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Original poster

Just had offer accepted but seller won't take off the market??

28 replies

TheCountessOlenska · 05/01/2013 17:17

We've just had an offer accepted at 20 thousand under the asking price - Estate agents have said that the seller won't be taking it off the market in case she gets a higher offer. Is this normal practice? And at what point do we secure the house i.e could it fall through at the 11th hour if she gets a better offer!? I feel inexperienced , our first house purchase was very straight forward!

OP posts:

KazzaRazza · 05/01/2013 17:23

Assuming you are in England, you could get the whole way to exchange of contracts (having paid out for survey fees, searches, lender fees etc) and she could sell to some one else.

Personally I would want the property off the market once you have got the survey booked in.

VivaLeBeaver · 05/01/2013 17:25

We had this, seller wouldn't take the house off the market. But she'd been trying to sell it for a year so I wasn't too worried.

I don't know what you can do. Threaten not to go ahead with the survey, etc until its taken off the market? But then they may call your bluff.

orangepudding · 05/01/2013 17:26

You could lose the house weeks and ££££s away from now. Until you have exchanged contracts you have no security in the purchase at all!

insancerre · 05/01/2013 17:28

Can you afford to offer more, say another £5000, on the understanding that she takes it off the market?

Blu · 05/01/2013 17:29

I would say that your offer is conditional on them taking it off the market.

Otherwise i don't see how the offer is 'accepted' at all - it just means accepted until a higher offer comes along!

There is no guarantee that you won't be gazumped or they won't find anoher buyer somehow, but I would insist they take it off the market and then you will proceed as fast as possible with survey etc.

specialsubject · 05/01/2013 17:37

seconded - nothing is guaranteed until exchange. They need to stop actively marketing it - that means marked as 'sold STC' in the window and on all the websites.

if they won't, tell them you will walk. It's not really a gazumper's market at the moment but it is never impossible. A seller that starts messing you about at this early stage will only continue to do so.

lalalonglegs · 05/01/2013 17:40

I'd echo what Blu says; either she wants to sell to you or she doesn't. If you want to sweeten the deal, you can speak to your mortgage broker and solicitor, get a rough timeline for how the process works and promise to have the survey booked within such-a-time, searches carried out by such-a-time and so on but no, don't proceed if she is still actively marketing it and, if the estate agent does say that it is off the market, get a friend to ring in a couple of weeks' time to see if that really is the case.

Blu · 05/01/2013 17:42

OP - I have bought 4 times now, and always insisted that taking it off the market is a condition of the offer.

KindleMum · 05/01/2013 17:44

I don't blame her - when we sold our flat (first time we'd ever sold anywhere), we took it off the market as soon as we accepted the offer and the buyer then mucked us about a lot and took 5 months to get from acceptance to completion. I don't think they would have behaved like that if it was still on the market and so I wouldn't do it again.

16052013 · 05/01/2013 17:44

Phone the agent and tell them your offer is conditional on the property being withdrawn from the market. You need to say more or less the following:

You've offered as much as you can afford for the house, and whilst you understand the vendor's anxiety to achieve the best possible price, it's unfair for them to then expect you to risk spending substantial sums on buying fees (mortgage arrangement, surveys, solicitors etc) if you cannot even get guaranteed exclusivity on the purchase.

You'll therefore leave the offer on the table for 7 days, after which it will be withdrawn altogether.

Do nothing during this 7 day period EXCEPT viewing as many properties as you can through this agent, and others in the same postcode.

9 times out of 10, the vendor realises the bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, and comes back to you quite quickly.

How much do you love the house? How long has it been on the market? How many similar houses are there in the area? How likely are you to be able to raise the £20k in the event of a second trumped up buyer? Consider your responses to these questions long before you think of revising your offer upwards.

16052013 · 05/01/2013 17:47

Kindlemum When selling, give purchase exclusivity for a limited period only. We advise 28 days, which is definitely enough time to have a survey done and a mortgage offer finalised if nothing else. (We've managed completions in that timeframe as well, but not everyone has access to lump sums and good lawyers).

AmandaPayne · 05/01/2013 17:50

Someone who is an arse at this stage will continue to be an arse.

Yes, sales can fall through at any point until exchange of contract. I've had it happen twice. But there is a difference between a buyer pulling out because of a survey, or whatever, or a seller pulling it off the market because of a change in circumstances on their purchase, and them actively continuing to market it.

Tell them it is either sold STC or you walk. They are trying it on. I would never continue with a purchase on a property still being marketed.

What you can't really tell is whether the behaviour is due to concern like Kindle describes, or hoping more money will come in at the last moment. If it is the former, you could agree a timetable - survey by X date, contracts by Y to keep the momentum up. It's not binding, but it would show willing to move at a sensible pace.

KindleMum · 05/01/2013 17:52

1605 - good idea. They got the survey done fairly quickly and had no issues found, were first time buyers so no chain and it was all being paid for by the bank of Mum and Dad, they just seemed to think they could take the mick. I wanted to put it back on the market as I felt they weren't acting fairly but DH is a softy. It did go through eventually - at the end, they asked if they could have the keys after exchange and before completion in order to move all their furniture in! Even DH wasn't soft enough to agree that!

CaHoHoHootz · 05/01/2013 17:53

I would do what 16052013 says.....

Original poster

TheCountessOlenska · 05/01/2013 18:08

Wow, thanks for all the quick and excellent advice everyone

I think the seller's point of view is that she has had property on the market for a year, already dropped the price, accepted an offer in the summer which fell through, and the Estate Agent has pretty much told us that she was hoping for £10k more than we have offered.

I can't really see us being gazumped at this time of year, in this market, and for this property (which is quite um niche!) but then again I don't see why we should have the insecurity as we are good buyers I think (not in chain, good deposit)

We are at the very top of our budget already - I don't think we can offer any more.

DH LOVES the property, I am a bit nervous about it - I am prepared to do what you have suggested 16052013 but will talk to DH about it later (try and temper his enthusiasm him a bit!!)

OP posts:

RedHelenB · 05/01/2013 18:29

Just say fine, you will continue looking too!

noddyholder · 05/01/2013 18:58

I would insist on exclusive What percentage is it?

16052013 · 05/01/2013 19:32

Agree with Noddy, I'd never proceed without exclusivity, especially if the offer is at the top of your budget. Do you really want to do business when there's no trust between you? £2k or £3k spent on a fall-through will reduce your budget going forwards.

I think refusing to stop marketing is a combination of trying it on for the best possible price (come on, wouldn't you in their shoes???) and being gutted by the previous fall-through.

Would I be wrong to assume that your DH wears his heart on his sleeve and was a little too enthusiastic during viewings? If they suspect they can get more out of you they and the agents will try everything especially the notorious "second buyer" scam.

One way round this is to ask for another viewing because you are considering raising your offer; but then "fall out of love" and not give any feedback for a few days. Leaves agent/vendors deflated and worrying that the sale will fall through altogether, at which point you renew your original offer (or, if feeling exceptionally ballsy, a lower one).

BTW, there was a mirror image of this thread just before Christmas with a vendor posting about negotiation deadlock. A search should bring it up and you might find some helpful info.

Buying and selling is hideous in this country - like a protracted poker game. Just hold your nerve.

16052013 · 05/01/2013 19:35

FWIW, if the vendors had their house on the market for a year and are now refusing to stop marketing it for a chain-free financed buyer, they are eejits.

You can only really pull this one in a seller's market.

There are always very many more timewasting vendors than there are timewasting buyers.

Original poster

TheCountessOlenska · 05/01/2013 21:44

Thanks 16052013 - we needed some advice, we are so green really! And yes one of us may have gushed a bit during the original viewing!!

This sale is due to a divorce - I suppose that puts added pressure on the seller but I am not feeling thrilled at proceeding with the worry of it all falling through at any time. God, 2 or 3k if it falls through!!

I am ringing to ask for another viewing on Monday.

I wonder if once we get our finances all arranged, survey done etc - she would then re-consider taking it off?

OP posts:

AmandaPayne · 05/01/2013 22:01

No, no, no.

If they are divorcing it is particularly likely that every penny counts. As a seller, you expend very little money in the early states of a sale. They buyer is doing the survey, running searches, arranging mortgages, etc. As a seller, even the work your solicitor does - preparing the draft contract and fixtures and fittings - can be used on another sale pretty much.

If they keep it on the market and get a better offer, there is every chance that they will drop you like a red hot poker. Or they will try and bargain you up to get the best of both worlds and keep their timetable and the extra money. And you have no recourse.

It needs to be off the market as soon as an offer is accepted. That is normal. Don't let liking the house cloud your views - hard headed is where it is at.

TWvirgin · 05/01/2013 22:12

Also keep in mind one of them may not actually want to leave. Are you sure it's not been on the market this long because of the seller?

cheeznbreed · 06/01/2013 01:57

TWvirgin- spot on.

The house could be a pawn in an acrimonious separation, the parties may be playing with each other as much as the poster here.

I would be quite firm about the house having to be removed from the market, if they refused I'd walk without a second thought.

specialsubject · 06/01/2013 10:18

a house from a divorce is a BIG worry - if they are not on good terms you could end up royally messed about. Searches can take a month or more, so tell them you will instruct for those as soon as it comes off the market. Surveys can be arranged quickly.

if they won't play, walk.

swizzles · 06/01/2013 12:58

What's the estate agent like?

We had this problem with our seller, who was a first class arse. The property was a deceased estate, her mothers house, and we got it for £40k under the asking price. She wanted the money in the bank but thought she was underselling it (it was a wreck).

The EA continued to market the property online but would put buyers off if they phoned up about it. I know this because she was a major pain in the arse to them and they just wanted the sale done ASAP. We have recently made friends with a couple who were one of the people to phone up and ask about it after we had the survey done.

Could you talk to the EA?

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