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Original poster

HELP! 2 identical offers on house

35 replies

mommajools · 09/03/2007 00:00

I have 2 full asking offers on my house and both buyers are both identical in thier situation and am under pressure to choose one!! have a few more viewers tomorrow and saturday and house been on market for 6 days.
any advice as am hopeless as to making decisions.

OP posts:
Aloha · 09/03/2007 00:01

I'd expect a bidding war to happen now. Surely your estate agent should be telling them that if they want to get the house one of them needs to offer more.

Skribble · 09/03/2007 00:03

Agree if only on for 6 days hold out for more, even if it is only £1000 its all extra for you.

Aloha · 09/03/2007 00:04

And don't take it off the market until it is all done and dusted. You may well sell for well over the asking price.

Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 00:04

I did mention that today to him but not heard nothg back yet. Cant believe how mental it has been with the viewings - never had this before - maybe one a week if lucky over a period of 6 months for previous houses we have sold....

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Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 00:10

whoa! never had a biddng war before! think i will wait as we have some more viewers lined up - but the estate agent wanted to know if i wanted to cancel these and pick one of the offers! so was confused.

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Aloha · 09/03/2007 00:16

Blimey, he sounds rubbish! Of course you don't. You want to see who is out there who wants your house and how much they want to pay for it. Do you think he may have undervalued it?

charlottegeorgiaolivermums · 09/03/2007 00:17

I'd tell estate agent that as both offers are the same and for 2 identical bidders you can not choose between them it is unfair. Tell the estate agent that as they work for you they need to go back to both parties and explain that their positions are the same and that they have offered the same. Maybe they will up offers but keep having viewings. It may go through to sealed bids but get your estate agent to work for his money and no get you to just agree so they can stop working and cash in after 6 days without any outlay in local press etc this is why they will be pressing you to take house off market.

Chandra · 09/03/2007 00:19

Don't cancel, you may tell the agency that you are going to answer to the persons who put an offer on X day (after the day you are expecting more viewers) so they don't think you are not considerate; tell the new viewers that you have 2 offers for the asking price already. If they like it they may offer a bit more.

But if all offers very much the same, choose the buyer who is nearer to completion (the one who has already sold or got a propper offer on their house, that has a mortgage aproved and who wants to complete asap)

Aloha · 09/03/2007 00:23

Yup, if they are workign for 2% of the price and you are selling for, say £300K their cut is £6K, which right now they are going to earn in six days, no hassle! If you get £20K more they only get £400 more and have to work harder for it. But that £20K could mean a huge amount to you.

Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 00:38

Both 1st time buyers finance approved. Just in local rag today and part details on rightmove.
Othrer agents valued it 10 grand less! so went with the higher agent as they seemed on the ball and house went on at 240000 and agents have been good and were confident they would sell t in 2 weeks. Viewers have sad it has been crazy for them as house were being sold in one day!

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charlottegeorgiaolivermums · 09/03/2007 00:45

if that case keep house on open market get viewers in and get agent to tell others offer being consealed as they have received others for the same value. If houses are selling for one day you could go to sealed bids. This would be great for you as people start to offer still amounts and always state the position of their offer so you can decide which one is the best ie the highest offer may be from someone in a 6 house chain which would be a nightmare. have you got somewhere to go as if houses are moving that fast are you going to be able to find somewhere to go without paying over the odds?

Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 00:46

Aloah - what you said makes sense - if they can close the deal after less than a week and not have to market the property any more - i got a fixed deal with the agent regardless of price - just under 4000 - so any thing higher will not affect ther commssion

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Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 00:51

charlotte - did look at a few houses last weekend as we had veiwers from the time the house went on the market - and just had an offer accepted on the one i loved so am sorted that end - now being pressurised to make a choice and it was suggested to cancel the other viewngs

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Chandra · 09/03/2007 00:56

Mamajools if you have already 2 offers and viewers lined up, it means the house is at the right price at the least or marketed by less than its value.

I would wait, have a conversation with the agents, they work for you not for the buyers.

charlottegeorgiaolivermums · 09/03/2007 00:56

i feel estate agents get easy money most of the time my house sold in 9 days - i hadn't even signed off the draft house details when i accepted full asking offer. they didn't have to pay for paper adverts or print up loads of house details but got to put sold board up for 3 moths until i left and i paid them 3500.00 and i showed the couple round myself and dh gave them his number - don;t do this as they called every week to push for completion each complete nightmare so estate agent didn't even have to communicate with buyers or solicitors - fees a complete ripe off for me. get you monies worth how many hours have they actual spent on your house say 8hrs totally thats £500.00 an hours - YES PLEASE - I'm in the wrong job!!!!!!

Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 01:02

i agree with you about their fees! i did haggle and got a fixed rate though not had letter stating that only original letter with their first quote so must chase them up on that tomorrow.
Previous houses always took months to sell though never put one up for sale this early n the year which is always the busiest year apparently

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charlottegeorgiaolivermums · 09/03/2007 01:10

put house on market 04.01.05 did nothing took off market in August - put back on in May 06 sold in 9 days just never now want market is doing. Do watch estate agent i was 4 over this period and found they i pay the fees so they work for me - but because they want there money they pushed me to agree to buyers terms. They tried to tell me to include my sofa etc for 1st time buyer as they didn't have one (no way)no extra money offered to enable me to replace! Got told my agent that viewer said my house was gross and very dirty and it made their skin creep. i was mad i has spend hours cleaning above doors etc the day before i always have clean house - asked agent what they said to this person and she said nothing. i asked agent if she had every been in my house when it's not been clean she said my house was always lovely and clean so herself was shocked at comment. i asked if viewer could have mixed my house up with someone else's she said poss as they had been in 10 that day. why did she not say ok I'll tell the owner but i have never found that house dirty are you sure it was that house. Our house was only 3 yrs old to add insult to injury. sorry hate estate agents I've decided. good luck let us now what happens.

Soapbox · 09/03/2007 01:37

I think in these circumstances estate agents normally advice going to sealed bid.

I'd let the other viewers come and view and then put it to sealed bid and see who comes out as the highest.

hunkermunker · 09/03/2007 01:41

Yes, ours did that - we had lots of viewings, then went to best and final offers.

Our agents have been great though - really helpful, totally straight and very hardworking. I can't recommend them highly enough.

Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 13:17

just has a call from agent - one of the couple have put in another 2000 so am happy with that - they are now ringing the other couple to tell them that their offer has been outstripped. Earlier the agent said that getting a hgher price may mean that when the mortgage company do their valuation survey the house may be too highly priced and I could lose the seller..... still have one viewer today and one tomorrow - so know they are not pushing the house now otherwise i think they would have more viewers lined up for the weekend --- so stressful all the moving malarky!

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hunkermunker · 09/03/2007 13:18

MJ, in that case, tell the agent you want best and final offers - this phoning between bidders is horrible and stressful and Not On IMO.

Imagine if you were offering on a house you loved and they did this.

It's bad karma to feck about with buyers like this, IMO.

seb1 · 09/03/2007 13:24

Do know where you are, but in Scotland we use offers over, often with a closing date, people have to a certain day to submit offers and it goes to the highest bidder (sometimes 30% over asking price)

Original poster
mommajools · 09/03/2007 13:31

Hunk - will do that now! just want it all over by weekend. thanks!
seb1 - am in London but have seen the scottish way on location location - its still stressful for the poeple who want to buy, waiting to see if their offer is accepted.
right - must do a quck tidy up for next viewer and will be back with an update.
thanks ladies

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CarGirl · 09/03/2007 13:36

I would ask to still have more viewers as you may get a buyer in a better position - ie a huge cash deposit and smaller mortgage which will help if the surveyors do not value it as high as the agreed selling prive IYSWIM.

Or even better a cash buyer.......

Tinker · 09/03/2007 13:36

Agree about not letting agent phone up your buyers trying to get them to outbid each other. Happened to us on a house we were after - pissed me off so much we wouldn't up our price any more, even though knew we had to to get the house. Really left a bad taste and I vowed I wouldn't ever look at any houses that agent was selling. Ever again!