Buying house from someone you know

[NiceNewHouse]

My cousin is thinking about moving and if she did, we are really interested in buying her house. We haven't said anything to her yet but does anyone have any suggestion how best to proceed? The house is very desirable and in a very popular location so if it went on the market it would create a lot of interest - assuming the price is right of course!

I'm not sure if we should be up front with her or just wait until she puts it on the market. The last thing I would want to do is to fall out with her.

Many thanks

just be up front "we would love to have first refusal if you do decide to sell". we bought our house from family. they had 3 agents round and we agreed a fair price, put ours on the market and all sorted quickly.
this saved fees. be prepared thought that your cousin might want to test the market, might not want to wait for you to sell yours if a cash buyer pops up etc.

Bear in mind that they will want to sell it for as much as possible, and you will want to buy it as cheaply as possible, and this dynamic may put considerable strain on your relationship.

Definitely mention it - she'll be glad to save the EA fees and all the hassle of marketing the property.

But get three independent valuations so there's no quibble about price.

Thanks so much. I sound pretty stupid here, but if we don't go through an estate agent, we don't actually miss out on anything do we? We just sort out solicitors and let them get on with it!

The only thing you'll miss out on is your cousin giving the estate agent money - which is great!