nervous (but harmless) then fair enough, but it ended up costing us thousands in mortgage and solicitor fees, only to be back at square one, so I would defo be more cautious in the same situation again.

D

Deliaskis · 21/02/2012 13:05

OlympicEater are you me?

5Foot5 · 21/02/2012 13:07

Another vote here for accepting the offer but keeping it on the market just in case.

The first time I sold a house it was on the market a while with no real action so we had stopped seriously looking ourselves because we knew we could not put in an offer until we had one on ours. Eventually this woman turned up and gushed over the place and said she would pay the asking price!

Within days we had viewed a house we really liked and put in an offer, only to discover that our buyer had just lost interest. The agent then told us he had heard she had form for this - she just liked viewing houses Angry

Fortunately he sent some more people round and one of those made an offer and was solid about it so we stlll managed to get the house we wanted.

Flatbread · 21/02/2012 13:08

Hmm, really tough one. My inclination would be to accept the offer, but like others said, stipulate closing in six weeks and that the house would remain on the market till then.

ragged · 21/02/2012 13:11

I would try to have a much longer chat with the estate agent about why she pulled out before. Make a decision on back of that.

coraltoes · 21/02/2012 13:38

Hello op.
I had this when I sold my flat. So when the second buyer came along we made her agree to put £5k into an escrow account. We did the same. If either party pulle dout, the victim would receive the payout to cover any inconvenience. She was happy to do this and we had our backs covered with regards to fees and survey on place we were buying.

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