House viewing tales

[Henrietta75]

Bought and sold 2 homes over 15 years:

Couple with a grown up daughter I’m showing round, the mother disappears. Mother reappears after 10 mins (assumed she was in first bedroom still as we’ve moved to second), moved to third bedroom and daughter disappears, come out of bedroom and see daughter emerging from bathroom with flushing noise. Not a word. They both used the loo without asking. How rude!

Viewer booked in for tues 1pm, Dh gets leave off work and waits - viewer doesn’t turn up. Complain to EA, EA sends screenshot of text to viewer confirming time and date, the viewer turns up weds 1pm with no one home and starts banging on the door (according to retired neighbour). Then sits in the car for 1 hour on the drive before giving up and leaving.

Couple having been shown around property then proceed to demand what is the “bottom price” and are not leaving until they get an answer.

Showing another pair around and the man starts to open kitchen cupboards....gets into the bedrooms and starts to open free standing wardrobes and chest of drawers....!

Asked another viewee to remove shoes AFTER he insisted on seeing garden first and traipsed all on the grass in the mud and he refused.

Different EA, different property, asked to lop £25k off our price so he could get the deal done quick. DH says ok, with one condition, find us a house in ‘x’ area where we wish to move to that’s priced similarly as ours and ask the owner to lop £25k off too.

And the best for last - sold the house and buyer wants wants to exchange and complete in 3 days. Due to circumstances I said not possible, the buyers then create HUGE sob story that they’re going to be chucked out of rented accommodation....blah..little kids...pets...etc. So gargantuan effort to do it in 5 days and move in with in-laws temporarily....they then move into empty property 2 weeks later.

[Cherrysoup]

Overflowing rats’ cage in the bathroom, bloke fast asleep on the sofa, middle of the day. In the garden, the seller told us you barely notice the 4am freight train. We didn’t make an offer.

[dontlikebeards]

Had a viewing on a house we were selling, I was at about day 14 of working shifts with no day off, my mum had pre-warned the viewers that I would be sleeping but they could have a peek round the door of the room - they bought the house!

House we turned up to view for my mum, all arranged by the EA, the seller obviously had no idea about the appointment, house was a mess and he has clearly just been for a shit! Mum bought the house!

Bought our first house, moving day came, no keys until 6pm and seller was sat in the EA crying because their sofa was still on the front lawn and it was pissing it down with rain.

When we were selling that house we had a viewing booked, and the day before whilst we were eating dinner a man was sat in his car staring in. Next day he turned up to view with a clipboard with a list of questions. He was a very odd man!

Couple we eventually sold to were first time buyers and turned up one afternoon with a list of bizarre questions that had been written by her mum!

[Mushypeasandchipstogo]

Just thought of another one! Was viewing a hideously expensive house with my SIL when , on leaving, we noticed that we had flea bites all on our legs. The EA explained that the previous owners had kept cats and hens in the house.

[gumball37]

I've sold 4 houses. Last one, left with my little kids to drop my son off in next town over. Come back with little kids to find 2 cars in driveway and agent (not mine) and buyers in my home. No notification. And it wasn't perfectly clean (toys on floor cats not put in crates, etc) because I was doing a quick run and coming back home. Turns out agent had messaged the wrong seller about showing. Buyers agent then left... And took my key with him 🤦. Thankfully despite how it started they bought it! But I was mortified.

[chasingmytail4]

We were viewing a house being sold by a divorcing couple. When we arrived we were met by the woman who laid on her bed sobbing while we looked around the house by ourselves. I felt so uncomfortable and sorry for the woman, couldn't wait to leave. We didn't buy it.

[wasnotwasweregood]

Four double-bedroom house, four messy beds with handcuffs buckled to them and large mirrors facing the beds. House generally untidy and gym equipment everywhere.

The EA bless him must have been in his very early 20s but looked about 13 and blushed his way round the house. We didn't make an offer. Frankly I didn't think we could maintain energy levels of its then occupants.

[Samtsirch]

Reading some of these posts it sounds as though many of the people mentioned didn’t actually want their home to be sold or rented and have gone out of their way to put prospective buyers / renters off!

[Iamthewombat]

I sold my first house in 2002. It was a small, modern, three bed detached in a nice area (so not a wreck or anything).

This was at a time when house values were increasing steadily, so not during a market crash.

I had a surprising number of Indian viewers, all men, who would take a cursory look around the house then would all ask the same question:

Viewer: “What is the lowest price you would accept for this house?”

Me: “Talk to the estate agent.”

Viewer: “I want to know, now, what is the lowest price you will accept.”

Me: “That’s my business.” (by that time I had worked out that they weren’t serious buyers, just chancers looking for a bargain).

Had an indian version of that Martin Lewis bloke written one of those tightwad, make loads of money from property by making cheeky offers books in 2002? How else to explain the FOUR separate Indian viewers all asking the same question?

When the estate agent got in touch (and she was quite dim), she said that one of them had offered £20k under the asking price of £120k, which was an average asking price for the estate I lived on and the type of house. The estate agent had tried to get me to put it on for more than that, actually.

I said no to the crap offer; I’d had plenty of other viewings. Her reply was, “but you only paid £75k for it”

So what? I was expected to hand over £20k of equity to some rude, grabbing man? I changed estate agents.

[Echobelly]

We went to see a flat once where the place was filled with drying laundry, they seemed to be having a house party with a dozen family round at the time and we couldn't see one of the bedrooms as someone was asleep in it! We told the agent they might want to have a word with them about showing the place.

Then there was the time a house was having an open day - and it turned out that it was a HMO where clearly none of the poor tenants had been warned it was being shown, so the agent sheepishly told us we'd have to knock on the doors to look in each bedroom, but obviously that was just not on, so we left.

[FlamingoQueen]

When we put our house on the market my NDN was really off with me because we sold it in less than a week. We had the phone call from the EA whilst en route to a wedding. When we got back NDN said ‘oh yes I met the chap, he was really nice’. Turns out that she’d gone to feed my guinea pigs at the exact time the viewing was booked for (she knew the time). Because NDN knew which house we liked she arranged to have a look round it in the few days between us viewing it and then selling our own house. When we moved we never actually saw her again! She was a bit of a stalker!

[OhWhatFuckeryIsThisNow]

A moving in one. We moved 100 miles away to this house. It had been vacant for a long time, offer accepted, no chain this end. We moved in two days after exchange. Collected keys from ea. Only back door keys. Ea said, well start moving in and we’ll pop them round. Two hours later, no keys, so went round. Mad search ensues. Turns out one of the agents had the keys in his pocket. Why I asked. Said he’d been showing people round the day before. He had the grace to blush when I went spare.

[FlamingoQueen]

Another one - my sister’s rental - the landlord arranged for EA to take photos to put it on the market without informing my sister or bil (they didn’t even know he was planning on selling). When the photos went online it had my sister’s laptop on the kitchen table and other items of value left around. Not surprisingly, they were burgled not long after. Am fairly sure they had compensation for that!

[Flipsockflop]

When we were viewing a house in the number 1 area I wanted I was really excited, it would need redecorating throughout but it was under budget and all local schools were fab so I had high hopes! When the owner opened the door to let us in we were hit with the strongest smell of dogs ever and there were clumps of fur allll over. The smell was so strong it was eye watering, I felt like I smelled like it after we left. The lady explained she’d be doing the viewing as her husband had taken their 5 Japanese Akita’s out, honestly the smell was unreal. There were also 3 cats enjoying naps around the house and the ladies adult son (late 20s at a guess) following us around whilst swigging a can of lager, the lady did all the talking he was just awkwardly following and drinking. When we got to the back garden there was (loads of dog shit and) a hot tub to which we were told could be negotiated into the sale, it’s lots of fun and the dogs love getting in too! So strange.

Had loads of viewers booking our house for it to transpire they were just coming for a nosey as a price comparison against what they were selling, obviously they never told the EA this. It drove me mad the amount of accommodating I was doing for non serious viewers.

[krispcreme]

Had no real horrors when buying and selling besides one property where we had to put on shoe protectors before entering. Our worse was age 18 looking for a rental. Agent knocks on the door, no answer so he opens the door to the flat where we find the tenants naked in bed.

[UnderperformingSeal]

@catfeets
Place marking so I can post mine when the twats finally pay us the money for the house they believe the have the right to walk into whenever they feel like it

Would love to hear the details of this one, please don't wait until they cough up!

My own: years ago I rented a flat for six months before getting an opportunity to work abroad and moving everything back to my parents' house (I'm sure they were delighted...). In the week before my rental ended I was carting stuff bit by bit in the evenings, and discovered I couldn't get in to the flat. There was a "normal" lock on the door and a mortice lock that I'd never been given the key for (I know, I know...), and through phoning the letting agent the next day I discovered that a prospective tenant had been shown round by another letting agent who had secured the mortice lock even though it was unlocked when they arrived or at least that's the story they spun me. It's just a good thing I was already sleeping back at home!

[Chocolatefixeseverything]

My first house a modest Terrance, completely refurbished and fairly neutral but was my absolute pride and joy. Only been on a day had booked 2 viewings on the same day first girl was pregnant absolutely loved it, second viewer were 2 women who absolutely ripped it to shreds. They told me everything they would have to do just to make it livable, I could do nothing but stand babe in arms and try not to cry. Honestly it was a really cute but fairly standard 2 up 2 down lovely year old kitchen and bathroom, all replastered and painted, new upvc windows and a decent garden. The next day had 3 more viewings and several offers, sold it within 5 days of being on the market to the pregnant lady becasue I'm soft and she seemed to love it lol.

[yestim]

Organised a viewing of a house, when confirming the time the agent mentioned that the man was having surgery on the Friday, but his wife was happy to show us round on the Tuesday.
Showed up, rang the door, introduced ourselves. The woman said "where do I know you from?" So I started trying to work it out and making suggestions. Eventually her daughter piped up "hang on, are you here to view the house?"
The man had died during surgery and we'd crashed the wake!

[ThePants999]

@Chocolatefixeseverything

My first house a modest Terrance, completely refurbished and fairly neutral but was my absolute pride and joy. Only been on a day had booked 2 viewings on the same day first girl was pregnant absolutely loved it, second viewer were 2 women who absolutely ripped it to shreds. They told me everything they would have to do just to make it livable, I could do nothing but stand babe in arms and try not to cry. Honestly it was a really cute but fairly standard 2 up 2 down lovely year old kitchen and bathroom, all replastered and painted, new upvc windows and a decent garden. The next day had 3 more viewings and several offers, sold it within 5 days of being on the market to the pregnant lady becasue I'm soft and she seemed to love it lol.

Viewed a house we really liked. Knocked on the neighbour's door to see what they were like - it was a semi, mirror imaged as semis generally are. They invited us in... and offered us theirs instead for £20K less than next door. It was nicer, too!

@Chocolatefixeseverything
My first house a modest Terrance

I know many people name their houses, but that's an unusual house name

[ThePants999]

Oops, meant to delete the quote...

[Henrietta75]

@Bluntness100

I don’t think it’s rude to use the loo although personally I’d try not to and would ask, a lot of folks seem to be really weird about folks using their toilets.

Mine was a house i viewed, I’ve posted about it before. Very attractive woman in her thirties, immaculately done up and dressed, met her as we went in, she went out at the same point so we could do the viewing with the agent.

The house, a seven figure one, was an absolute and utter shit tip and I don’t say that lightly. Rubbish strewn on the floor, dirty dishes everywhere, towels on the at broom floors and visibly grimy, beds unmade and visibly filthy bed linen.

And worst was the smell of cat piss. Honestly made my eyes water, she had the litter trays in her bedroom and in the living room, the smell was just unbelievable, acrid and over powering, like you coughed as you went in and recoiled.

I can see past a lot, but that house I just walked round shocked at what I was seeing. In the pictures it was immaculate.

When we came out I said to the agent “I couldn’t see past the filth” and he just nodded. The way he’d interacted with the woman on arrival and glanced in the door made me think they’d spoken to her about it before. Even my husband, who is a messy bugger and not the most hygienic was open mouthed. We just sat there after in the car looking at each other thinking wtaf have we just seen.

Honestly. She was gorgeous. Perfect make up, lovely clothes. And lived in the sort of filthy conditions you’d see on tv. And I can assure you the house was not priced to reflect the state it was being presented in.

I haven’t got a problem with people using the loo in my house, I do have a problem with a lack of basic courtesy in asking first.

[grandmasterstitch]

We viewed a house owned by a lovely elderly man who let us wander through on our own. It was a lovely hour but when we got upstairs both bedrooms were crammed with bras, frilly dresses, feather boas and an enormous amount of make up. We didn't end up buying it but when we mentioned it to a friend it turned out she had worked with him. She said "oh yes. Lovely man! Rather… flamboyant!"

[catfeets]

@UnderperformingSeal am waiting until we sign the contract as knowing my shitty luck, one of them will read it and pull out.
We're still scraping our jaws off the floor about the stunt they pulled last week!
Fingers crossed we get a reply from them today following the survey and finally a completion date!

[Henrietta75]

Not mine but my niece’s and sort of related:

Niece got a job as a trainee at an EA that mostly dealt with very expensive houses. The competition was nearly opposite and cut throat in business. One day a couple walked in and asked the nearest desk that they were interested in purchasing a property in ‘x’ area. They took a seat, fill a quick form and the desk tells one of the seniors a couple is waiting to see the next avail here’s the details etc.

10 mins later a woman comes in with a baby and she’s a former employee (queen bee) so all the desks surround her and start cooing the baby. They make her a cup of tea and a further 20 mins passes and the couple still haven’t been seen. They get up and walk out. Niece at the time was unaware they walked due to some crap filing task further back of the office.To the EAs horror they see the couple walk into the competition’s office.

Now what the EAs didn’t know was that the couple were driving one of those Bentley Continentals and were spotted by the competition when they got out of it and walked into the EA. The savvy competition realised what had happened by the frown on the couples faces when they walked in and pulled out all the stops for them. They bought a million pound property the next day so the original EA may have lost thousands in potential commission.

Doesn’t end there.....the head of the original EA got wind of the couple’s purchase by the head of the competition at a function and he rubbed his nose in it. Fuming the head questions his staff (not telling them the couple purchased) who swear they were all on the phone and the couple were just impatient. Niece is then asked what transpired that day privately and says nothing out of ordinary - except when whatshername came in with the baby. Head deduced what happened and had it confirmed when he emailed the couple and they replied ‘they were busy people and don’t like to be less priority than a baby’. In a fit of rage the head bellowed at his staff in a meeting why they dropped the ball. Atmosphere turned toxic as all blamed each other.

[FlamedToACrisp]

We only had one couple viewing our house... but they seemed quite interested, a nice young couple.They came for another viewing with an older man, made an offer which we accepted. Then they came back a few days later with another six people, who all looked round... and then a few days later another eight people, this time without any warning, just knocked on the door! We gritted our teeth and put up with it because it was a great price and still no other viewers at all.

Then, after one delay after another (when they'd said they would complete within a month) a letter arrived. They had set up a BUSINESS at our address, called [our address]Limited !!!!

In the end we gave up waiting for them to complete, told them they had two more weeks and we were pulling out of the sale. We heard nothing so told the sellers of the house we were buying, with many apologies. Three days later they came up with the money, and we managed to get our house after all...