Is there any point going back with another offer?

[Startofanewweek]

Advice needed please!

I viewed a house that's been on the market since May of last year. The asking price is 175k. 4 other larger houses on the same and next street have sold for less within the last year. The other houses have either more/bigger rooms, a garage or extension so it's definitely overpriced.

I decided to put an offer in this morning for 160k. The agent has just called me to say that it's been declined and she couldn't get much out of the seller other than she wants the asking price and she feels that it's priced correctly.

The agent (not at all pushy to be fair - I'm sure she's probably just fed up) gave me some advice and said that she probably won't accept anything in the 60s (maybe just under) but possibly from the 70s.

I did explain to the agent that I'd done my research and there were other houses on the same street that had sold for less but that I'd think about it and get back to her with my final decision.

The most I'm willing to pay is 165k but is there any point in putting that offer forward since it's not in the 70s like shes advised? Shall I just call the agent back later and say that's my final offer, it's not in the 70s but the offer is on the table in case the seller changes her mind?

nothing to lose op 🤷

@carguide24 yes that's true!

Go for it OP. If rejected (which tbh does sound likely) you can always leave the offer on the table. You never know, she may end up coming back to you further down the line if she doesn't get a higher offer!

If you are ready to move with no house to sell and a mortgage or funds in place then I would put the offer in.
The agent is duty bound to put the offer forward.

@Sago1 yes I'm a first time buyer, AIP/deposit etc in place

Then definitely put the offer on, the market is dead in most parts of the country as we’re waiting for a new government.
You are in a great position.

Honestly, I wouldn't. It sounds as if you have an unrealistic seller and estate agent on your hands. If 4 larger homes have sold within the last year for less, why would you want to pay more for a smaller house? It makes very poor financial sense, especially as a FTB, who probably needs a high LTV and you may well find that the mortgage company down values it anyway after reviewing the comparables.
I would keep looking for something for reasonably priced in your area. You can always keep the 160k offer in place and they may come back to you when no one else wants to pay 170k for the same reasons that you don't want to.

I would wait a couple of days to hear their formal response to the offer. Sounds like they are being unrealistic on price.

Nothing to loose. If you're really not willing to/can't pay more than £165k, then go back and make it clear it's your final other and you'll walk away if it's a 'no'.

I think that people tend to overprice in general so I would put 165k offer but I would be careful in comparison with other houses as some houses might be bigger but require more work etc. Also the prices published are often the prices agreed long before.

I suppose you have nothing to lose but in our experience when sellers behave like this there is something going on in the background which might not resolve soon. We've bought our previous and current house from divorcing couples. Our current place was on the market for 24 months - originally listed at over £140K more than we bought it for. The couple were at each others throats, and it cost them, because a few months prior to us they turned down an offer which was £35K more than we ended up paying. Bonkers.

Offered 165k which was declined. The agent seemed to think she'd consider an offer in the 70s but she said she wants the asking price. Apparently she's not in a rush to sell it (well obviously if it's been on sale for over a year 😂). They've said they'll contact me if she changes her mind. Oh well!

I don't think the house is 'really' for sale, OP.

@OVienna it's empty believe it or not! Ex rental I believe

We put an offer in last week much less than the sellers wanted.
We sent a polite email saying that comparable houses were on sale for less and as we were able to proceed immediately, that we felt it was a fair offer. They accepted it!

How odd. Well, she clearly doesn't need the money.

do you love it?

Depends on if theyre in a rush to sell. We sold my mother in laws house 10 years ago. We held out for asking price as we just weren't in a rush and were confident we would get the price asked. And we did. Took 2 years.

@carguide24 I do but not enough to overpay

If you love it and can afford it, I would think hard about walking away over £5k. It's 'nothing' in the long term / grand scheme of things.

@Chewbecca it's not 5k. The agent thought she might accept an offer in the 70s but during their last conversation she told the agent that she wants asking price which is another 10k unfortunately. I just can't justify spending that much when other houses on the same street have sold for less, one with a garage and conservatory.

Don't ever over pay for a house. You will always get sellers who think they are worth more than they are. When I was buying my house, I put a very fair offer in on a house which had recently been done up. They wanted more because of the money they had put in to it but it just wasn't worth it. 3 months later they came back to accept my offer. By that point I'd found a better house which I'm still in now. I'm so glad they didn't accept my offer. They ended up selling it for less than my offer.

do they come up frequently?

I think they've done you a favour. Quite a lot of sellers are very unrealistic and don't seem to be too bothered about whether they sell or not, at least not right now. Often, in the last 30 years, the market has risen to meet their desired price such as a pp mentioned. However, at the present, it is much more likely that the market will fall, possibly significantly or at the very least fall in real terms. You really don't want to overpay. You sounds sensible and realistic and I'm sure something else better and fairly priced will come along.

I had a problem like this….. in the end, I did not/could not buy the house. Eventually through a friend of a friend, I discovered the reason. Lady living in the house was going through a divorce and had two teenage girls finishing A levels/1st year uni. The estranged husband was a doctor who had gone to work abroad and was pushing for a sale but only in a very half-hearted way. Intention of lady living in the house was that she would eventually have to sell but did not want any changes until both her daughters had finished university and would drag out the sale of the marital home by any means she could think of. I had sympathy with her position. The years have gone by and I am assuming both girls have finished at university because the house is suddenly priced realistically. When I went to view all those years ago she could not have been more offputting 😂😂😂😂 “ these ceilings are very high and expensive to decorate”, “ these bedrooms are cold and never get any sun” and the absolute punch line when I asked about the plumbing in of the washer “ oh, I wouldn’t be able to even let you see that because a rat lives in that drain”. A couple of weeks later, I found the lovely home in which I live now….. I realised that house wasn’t really for sale, or at least not at that time.