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AIBU?

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Original poster

to be a bit hesitant about someone whose house isn't on the market viewing my property

57 replies

boozysuzy16 · 16/08/2016 22:16

I have agreed to it anyway so its a bit of a non issue but having not sold a house before I wondered if this was normal or perhaps they just wanted to snoop. Its only been on the market for 24 hours and I've got 3 viewings booked in.

They are apparently in the same village and haven't got theirs on the market as they couldn't find anything they liked until now but their house is ready 'at the click of a button' according to the agent. I have until now, refrained from viewing other properties as I didnt want people to make a special effort to tidy etc (being pregnant and having a toddler i know how hard this can be!) if I'm not in a position to make an offer. Perhaps I should revise that and go and view some.

OP posts:
EndodSummerLooming · 16/08/2016 23:50

You can't tell. Last house I sold had about six viewings. The offer came from a chap I watched park. Shake hands with the agent. Go inside, come out after less than four minutes and drive off poker faced. He offered next morning v close to the asking price.

Dumbled · 17/08/2016 00:01

We started looking at houses before being on market. Mainly as there was barely anything for sale in the areas we were looking at. Seemed a bit pointless if there was nothing worth going to market for.
Found something we like so rushed to Market just for this house and was live 4 days later. We have let people view ours not on market as you never know. Plus with Brexit etc can you afford to be overly fussy?
Estates agents don't seem
Mind we aren't sold yet when we book to view- very different from 5 years ago when we needed to be under offer to even be allowed to look

Pemba · 17/08/2016 02:23

I think you should be on the market at least before making offers. A few years ago when we sold we had a good offer from a woman who had not yet put hers on the market. When hers did come on a week or so later it was really overpriced, so we knew she would be ages selling.

We accepted a lower offer from someone else who was ready to proceed. The first woman's house remained on the market for about 10 months, with the price constantly being cut. We actually wanted to move in a reasonable time frame, so we think it was the right decision.

It just seems the wrong way round to do it, TBH, although I can see it might work possibly in a very fast-moving market. (But how do you know what you can afford to offer when you don't know what you will get for your own?) Also as it is a bit of an effort to prepare for viewings, I don't think it is right to book viewings unless you are serious.

Dogsmom · 17/08/2016 07:45

I agree it's a pain and when I was selling I said I wouldn't accept viewers who were either sold or cash as it was such a faff getting the house ready with 3 dogs and a new baby, it seemed pointless letting someone view if there was no way they could offer, yes they may love it and want to buy it but it could take weeks/months for theirs to sell.

I did however view the house I live in now before I was on the market but purely because the ea was so pushy, it'd been for sale 2 years and she insisted the vendors didn't mind, I think she just wanted to show they were able to get viewers as it was on the market with 2 local agents. We loved it so put ours up and sold within 2 weeks, I didn't like the ea though so arranged the 2nd viewing through the rival ea's and completed the purchase through them.

ThroughThickAndThin01 · 17/08/2016 07:53

I hope you didn't make your vendor pay two fees Dogsmom', making a point of viewing through both the agents.

YelloDraw · 17/08/2016 07:57

wish I could have got them to view at the same time but apparently the EA couldn't co-ordinate it

Back to back appointments - ok. Group appointments - no. Most buyers hate going round a house in a group, you can't have a proper look, feel rushed, can't ask the types of questions you might want to etc.

FarAwayHills · 17/08/2016 08:00

It depends how keen you are to sell, the market is a bit flat at the moment so turning down viewings might not be in your interest as you just never know. Also as you've not found anywhere to move to either so the whole process is going to take time anyhow. Ideally we all want a cash buyer but it's not always as easy as that.

MoonlightMedicine · 17/08/2016 08:03

I've seen two friends recently buy houses without first selling their current one, because they were in the fortunate position of being able to afford to do that. You don't know their situation.

Good luck with the sale OP

Kalispera · 17/08/2016 08:05

I think if you want to sell, there's no sense in turning away potential buyers, although they may not be in the 100% ideal position.

Houseconfusion · 17/08/2016 08:06

We viewed a house without ours on the market on a Monday.

Our house went on the market on the Wednesday.

We had 17 viewings and 3 offers above our asking price by Friday. 10 offers at full asking price.

Paperwork was in to solicitors by the Tuesday of the following week - 8 days from the day we viewed a house without ours being on the market.

2 months later this week we exchanged contracts:

6th September we move out and in.

trafalgargal · 17/08/2016 08:21

So the agent had summed you up perfectly dogs mum and showed you exactly what you wanted even though you didn't believe it was til you saw it ......and you "punished" them by diluting their fee by viewing a second time with another agent? You sound lovely.

OliviaStabler · 17/08/2016 08:22

I wouldn't allow viewings unless the viewers are proceedable. It is a waste of time as they can't out in an offer even if they loved the place and they could be lookie loos.

Gardencentregroupie · 17/08/2016 08:26

When I viewed the house I now live in my flat wasn't on the market.

Unipottimus · 17/08/2016 08:26

I worked in an estate agents for several years. It is completely normal. Some people will only move for 'the right' property and so won't market there's until they find something. It's especially common in small towns. In our agents they would have been classified 'bronze'. We liked to call them TWOFTs (Total waste of fucking time). They weren't really though in fact they often surprised us sold their houses within a few weeks and ended up buying!

Scarydinosaurs · 17/08/2016 08:30

We had a flat that we knew would sell very quickly so viewed before we put it on the market (photos all done and ready to go) and put an offer in to have it turned down as we hadn't sold yet. We did sell (within 48 hours) and the people who turned down our offer had accepted another that then pulled out and were still on the market long after we'd moved.

champersandgin · 17/08/2016 08:32

I hope you didn't make your vendor pay two fees Dogsmom', making a point of viewing through both the agents.

That's what I was going to say. I'm really surprised the second EA allowed that to happen. Here the agents refer purchasers back to the agent that introduced them to the property.

Unipottimus · 17/08/2016 08:36

*I hope you didn't make your vendor pay two fees Dogsmom', making a point of viewing through both the agents.

That's what I was going to say. I'm really surprised the second EA allowed that to happen. Here the agents refer purchasers back to the agent that introduced them to the property.*

By law the first agent can claim their fees from the vendor even if they've already paid to the second. Usually though the second agent will pay it as they should have checked who introduced them. The place I worked was hot on it and had a member of staff to check any sale of a property that was on with us and another agent or went to another one. They won loads of claims back.

jellyhead · 17/08/2016 08:38

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MidniteScribbler · 17/08/2016 08:57

I always buy before I sell. I usually plan to renovate, so I want to hold both properties at the same time so I can get work done and not live in a building site. Anyone who refused me looking at their house because I was not already on the market is someone I'd not want to deal with because they really don't seem to understand the concept of real estate.

BurnTheBlackSuit · 17/08/2016 09:05

For a different perspective, my friend's parents used to view local houses for sale for fun at the weekends. They had no intention of buying, but we're just nosey- a bit of a hobby really.

Original poster
boozysuzy16 · 17/08/2016 09:52

Burntheblacksuit- this is what I don't want but I guess you never know.

I'm a bit hesitant to view without an offer as if I find something I like and someone proceed able gets it, I'd be gutted! It's the way the UK market works though I guess

OP posts:
PolterGoose · 17/08/2016 10:28

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

EatsShitAndLeaves · 17/08/2016 10:44

I viewed a house recently when mine isn't on the market.

Upshot is DH and I like our current property but keep our eye on the market for that "special" house that really would be "forever".

We have very specific requirements and in 5 years we have only looked at 2 houses which in the end didn't measure up.

If we put our current house on the market we know it would sell very quickly and without pinning down a house we really want to buy it just doesn't make sense to put ours up for sale.

I'd keep an open mind. The more people who view your house the more likely you are to get an offer (or better still multiple offers).

ToriaPumpkin · 17/08/2016 11:00

We viewed a house and put an offer in which was accepted. Our house went on the market a week later, we accepted an offer 36 hours later (and had four other viewings lined up) and we completed on the sale and purchase less than six weeks after that despite the solicitors all closing for two weeks over Christmas and New Year.

I've also had open viewing slots and showed people around a previous house who clearly had no intention of buying but wanted to see the house. You win some, you lose some.

bloodynoris · 17/08/2016 18:54

I've started looking at properties before my house will be going on to the market due to the fact we sold in 3 days for £1k unasking price and then lost that buyer as we couldn't find anything and then we sold again in 5 days for asking price and lost that buyer as well as we still couldn't find anything. We are in a area where things sell so quick so in the new year we will be doing exactly the same thing offering before we even go on the market.