Page 7 | To think this is very bad of the estate agents

MustTryHarderAndHarder · Today 15:52

LancashireButterPie · Today 09:27

I am honestly quite shocked.
When we do move house, we'll be putting our current house on the market, I'd like to think the EA will be acting in our interest. Not blocking serious buyers who are in a position to proceed.

The EA or a friend might be the people making the offer.

I would put a note through the door.

Shortbreadel · Today 16:01

Sometimes when an offer has been accepted it can still take a week or so for it to be marked as off the market/under offer as they have to wait for proof of finances to come through.

I'd simply ask them the agent to let you know if the offer isn't proceedable so you can go view it.

FucksGivenZero · Today 16:15

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · Today 09:29

The EA very likely has a relative or mate lined up for it, with brown envelopes included, so is not passing on offers.

I have personal experience of this happening - a good old nose on NetHousePrices showed that the property eventually sold for a lot less than what I’d been prepared to offer. I’m talking £180k instead of £220k.

I’m not saying most EAs are dodgy, but….

Put a note through the door, saying you are willing to offer whatever it is, but the EA has refused to pass on your offer.
I gather this sort of thing happens more often when the vendors are very elderly and not clued up about local property values.

This! Seen it with my own eyes. Back in the late 90's, an EA suggested that they'd received the best offer they were going to get and it was accepted accordingly. We subsequently discovered that someone had put in an offer 50% higher than that which was accepted. The property was then CPO'd at an even higher price for reasons which we believe the EA had advanced knowledge of. No proof, of course, so nothing to be done but it still pisses me off that they got away with it.

And PPs can say "not possible, it's illegal" all they like but so's driving 40 in a 30 and loads of people do that so it's a shit argument.

Definitely put a note through the seller's door OP. And best of luck!

ThatLilacPlayer · Today 16:42

Yes, definitely put a note through the door, especially as the agent set-up sounds a bit odd! We had a note put through and let them view. I think the EA hadn't allowed them to view, as not ready to proceed.

PaterPower · Today 16:52

Someone at the EA office wants it for themselves (cheaper). Or they have a mate trying to get a deal, or a builder’s offered a brown envelope. Would be my guess.

Original poster

LancashireButterPie · Today 16:55

Thanks everyone, we wrote a note and posted it through the door earlier. Now waiting for a response from the vendor.

OP posts:

FairyInTheMossGarden · Today 16:59

Good luck OP.

MerryAquaKoala · Today 17:05

LancashireButterPie · Today 09:33

I'm aware of gazumping, I'm not suggesting that at all. At this point I have no evidence to say that the offer was even accepted.
It's a beautiful cottage with a lovely garden, which seems to be a bargain for where it is.
Half of me wonders whether the EA is selling it to a mate. Why would they block us and not get back in contact with us either way?

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Yes. That was my first thought. It happened to a friend of mine too. I'd knock on their door and give them an offer in writing, if you're serious. You can't trust the EA.

Original poster

LancashireButterPie · Today 17:05

Faceonthewrongfoot · Today 13:31

How do you know it was a low offer? The offer might be well over the asking price for all you know! And that might be why the EA is so confident that it will be accepted.

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I don't, that's why I said "potentially".

OP posts:

MerryAquaKoala · Today 17:05

Yes. That was my first thought. It happened to a friend of mine too. I'd knock on their door and give them an offer in writing, if you're serious. You can't trust the EA.

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Oh sorry - is see that is what you have done! Good luck..

Thisismetooaswell · Today 17:06

Absolutely put a note through the door

WitchesBritches · Today 17:13

LancashireButterPie · Today 16:55

Thanks everyone, we wrote a note and posted it through the door earlier. Now waiting for a response from the vendor.

🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼

Rajjam · Today 17:25

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This has been deleted by MNHQ for breaking our Talk Guidelines.

WildLeader · Today 17:42

Ooh, I’m excited to hear how this goes! Good luck @LancashireButterPie

ItsAQuandryAlright · Today 17:43

FairyInTheMossGarden · Today 09:57

I have just been on the other side of this situation.

I put my cottage on the market a month ago. It's a very pretty cottage in a lovely garden moments from the high street but in a very quiet country feeling spot. I've completely renovated it and someone can just move in and start living.

The estate agent came along with a viewer at 9am on the day the house was marketed. The viewer offered the asking price and was in short chain (two properties, with a cash buyer at the bottom of the chain.) The agent kept harping on about how slow the market was and how lucky I was to get an asking price offer so early on.
Given that and what I know to be the case about the market I accepted the offer verbally and then when the letter of confirmation came through the agent put in writing that the buyer was a relation of one of their staff. This obviously made me very concerned.

Then the next day two letters came through my door from potential buyers, both saying they'd been refused a viewing, that they were cash buyers who would pay over the asking price for the house. Both were saying it was their dream house, they'd be flexible.

I called in at the agent and spoke to the young woman on the front desk who told me they'd been 'innundated' with people interested in my property.

When I told the actual agent that he was pretty shaken, he said the two letters were from people unable to proceed - that's why he'd not put them forward. I rang those people. They were able to proceed.

I felt absolutely had over by the agent and have withdrawn my house from the market. I will try again in the spring but am going to be VERY CAREFUL who I deal with.

That's terrible, but doesn't surprise me. You should lodge a formal complaint with the agent's professional body.

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · Today 17:44

Nothavingagoodvalentinesday · Today 09:29

If an offer has been accepted then it would be wrong for the ea or the vendor to contemplate a higher offer (offering the asking price is still an offer). It’s called gazumping and used to be a huge problem until it was cracked down on.

If you accept an offer and are clear about not considering any more, and have said as much to your buyer, then you instruct the EA to take it off the market.

rwalker · Today 17:44

Thing is, the estate agent is dammed if they do and dammed if they don’t
Everybody’s always up your arms when the encourage bidding wars
if you’d put an offer in the house and then the encourage people to go away in putting bigger offer in knocking out of the equation, yeah I’m sure you wouldn’t be happy

XenaSharples · Today 17:52

An offer had been put in but it had not yet been accepted. The EA is an arse.

busymomtoone · Today 18:04

100% go and put a note through the door. Estate agents have friends and relatives, and if they secure a bargain for them they are not sending competition the vendors’ way!! I caught the agents at this and went and viewed a house directly ( that they had told me was sold but actually had received a much lower offer ) In the end it didn’t suit me , but catching the agents red handed so to speak meant I got first offer on the next similar property that came along !

Isitmyluckyday · Today 18:05

PollyBell · Today 09:28

The contract is with the vendor they work for them not a buyer so i presume they are doing what the vendor wants in this case thry wont get paid till its sold sp why on eaeth would they delay it for no reason?

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Some purchasers bring in more money than others. A buyer who needs a mortgage and a solicitor and can be persuaded to use those 'recommended' by the EA, is worth far more to the EA than a cash buyer with their own solicitor. It's a common scandal, there have been TV programs about it. And someone related to or employed by the EA may get first dibs. I'm sure that some EA are completely above board, but more than a few are duplicitous.

Isitmyluckyday · Today 18:05

XenaSharples · Today 17:52

An offer had been put in but it had not yet been accepted. The EA is an arse.

And also acting illegally!

Linnende · Today 18:05

LancashireButterPie · Today 09:16

DH and I are looking to downsize.
We have seen the perfect cottage, not far from our DDs family (handy for childcare as it's currently taking us 40 mins each way).
We rang up to view it and the estate agent refused to let us as she said "An offer has been made and I'm sure it will be accepted".
DH and I wouldn't be making an offer, we would happily pay full asking price. Also we are lucky to have enough in savings to purchase, without selling our own home first although we obviously would at some point.
I feel for the vendors as much as ourselves, would it be unreasonable to push a note through their letterbox informing them what's going on?
It's been two weeks since the estate agent last rebuffed us and the house is still on the market.

We have found that some EA use this as a marketing strategy. A popular property that has previously sold, gets the EA plenty of enquiries and the chance for them to offer other properties that might fit the brief.

You have nothing to lose by putting a note through the vendors door. We have done this in the past, after an EA failed to book us in for an appointment. Be Prepared for an angry EA, if you do this though!

Isitmyluckyday · Today 18:06

rwalker · Today 17:44

Thing is, the estate agent is dammed if they do and dammed if they don’t
Everybody’s always up your arms when the encourage bidding wars
if you’d put an offer in the house and then the encourage people to go away in putting bigger offer in knocking out of the equation, yeah I’m sure you wouldn’t be happy

EAs have no business deciding which offer a seller should accept. They should present all offers to them and let them choose!