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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think this is weird when viewing a house?

192 replies

lemoncurd20 · 27/05/2015 17:36

We are potential FTBs and viewed our first house today.

The owner was there... aibu to think this is weird?

It was really awkward... or is it normal?

OP posts:
Sophieelmer · 27/05/2015 18:49

I hate vendors being home! It really puts me off. I find it harder to imagine it as mine, it stops the house being anonymous

HoneyDragon · 27/05/2015 18:52

I try and do the best of both worlds which the EA quite liked. I bugger of for viewings but if serious buyers want to knock on the door and ask about the house area than they are welcome to do so.

MissMooMoo · 27/05/2015 18:53

FTB last year.
Probably viewed 20-25 properties and owners were not present at any of them.
all properties I viewed were an open house day so I suppose that is why.
it would make me feel uncomfortable too because how do you talk about re painting, how awful the kitchen is etc.

StickChildNumberTwo · 27/05/2015 18:54

Having bought recently, we had about 50/50 vendors/agents showing us round and I'd rather have a considerate vendor any time (i.e. one who gives you some space to have a good nosy once they've done the tour). The agent who showed us the one we bought was hopeless, knew absolutely nothing about it and didn't even check things properly. (On the second viewing we asked to see in the garage and he swore blind he didn't have a key. When I collected the one set of keys the agents claimed to have, so definitely the ones the agent used, there was a key on it clearly labelled 'garage'). We still bought it, but having the owners there would have been far more helpful (they live abroad so it was never going to be an option for them).

Mehitabel6 · 27/05/2015 18:55

If the agent is expecting me to be out and to do the viewing they would have to be disappointed. I am paying them to sell my house and so they have to do it my way and I show people around!
I have always been shown around by the owners unless the property is empty.

unlucky83 · 27/05/2015 18:56

I would prefer both -agent for one viewing, owner for a second - or vice versa.
When we bought our first house we had two viewings both with the owner showing us round ...we never got to have a really good look at anything - in cupboards etc and we felt rushed on one...(she answered the phone within 5 mins of us getting there and said she would be there as soon as possible Hmm - in retrospect I think it was deliberate!)

I could say she was very good at selling it ...she managed to describe all the neighbours and say how nice they were etc - and not mention the local nightmare who lived right next door.
She managed to distract from bad points -so one example the kitchen needed replacing anyway but we needed to live with it for a while. The floor tiles were missing in front of the sink, covered with a mat...I later realised both viewings she had been stood on the mat all the time we were in the kitchen and pointing out positives and things out of the window....only realised when we got the keys and the mat had gone! Lots of other nasty surprises too! In fact I cried when I first got the keys Sad - I was 7 months pregnant though too! Not helped by the fact the deeds were missing or something so it took a couple of months to finalise. Her 21 year old son (who didn't want to leave) had been living there. The house was filthy, thick dog hairs on the stairs and the living room carpet had marks on that the carpet cleaning guy said was from dog urine being left on it...and I got to open cupboards and realise the kitchen was in a worse state than I thought etc. (And there was no heating upstairs!...antiquated hot air system - said gas central heating on the schedule, survey did say partial but I missed that Sad) etc etc

The second house we bought we had an agent and the owner's (in a home) daughter...we spent ages there! No surprises!

manchestermummy · 27/05/2015 18:58

Normal.

We viewed one place that had - I kid you not - pubic hairs in the bath. Dd1 who was three at the time and had no off switch yelled out "EW EW EW mummy there are hairs in the bath and it's FILTHY".

Reader, you guessed it, the vendor was downstairs.

FriendlyLadybird · 27/05/2015 19:00

I once had to do a viewing because my DS (then about 18 months) had fallen asleep when I'd popped him in his cot while I tidied up. It wasn't very effective, though, as the viewers crept into his room then just stood round his cot saying 'awww' and forgot to look at the room!

19lottie82 · 27/05/2015 19:13

I viewed 4 places when I was looking to buy and 3 of the owners were there at the time. I think the other property wasn't occupied at the time also.

PenguinsandtheTantrumofDoom · 27/05/2015 19:14

Very normal. We went out if we could, but depending on time of day we couldn't always manage. We tried to stay out of the way though.

Apintofbest · 27/05/2015 19:20

Our house is on the market and we were away for 2 of the viewings - we asked the estate agent to do the viewings and you'd honestly have thought we'd asked then to sacrifice their first born. I really had to bite my tongue to stop myself saying 'and we're paying you your extortionate commission for exactly what........'

Eigg · 27/05/2015 19:21

I'm in Scotland and the only time I've ever been shown round by an agent was if the vendor had already moved out of the area.

We always show our own houses, but I do always give buyers a chance to look round with out me immediately there too.

S0mmer · 27/05/2015 19:23

Not usual but not abnormal either. The owner can usually answer your questions!!!

MagentaVitus · 27/05/2015 19:23

SO normal.

pigsDOfly · 27/05/2015 19:29

Sold a house about six months ago and was more or less expected to be out when the house was shown to perspective buyers.

Any estate agents I spoke to said the same thing: they like to show the houses themselves and everything is more relaxed if owner isn't there.

I did show to one couple because they turned up an hour early and it seemed churlish to send them away, particularly as I was desperate to sell the house.

Why would anyone want to show the house themselves. I'd have felt very uncomfortable hanging around while people were wandering around my home.

Apart from that I paid the estate agent a hell of a lot of money, I certainly wouldn't have expected to have to do their job for them as well.

JassyRadlett · 27/05/2015 19:31

I'm not sure why people expect owners to be more honest than agents - owners have a greater financial interest in selling the place!

I think it must be regional. I've only ever had the owners home twice when viewing, once was a bloke with a young kid - they stayed in the kitchen but it brought home to us that we didn't want the one-bed place they were clearly now stuck in with their 18 month old. The other was an elderly couple who sat in their chairs in the conservatory.

I don't mind the owners being home, but them showing is around would be offputting. DH visualises things better if you describe it in situ, and I'd be too worried about mortally offending the vendor and seeing the house go elsewhere to have an honest and productive conversation with my husband.

MayPolist · 27/05/2015 19:34

Of course it is normal! They live there!!!

Girlwhowearsglasses · 27/05/2015 19:35

Normal although I got the feeling that agents let people who were psychos show buyers around but avoided idiots/hoarders/students showing you around. We met some interesting people!

Girlwhowearsglasses · 27/05/2015 19:36

Duh- 'weren't' psychos! iPhone fail

treaclesoda · 27/05/2015 19:36

I've bought twice and sold once. Have only ever been shown round by an estate agent a couple of times. I found it really offputting when we had to go to a viewing and it was being done by the estate agent, because a couple of times we drove 30 miles to the house then waited all evening outside whilst no one turned up and we couldn't contact them. Also I tended to think that if the owner wasn't willing to show us round they must have something to hide. It was good to be able to ask questions about the boiler, the traffic, the parking etc. But I never felt awkward with the owners there - if I wanted to know how big a cupboard was, I asked them to show me. No one ever refused or seemed offended.

I never clapped eyes on an estate agent the whole time we were selling our house, beyond the initial meeting when they took the photos; they certainly didn't offer to show anyone around for us. All they did was produce the brochure and set up the appointment, they didn't 'sell' it, we did that.

lechie · 27/05/2015 19:36

I prefer to have the owner show me round - it's not about them being more honest, but just that they know more about the house. For example, how old the boiler is, when the kitchen was fitted, how much of the attic has been boarded - general house maintenance questions, what the neighbours are like, how many children are on the estate.... Questions that quite often the agent just won't know. I remember viewing a house once and asking if a room had a phone line... and the agent started looking for one - I could do that myself!

PuppyMonkey · 27/05/2015 19:39

We last moved 15 years ago, so times have clearly changed as I can't recall a single viewing where an estate agent showed us round - it was always the owners.

Also, with our house sale, the agent would call and ask if it was convenient for a viewer to come round and if it wasn't we'd have to come up with a time when it was. There was no suggestion that an agent would host the viewing instead. Confused
My DP hosted the first few people who looked round out house, but he kept talking too much and pointing out faults and putting people off. So I took over and sold it on the spot for full asking price after one viewing.

Makes me wonder a bit now why we paid the estate agent so much as I can't really remember them doing much. Grin

ipswichwitch · 27/05/2015 19:41

Out of the many many houses I have viewed over the years, I've only had the estate agents show us 2 and they were empty, and being shown during an open house.

Mind, we've pretty my seen it all when it comes to house viewings - family members sleeping in bed; divorcing couples actually having a full blown argument mid-viewing; the Texas chainsaw house of horrors (a room full of chains, saws, axes and walls painted red!). There are some seriously odd people out there!

Girlwhowearsglasses · 27/05/2015 19:41

Plus IME a 25 year old man has no idea whatsoever what a damp course/mega flo heating system/child friendly room/carefully restored plaster ceiling/ significant architectural item is , nor its history. If the vendor has doen stuff to the house they will know far more than the idiot estate agent (unless they a re an idiot like our vendor)

daftbesom · 27/05/2015 19:44

Normal in Scotland.