To make an offer on a new build?

[Gemm83]

A new development of Barratts near me has 4 properties left to sell, 2 of them being 3 beds.

They are ridiculously over priced at £414,950 (South East), so was going to make an offer of £360,000. Is this reasonable or am I completely taking the piss??!

I know I can make an offer and I know they can only say no, but has anyone had any recent experience with this?

If people have and know I'm being unreasonable please tell me before I go and make a tit out of myself!!

No offers on our new build estate as if they sell for lower it devalues all other properties. What they've done for some later on in the development is incentives.... they'll pay stamp duty, they'll double your deposit, free carpets etc. But never a lower purchase price.

I find MN inevitably treats house purchasing as if it's asking someone's parents permission to marry. Immediate offence if the offer isn't considered "reasonable".

I would say go for it, because hopefully you'll be speaking to an agent who is realistic and pragmatic, and who will advise you as to whether that will get play or not.

Of course, whether you want the thing in itself, is another point entirely.

@chopper2311

I find this idea "as if they sell for lower it devalues all other properties" really interesting.

Surely the market tells folk whatever the property is worth - and if the market doesn't get any offers at the "build" price, then something WILL end up selling lower than what other people purchased it for?

No wonder so many new builds in my area stay listed for ages on Rightmove.

On our new build we got £5k off, the 9k stamp duty paid and about £2k of extras thrown in. I’m not sure you’ll get that much off but it doesn’t hurt to ask.

That's quite some drop... if it was the very last, you might be lucky. But ask and expect a no.

Cool thanks for your input guys. There is another development just launched off plan about 2 minutes up the road. I'm hoping that a bit of healthy competition bounce one off the other might help.

I just love this house but the full asking price is just a stretch too far. We've got a healthy deposit of around 16% and hoping to do HTB through government as first time buyers for another 20%. So it would greatly reduce mortgage costs and chances of getting a mortgage in the first place. Only other option is to go down to a two bed with no garden which I really don't want to do 🙄

I just can't see them going for it. There'd be outrage if your new neighbours found out about it
Rather, I would negotiate the best deal you can, in terms of extras etc.

My knowledge of buying new builds is a bit older and we put ours on the matket after a year but we were on really good terms with the on-site rep. We'd had a couple of offers drop out for various reasons and our estate agent was saying to drop the price. The new build rep told us that when things get tough for them, they put the price up not down. People have usually been lurking and watching prices and think they are going to lose out as the remaining houses are so desirable they've raised the price. Obviously might be different now, but you are dealing with a rep, not an owner as such, so it's all business and they are unlikely to get upset and take the huff so it's worth a try but I would say unlikely to succeed. Much more chance of other incentives.

Incidentally we put the price up on our house and sold it in 2 days.

I’d never buy a new build, inflated prices for less land. In our area they are being built on flood plains which is causing havoc

@Pumpkinpie1

Theres a number going up by me on flood plains too. Ridiculous.. Surely wouldn't get house insurance?!

Just put the offer in?

A property is only worth what someone is willing to pay.

If it’s been on the market awhile and had previous sales fallen through then you might get lucky.

@GinDaddy Was just what I was told by the sales office when I asked.

It's madness that now the same type house as ours, but on the second phase of the site build is £57k more and they've sold and also a house right at the entrance is already up fro sale and at £36k more than they paid however; I'm assuming they've put £10k+ easily of extras in it when they purchased.

We have had offers accepted on two new builds. Have a go - you have nothing to lose.

You can but ask. I work for a property developer in the south east and I wouldn’t say the prices are high for 3 beds, obviously depending what area in the SE. We don’t tend to accept offers as they always seem to sell, but no harm in asking.

Of course you can make an offer. Especially if there are only a few left to sell. They’ll want to finish up and leave the site. At this time of year, when there are generally fewer buyers around, it’s worth a punt.

We bought ours at a reduced price, with stamp duty paid five years ago. We paid for an extra double wardrobe, but had the oven and hob changed. They’re struggling to sell at present and are offering all sorts of incentives. They can only say no.

My previous flat, mine was the second last to be sold, at the peak of the 1989 property bubble. My neighbour who bought the last one, three months later, had an offer for a third less accepted.

So, in my experience, the person who buys the last one can get a huge discount. (I'm not sure if you also need a crashing property market to make this work.)

I am suspicious of new-build pricing, I think you don't know what they are really worth until you see resales. The builders marketing department can create a somewhat artificial market.

There are new-builds next door to me where flats somewhat equivalent in rooms to mine (which is 30 years old) are being marked at double what I could get for mine. And mine has a garage and garden extra, the expensive one doesn't even have parking. Possibly not even available if you pay extra, there's one space for sale separately for every two flats being built. It is in an area where car ownership is particularly unnecessary. I'm not sure how they are offering any parking at all, I though the local authority had a policy that new-builds must have zero provision for cars.

Definitely make an offer, you've nothing to lose. I bought the last house on my development, we paid £15k less than the asking price and they paid our £12k stamp duty. Don't ask, you don't get!

@Gemm83 You can offer, but I doubt they will drop it THAT much!

Good luck!

It never hurts to make an offer just be prepared. I viewed a new build at the beginning of 2008 when the slump hit. The house was priced at £285k. We could only afford £250k but had a firm offer on our house and everything we looked at needed too much work or had sold before we got there. The sales lady told us to take a look anyway despite knowing what we could afford. Needless to say we fell in love with it. As it was mid build. She accepted an offer of £250k plus we got flooring and legal fees thrown in. We were very lucky and it was just the right place at the right time. Even managed to get them to give us beautiful hanging baskets outside when they put them up outside the show home next door (very cheeky I know but she was a lovely sales lady ).... It’s worth a try????

See if any of the other houses on the site have published sold prices yet as that will help you see whether it’s likely to be accepted or not.

@DavinaAddict

Top tip!! Just looked and most purchased with around £15-18k under asking price in Aug/Oct/Nov

Looks promising!

Ooh good luck! Remember you have all the power. If it’s one of the last plots on sale, don’t let them rush you through the process. They will be desperate to sell it, so they can move onto the next site. So make sure they don’t talk you into something you’re not happy with (we’ve had the hard sell in a new build, and they try everything!). You can always go away to think about it. They may well come back to you, even if you walk away, if they know you are a serious buyer, especially if you’re already proceed-able.

And don’t trust their solicitors either if you do go ahead. They can’t possibly act in your best interests, as they want to stay on the developers panel, so I’d recommend getting your own independent one.

We walked into sales office with a Mortgage in Principle and as renters our hands were snapped off. We only got 10k off asking price though. They made it out it was a special deal turns out quite a few people got it. You may have some sway if houses have sold recently for less as it could affect your ability to get the mortgage amount you need if others the same have been valued for less. Our New Build hasn't lost any value over past 4 years according to zoopla and what has sold on (14 % increase) although we are South East in a little known area for good value and ordinary three bedroom semis in high demand.

@OrangeCinnamon

Whereabouts are you? I'm West Sussex and on the main London to Brighton line so it's commuter central, hence stupid prices!!

We are renters too, have mortgage advisor on the case with a decent deposit so we are all good to go!

On the coast just on the Hants border 1hr 15 from London Waterloo. Renting was great for us as we could place ourselves where we wanted for schools then moved after . I really don't understand appeal of Chichester as the traffic is a nightmare but further up the line can be good Felpham /Bognor /Barnham