Any estate agents or property experts around to advise?

[NorkyButNice]

We puupped offer in on a property last week which was rejected (as expected) so we upped it on Thursday. We then didn't hear anything until yesterday morning when they came back saying that there is another interested party who has put in a higher bid, we need to up ours and they are look for X amount.

Feeling rather suspicious about whether this other party actually exists as this house has been on the market for months with no interest or offers, we upped our offer anyway. Later in the day we are told that they now want to go to final and best offers, even though we've already offered what they said they wanted for the house.

I'm raging frankly. Is it possible that the agent is making the other party up to get more money out of us? Are they allowed to lie to us? Part of me hopes that they are and the other part will be so angry!

Yes, very possible. That said, the market is moving fast where I am so it just might be true.

You just need to decide what your best offer is and stick to it, calmly. More than once I've found that when I do this the 'other buyer' suddenly disappears. It's the only way to find out, but you need a strong nerve.

When we sold our house we ended up asking for 'best and final offers' at the advice of our estate agent. It was the best way to manage multiple competing bids. The person whose offer we accepted out of the final offers also didn't believe that the others had existed to the extent that he ended up at the estate agent's office asking him to prove it (which they did). Sorry this doesn't help you much, but it shows that you are not the only one who has wondered about this, and that at least sometimes, the estate agent is telling the truth!

I agree with fresh

I think you are allowed to ask for evidence of the other buyer. Not sure how this works though, they could just get a friend to pretend! But the EA is meant to work to a code of ethics. I think there is a governing body you can take the matter to if you think the ea is making things up. Though you may lose the house.
How much do you want the house?

Thanks for the advice. We really want the house, I'd be really upset if we didn't get it for the sake of a couple of thousand pounds.

But we feel somewhat aggrieved that we went up to the price they asked for and they are now digging for more. The house needs a lot of work and I can't justify paying too much for it.

Hope you get it. People selling are usually going to want to get every penny they can, same for the EA. Depends how you want to play it - call their bluff and risk losing it? Or play their game and possibly pay more than you had to? I think the easiest way is to decide how much the house is worth to you, and offer that. But. I hate being taken advantage of too! Good luck!

Can you get a friend to enquire about the property, maybe arrange a viewing and see what they get told about the situation re offers? If the stories broadly similar it might reassure you. Or vice versa...

Don't forget if your mortgaging the mortgage company will have their own feelings on the value.
In your best offer its worth putting any advantages to you e.g chain free.

I agree with fresh, I still think we were manipulated by the EA when we bought our house.

We saw it the day it went on the market (Friday) - went for a 2nd viewing the next day (Saturday) and made an offer. I suppose the EA knew we liked it and that we'd been looking for a while. They also knew it was the kind of house we'd been looking for.

We offered £10k less than the asking price (which was actually 97% of the asking price) and they said no. The EA came back to us on Monday, said the vendor was looking for another £5k. We said we'd go to that if it was accepted and it was taken off the market immediately. EA said OK (this was still Monday).

Got a phone call on Tuesday morning to say another set of buyers were now involved, even though we'd gone up by £5k as they asked and thought it was off the market, and it was now going to best and final offers. I was so angry I can't tell you. But, as you say, I loved the house, it was what we wanted and houses like that didn't come on the market very often.

We went up by another nominal amount (£560), put it all in writing with our situation (in rented etc, all the usual positives) and we got it. I still don't know whether there were any other buyers, think they were simply pushing us to get the max.

At the end of the day, it was only £560 more than we wanted to pay, and I didn't want to risk losing the house for that, but I'd be very suspicious.