Or is the person we're buying a house from totally fucking batshit?

[sootspritez]

I'm gonna start by saying I know I'm not being unreasonable, however I am inexperienced, so looking for some guidance on where you think things have gone wrong and what I can now do to placate this nutjob vendor. NC as outing. Will try not to drip feed.

Dh and I are first time buyers. Visited a house. Loved it. Offered full asking price. All fine up until this point.

3 weeks after offer is accepted the survey happens. This is when things start going south.

Let's say that house was on market for 150k. Survey came back and said the house was only work 137k due to needing new Windows, chimney work, roof tiles, etc and the bank believe this was all the house was worth.

Survey cost in excess of £500 so fairly decent survey for a reasonable priced house. Put it to the agents that unfortunately this is now all we can offer as the mortgage lenders I.e. bank believe it's all the house is worth due to work needing doing. Fully prepared to be told tough and that they're holding out for the full price as I know they rejected a previous offer for being slightly below asking.

Vendor agrees to sell for 137k immediately. Phew... Or so we thought.

From this point on the following has happened via estate agents -

• vendor has cancelled 3 second viewings because they were inconvenient though she initially agreed

• she has denied entrance to the property for a contractor to come out with us to estimate how much work needs doing

• pointlessly got in touch to specify that now that they had gone below asking that all appliances wouldn't be included (I didn't want her appliances)

• asked EA to ask us TWICE if we would be willing to offer them more money despite accepting price given by mortgage lender

• when we have asked for another viewing she has proposed just insane times '20 mins at 6pm on the last Sunday of the month' '30 mins at 10.30am exactly 4 weeks on friday' despite us offering to be entirely flexible where possible (I.e. evenings and weekends at her convenience but would be willing to book an hour off work if she can guarantee the time). She says she cannot guarantee time as she works fill time and has 2 boys who play football until 8pm every single night and all day every weekend and they are her priority.

She has told the EA that she thinks we are inflexible and both the EA and the branch manager have apologised to us for her behaviour but obviously won't challenge her on it.

Am I right in thinking she's pissed off about lowering the price and just doesn't wanna sell her house?!

What @DippyAvocado said.

I don’t think you understand feduppp. OP has already achieved a price reduction in line with the valuation. It has nothing to do with the chimney or the measuring up she wants to do

I don’t think the seller is batshit, as others have alluded to she’s probably narked off about the reduction in value.

I also agree that she probably thinks that you’re going to want to reduce the price even more.

I hated our buyers wanting to tramp through our house (which was full of boxes) with every member of their extended family at every opportunity. After all they didn’t own it yet.

I think this comes down to how much you love the house/how much cash you have to throw at issues/the housing stock on the market.

If it is a gem, don’t be tight and fight over every pound. All houses are sold as seen to an extent.

Sorry OP but I don't think she's is BU. She's not being nice or helpful but she's not being unreasonable.

You viewed the property and made an offer which was accepted. You had a survey then renegotiated. Now you want a second viewing and to bring in a builder? You should have done your second viewing either before the offer (ideally) or before renegotiating. It may be nice of her to let you in to measure up but she really doesn't have to. She also doesn't have to allow your builder in.

If I was her and the house was popular, I'd put it back on the market.

If I were you, I'd walk away or push to get it through ASAP to get on with things.

We let a buyer (STC) several ‘after offer’ viewings. Parents, friends (!), measure furniture, measure curtains and, eventually, a builder....

We were getting very fed up with them (they were FTBs but I’m sure they were being ‘advised’). Every time they came round they found another issue to fuss about, then the Builder turned up and huffed and tutted and wrote things down and kept calling them over for whispered conversations.......the next day we got a reduced offer - from 260K to 220K due to structural defects that their Builder had found but the Surveyor had obviously missed!! This was 2 days before Exchange.

Obviously we declined. The flat was knowingly underpriced to sell and we had many offers so weren’t bothered - except for the time wasted which held up renovation of new house.

Anyway, long story short, turned out one of our renovators knew the Builder in question - aka Buyer’s Brother!

I’m unlikely to ever move again but if I did I would be very unlikely to allow visits with a Builder!!

I would be looking at other properties tbh, if she is not allowing you to have second viewings and being obstructive, big red flags. She could pull out as she seems very unsure.

As FTB, you're not going to have limitless cash to rectify this house. It's already been lowered on the basis of a professional surveyor and your mortgage company call the shots as that's all they will lend. The seller can sulk but it's what it is, she chose to continue. You do need to know whether you can afford the works and wanting another viewing to get that is a smart thing to do. It doesn't mean you're going to start asking for more money off, you need to know if financially it works for you.

Some of these comments are daft. So you should go ahead and buy somewhere because the seller is sulking and your fault for not doing a second viewing? Absolute tosh. If the seller doesn't want to let you in that of course is her right as it is still her home, however I wouldn't be taking the risk with this one. It's going to cost you money, she's being a PITA and doesn't bode well for the rest of the transaction. Personally I would walk away from this one. The property board on here is good to look at too, surprising how much nonsense people go through buying/selling.

In my very limited experience the buyer makes a conditional offer and then professionals come over to do check ups such as structures, mold etc. Then based on these results an unconditional offer is made. Before making the conditional offer you've usually seen the place twice once on public viewing and once in private. I'm not sure anyone here is particularly unreasonable. She doesn't have to let the buyer in and it's not unreasoble to want to see the place.

Absolutely no one has said she should go ahead if uncomfortable. They have said she should PULL OUT

I would walk away, OP - and don’t be panicked next time into offering in haste by a vendor who claims to have ten viewings lined up. It is a buyer’s market at the moment. It is usual to offer only after a second viewing.

People usually have a second viewing and then put in an offer. What's the point if you've already put in the offer.
I agree she's probably annoyed about the price drop

I'd walk away from this OP. Red flags everywhere and too big a risk of ending up with a total duck egg.

BTW: in these circumstances I don't think a second viewing is unreasonable at all.

The vendor doesn't want you too have one? Ask yourself why.

I know the thread has moved on but in our area houses sell before a second viewing is possible. We had a second viewing/measure up before we exchanged. No problem at all.

OP in your position I would have done one of two things after the initial survey, and definitely before a revised offer, which you say throws up significant structural issues:

Get a structural engineers report so that you know exactly what you're dealing with.
or
Walk away.

To the vendors mind, you are probably the one pissing about wanting people to come back in after you've had an offer accepted etc. (I'm not saying you are, but they will no doubt think so). They will know that you will pull out of the purchase if anything else is discovered, which is why it's so much better to know these things before offering. Would save you and the vendor all this hassle.

It's absolutely not usual to let people back in to 'measure up' as someone said up thread and if they do, it's normally down to the vendor and buyer to arrange between them, it's rarely anything to do with the EA. It's generally down to goodwill between parties.

@Passthecherrycoke yes I do understand, others have made snide comments that the seller has been made to drop the price, that the buyer is penny pinching etc etc, she is not, she has had her hands tied by the valuation, she does not need to sympathise with the seller for that. It makes sense that she prices up the work because she is not going to have the cash to do it, she is not getting a £13,000 cash reduction in the price though it feels like that to the seller, her mortgage company is refusing to lend her that sum, she will need to know how much works will cost as she is going to have to source that money if the works have to be done. Obviously the seller is well within their rights to refuse this, not budge on £137k, but the buyer equally needs to be confident they are buying a house they can afford to maintain. If the seller won't cooperate meaning the buyer can't make a sound decision, she will just have to lose the sale and risk being in a similar position again, especially if it's a typical FTB house.

You should have had your 2nd/3rd/4th viewings before putting in an offer. You absolutely should have asked for a 2nd viewing before making your revised offer. It’s not normal to keep traipsing around someone else’s house after the sale has been agreed. It’s not how things are done.

You have actually been offered another viewing, but have declared those times as crazy because I’m assuming they don’t suit you/your team of builders. Yet in the next breath you claim to be really flexible? You sound really difficult.

Your solicitor should be finding out about the RSJ and any other questions from the survey. That’s what they’re for. They should be communicating with the seller’s solicitors and getting the answers for you. Not just sitting back and telling you not to proceed!

You’re now talking about viewing another house and pulling out of this sale - you’re going to destroy their chain and potentially make them lose their new house.

You are the unreasonable one.

The fact she accepted the lower offer so quickly suggests she knows she is lucky to get it and doesn't want you investigating. It would have been normal to check these things out before revising your offer and she thinks she has got away with it so accepted with alacrity. Not letting you in now confirms it.

Run don't walk.

Certainly in Scotland normally no viewings are allowed after the offer is accepted
Up to 2 visits are allowed once the contract is concluded

Unusual to offer on basis of 1 viewing, but if the property is in a hot spot and a closing date is fixed early,then can be no chance to do a 2bnd viewing

Oh I seem to have missed an entire page of this thread.

I know the thread has moved on but in our area houses sell before a second viewing is possible.

I'd hazard a guess that there's not much cross over between places where second viewings aren't possible due to the speed of the market and places where houses cost 137k

You’re not talking about second viewings your talking about perfectly normal things you do as part of selling ie access for surveyors, access for people valuing work etc. Without these visits you’ll end up with no sale because few people will buy a house without a survey and quotes for the work as you need these to know the price is right and you’re not buying a money pit as once you’ve exchanged you can’t change these things.

Perfectly normal on your part OP but I would have viewed twice prior to offering.

Yes she’s pissed off and being awkward. If you don’t get to info you need then don’t buy. Too big a risk.

They literally had np respect whatsoever for the fact I was busy and clearly thought as buyers their wants got priority. On moving day they were banging on my door within literally minutes of completion insisting I let them in.

As soon as completion is confirmed, it’s not your door anymore and you should have been on the other side of it.

you’re going to destroy their chain and potentially make them lose their new house.

So you think the OP should just carry on with the purchase even in the information about the RSJ is the worst possible outcome, and could cost shed loads to put right? Continuing on even with so many red flag just so the seller can get their new house is madness.

@feduuup you're absolutely right, the buyer will need ensure they're buying a house they can afford to maintain; but that's why she should have arranged a more robust survey before offering. Expensive, but the whole process is I suppose. You either make the decision to do that or walk away at that point.