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Property/DIY

Going to sealed bids! Advice

21 replies

OwlyLady · 14/02/2018 13:10

Hi

We are FTB and the house we like is going to sealed bids between us and one other couple. We have already put in a rejected offer of 200k and it's guided at 215k. It needs a lot of work doing to it (including replacing the back boiler out and redoing the render) so we think we're only prepared to pay 210k for it tops but ideally wouldn't want to pay more than 205k. Estate agent has advised the vendor would like a price as close to asking price as possible.

What would you do?

(Fyi: We have 2nd viewings of other houses tomorrow we like and are considering putting offers on too.)

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honeyroar · 15/02/2018 21:04

We sold my mil's house a few years ago and it went to sealed bids. The winners then tried haggling over the price a couple of weeks later. The estate agents went mad at them and reminded them that a sealed offer is the final offer of what you're prepared to pay, not something to haggle on later. They told them the house would go to the next bidder if they started playing games. They paid what they'd offered and got the house.

I'm sorry you lost the house, but it sounds like you weren't totally sure anyway.

OwlyLady · 15/02/2018 19:28

So we got a phone call saying we lost. We went in with a £210k offer (guide price £215k) and we've been told the winning couple went over the guide price.

Ah well!

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Glenscoconut · 15/02/2018 10:40

We had this OP in East Anglia. The house was pristine and had a few interested parties.

It was on the market for £210,000 but we were told the winning bid would most likely be up to 10% over that. We didn't feel it was worth 10% extra so we just bid £212,550. This all happened in November.

We didn't get it so we bought a different house for about £30,000 less and moved in the February. I kept checking the Price History of the House to see what it had sold for, it just wasn't coming up. I drove past the house one day in the summer and thought I wonder if it has gone up yet. I looked online and finally it was there, listed at £205,000 sold in June! £5k less than the initial asking price.

Don't let them suck you in. This was pure greed as they had high interest, we were the first party to look and they said they needed a quick sale, it didn't work out for them in the end.

Mildura · 15/02/2018 10:23

Sealed bins when there are only two interested parties is really rather grabby imo.
Vendor in trying to get as much money for their house as possible shock!

GetTaeBed · 15/02/2018 10:11

Sealed bins when there are only two interested parties is really rather grabby imo. Don't pay more than you feel it is worth.

OwlyLady · 15/02/2018 10:05

They have no chain. They're a retired couple who long moved out the country and it was they rented the property.

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hlr1987 · 15/02/2018 09:43

The people you buy off will in all likelihood use the money from the sale to buy their next place. So if you ask for a large amount off later (more than anyone would have easily in cash to do work) the sale just falls apart as the seller can't then get their mortgage and can't move. So you loose the house anyway. Happened to our buyers last year- the first time buyers or their place asked for 8k off the house for what they perceived as urgent work (not related to the valuation survey). So the people buying our house couldn't get their mortgage and the whole chain went caput. If you love the house, pay what you'd be happy paying at the end, don't intend to mess people around as it's not just one sale usually and it's not nice. If you don't like the house enough to pay for repairs out your own money, don't buy it.

chocolateorangeowls · 14/02/2018 21:34

Just a warning with trying to knock the price down later. Our buyer did this after bidding against two others to get our house. Then last minute they tried to reduce the price to what they originally offered with quotes for work that was shown to be non urgent in their survey. Anyway we told them where to go (after getting our own quotes, which weren't even 1/3 of theirs.) We sold the house again in 6 days and for more than they paid.

Just don't go through the process looking for ways to get that money back. Only bid what you are willing to pay.

OwlyLady · 14/02/2018 21:25

Oh and Ragusa I'm in England.

We have found the market here (east anglia) to be pretty dull actually. And houses seem to be staying on the market longer than last year (I've been tracking houses on rightmove etc for a while as excited to house buy!).

I am surprised it's gone to sealed bids when it's only one other couple has offered. All I know is they didn't offer asking price originally either.

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OwlyLady · 14/02/2018 21:22

Brilliant thank you.

We shall just put in what we would be happy to pay then and see what happens. Luckily we aren't in any rush to move so can keep looking

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OneDayIWillHaveAGreatUsername · 14/02/2018 19:28

We went to sealed bids on a property last year. We were the dangerous combination of thinking we were in love with the house (after losing our last "loved" house) plus being desperate to move and not lose our buyers. We offered over the asking and got it. We offered the max we were willing to so we were really pleased to get it.
Fast forward on by two months and we pulled out as the buyers still hadn't found anything to move to themselves and we needed to move. The house went back on at the price we'd offered (an increase on what they were advertising originally) and then sat there for a month until they reduced it back down.
It just shows we offered way above what anyone else was willing to pay. I'm glad we pulled out as we are now in a much better house!

GU24Mum · 14/02/2018 19:14

It's an unusual time in the market for sealed bids given the doom and gloom......

If it isn't the house of your dreams and there are others around, I'd offer a small amount (a few hundred pounds) over the £205 you'd ideally like to pay and see how you get on.

Good luck

Ragusa · 14/02/2018 18:49

Are you in Scotland OP? If not ... be wary. Hoe do you know ow the EA& vendor aren't trying to fleece you?

We lost out on a sealed bids house, week later EA came back to say "oh dear the other party can't proceed my arse" . It was still on the market ONE YEAR later.

This was England by the way.

glorious · 14/02/2018 18:44

Houses don't always go to the highest bidder (both we've bought didn't). I'd just bid what you genuinely think it's worth and emphasize your advantages as first time buyers (no chain, mention if you have an agreement in principle for the mortgage, etc).

OwlyLady · 14/02/2018 18:40

They haven't said anything is structurally wrong with the house though ThroughThickAndThin so surely they've only priced it on the cosmetics. Therefore if the surveyor kicks anything up we can knock it back down?

Yes kingjofferyworksintescos we have considered the stamp duty thing which is why we can look at buying a house now. Has helped is out!

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kingjofferyworksintescos · 14/02/2018 14:17

Remember you will be saving considerable stamp as first time buyers , have you accounted this into the purchase ?

ThroughThickAndThin01 · 14/02/2018 14:13

It has probably been priced for the work to be done accordingly so I expect they'll want close to the asking price.

TheGirlOnTheLanding · 14/02/2018 14:09

In Scotland, sealed bids is the norm, and I agree that you need to consider how much you'd be prepared to go to, but I also pass on our kawyer's advuce that your bid isn't a round number - i.e. If you want to offer £205k, make the offer £205, 073 - so that if the offers are very close you'll have a chance of offering a tiny margin over. It's worked for us a few times! Good luck.

OwlyLady · 14/02/2018 13:57

The EA won't give us any details of the other couole interested.

I guess we will have to have the 2nd viewing and a good hard think.

If we were accoted and the survey threw up any issues we could always try to knock the price down?

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wheresmyphone · 14/02/2018 13:37

Talk to EA. Are all bidders in same position? A cash buyer could offer less than someone who needs to sell their own property.

Mildura · 14/02/2018 13:33

It's very difficult to give advice in situations like this. Only you can decide how much you want the property, and only you can decide how much it is worth to you.

Would you be disappointed if you found out the property had sold to someone else at £210k, when you offered £205k?

Decide on your maximum and stick to it. If this one doesn't work out there will always be others.

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