Do we accept this offer or wait for the market to pick up??

[Sunset54]

Hi All, we’re struggling to come to a decision so I’m hoping MNers can help.

After 5 very difficult years renovating our house (unplanned but we discovered was necessary after buying it) we have decided to sell and move to an area with better schools. Where we currently live is very popular with house-buyers but due to the school holidays there are not too many viewings at the moment.

The house has been listed for a month and we’ve had 5 viewings. All have loved the house and have raved about it in their feedback but three didn’t want to make an offer based on not suitable for their disability/hadn’t decided whether to sell theirs/1acre field wasn’t big enough for a garden (??) (they hadn’t listed their house so we weren’t too bothered about this).

Two have been very interested but one still needs to sell theirs (but have said they would like to make an offer when ready), and the other made an offer in the first week. They offered £60k under the asking price, then £40k, then £10k, then the asking price but with no chain, and now the £5k under with a chain. Now, the asking price was for offers over so we feel accepting the lower limit is a compromise for us but one we’d consider. Our agent is putting pressure on us to accept the latest £5k under offer (even dared tell me that the other party were being very reasonable in her opinion and we weren’t!).

The houses we’re looking at are selling for the same price as ours so we’d have the stamp duty, fees etc to cover out of our own pocket. Accepting £5k under is an extra expense to us plus all the messing around to get to this point makes us worry they’re not committed to paying it and they will mess us around when it comes to the survey etc and try to lower us again.

As the holidays are about to end should we wait to see if we get more interest, or should we accept this offer (possibly stating no further compromise on the price going forward?)??

Ha! Same. There’s no such thing as a “ cheeky” or offensive offer. It’s a business deal! And I see houses all the time that are easily 60k over priced and will still be sat there in 6 months.
5 viewings in a month isn’t that many I don’t think so maybe this buyer does really like the house ( hence being willing to go to 5 k under) but recognises they are probably paying over the odds.
It frustrates me greatly how personally vendors seem to take things.

@xxltom what’s greed exactly? I’ve made it clear the issue isn’t necessarily the offer it’s the reasons not to trust that they can 1. afford the house, 2. They’re not planning to reduce the offer once we’re far through the process.

I don't understand this 'offers over' thing, why not just put the asking price? Everyone wants to feel like they've got a good deal and so no one wants to offer more than the price that's written down. It's a very bizarre way to do things IMO.

@SpringKitten @Josephinesnapoleon @PontiacFirebird @Beth216

You all seem to have become very hung up about the offers over price, selling in summer, greed, terrible vendors etc etc. My question related to accepting an offer from buyers who had communicated a lot of reluctance to pay the market rate (actually less than market rate as we were advised it should go on for £25k more based on other local house sales), who had given us reason not to trust what they were telling us (re. renting) and who had told us they had issues regarding what was advertised in the house. It also related to compromising on price so soon after listing it and with viewings possibly picking up going in to September. Everything else is irrelevant.

You just have to read what you wrote and you will understand.

"Now, the asking price was for offers over so we feel accepting the lower limit is a compromise for us but one we’d consider."

"£5k isn’t a lot but I’m the asking price was for offers over. "
....

Based on my (limited) experience, the 'offers over' thing is a sign of a greedy seller.
What that does mean? 5, 10, 15% over?
Why don't you advertise for the price you want then?

Are the EAs advertising a property with 'offers over' considering themselves some sort of marketing geniuses and are expecting to extract dozens of thousands over the price from a stranger just like that, with a phone call?

OP, of it's been on a month, you only have one offer, I would absolutely be accepting.
If you wait for the market to 'pick up your house will be way down the list of Right Move and buyers will wonder why it's been on for so long.

You could lower the price to jump back to the top but then you'd be in exactly the same position now, accepting offers lower than the one you have.

If it doesn't work out, by the time you're back on the market it's Autumn and there are supposedly more buyer around.

It's a win win.
But I would seriously consider this offer. Turning it down and getting thing else is a huge risk.

Hi OP,

I'm a buyer and recently had an offer accepted on a house. It was my 3rd offer.

1st and 2nd were rejected. I offered 15k under the asking price. My reasons were that I felt it was slightly overpriced and had been on the market for nearly a year with only 1 offer 9 months prior which eventually fell through, so I thought I'd try my luck. It was rejected and so I increased my offer by 5k which was also rejected. I left the offer on the table and walked away.

I ended up spending 4 weeks obsessing over it and couldn't stop thinking about the house and drove by it probably around 20 times. It made me realise how much I loved the house and area and I really wanted to live and raise a family there. I rang the agent back and offered another 5k (so 5k under the asking price) which I felt was fair as it was the same price to similar properties in the area and it was accepted. The vendor also made clear that she wouldn't renegotiate on the price later down the line which I agreed to (and won't be trying anyway). Although it slowed the process down, I'm still very glad that I didn't rush into making this decision and took the time to decide if I really wanted the house or not.

I could be wrong but maybe something similar has happened with your buyers? Maybe they wanted to try their luck (who doesn't love a bargain after all) but then realised that they really loved the house and the only way to get it was to offer closer to the asking price. It does happen and doesn't mean to say that buyers will mess you around later down the line. Of course if they do, you can always put it back on the market.

I recognise that thought process NewDawn and have done similar. Honestly though, it’s mental to be that someone could have their house on the market for nearly a year and still get only 5 k under! They were lucky you liked the house so much.

@PontiacFirebird completely agree, it's madness to me too. I think in this case, the estate agents valued the house a year earlier and the vendor had that figure stuck in her head and couldn't accept that it wasn't worth that price anymore (or even in the first place tbh). She kept reducing the price after the first offer fell through but still seemed to be holding out hope for the original price. The house is also vacant (ex rental) and it was clear from conversations with the EA that she was in a position to wait for the price that she wanted. I imagine if she'd been buying somewhere herself she might have been more open to offers. I guess it's all down to individual circumstances.

You may have been advised to put it on at £25k higher but given noone has come along (yet) who is prepared to pay the 'offers over' price so it's best to accept that agent was fishing for your business.

Hate offers over!!!

OP, I don’t think I’ve seen a response re what the issue was re the buyer claiming something wasn’t as advertised. Apologies if I missed it.

I’m not asking you to go into detail, but would other buyers potentially agree and could it cause similar queries?

Op are you sure you’ve sold before? You appear very confused. There is no such thing as the market rate.

I think I would pass on this one as they seem like the kind of people to try lowering the offer on exchange of contracts day when you have put an offer in on a new house.

In your shoes I would probably plan to sell, move to a rental property, look around and get a feel for the area, then offer on a new place. Annoying to move twice but less stressful than a chain.

And thousands upon thousands more expensive.

And thousands upon thousands more expensive.

More expensive yes but not necessarily crazy. When we did this we put most of our stuff in storage with the moving company and rented a much smaller place.

You lose a few months of the capital element of your mortgage but otherwise we were just paying rent plus storage costs instead of mortgage.

It's hard not to do this where we are though (non uk) as the down payment on a house is 3% when you have the offer accepted, and then you normally only have 30 days to close, and everyone is in this position, so getting it all to line up in a chain is nearly impossible.

However it has definite advantages.

Have these potential buyers said one thing to you then something different to the estate agent or is that they are not saying the same thing as each other or one day it's one story then the next it's something different? I'm trying to understand so that you can nip this in the bud now so they realise how they are coming across.

Though to be fair if the issue is that OP wants to move soon but not sell right away then that could mean paying overlapping rent and mortgage at the same time and that would indeed stack up very fast.

@NigelHarmansNewWife they told us one thing during the viewing and then (after a very short period of time) the story had changed during the negotiations to justify bringing the offer down from their previous offer.

Okay - I understand your reluctance. Have you discussed this with the EA at all? Although I note the agent is pushing you to accept the offer. Who advised marketing at offers over and did they say what they thought you could expect to actually sell for? Have the buyers provided any proof of having an agreement in principle for a mortgage? Are they selling as well? They sound like first time buyers, but I'd want that in writing!

Selling is often a case of "a bird in the hand". Maybe counter and say you want the extra £5k or no deal as you'll have additional moving costs but aren't going to break a chain or move off the housing ladder given that you have children to consider, etc. If they haven't intimated they are considering another house as well as yours I think you're in a strong position. You've done necessary work meaning they shouldn't have to do anything other than cosmetic stuff to their own tastes.

@NigelHarmansNewWife thank you!

To answer your questions;

I did discuss with the EA but she became very pushy and implied we’re being unreasonable not to settle after a month. EA recommended offers over. They felt the house was worth £25k over but due to selling in the summer we should knock it down by £25k and ask for offers over.
No proof of an agreement in principle.
Due to not being able to find anything they like their sale has been going through for 9 months but they’ve been pushed to complete and move out this month.
There’s also an additional reason (that would be very telling) why these buyers in particular want this house.

If my baby was newborn....I'd consider a counter with something like

they can either pay 5k under but viewings continue and if we get a better offer itll first past the post (ie who is ready to exchange first) OR they can pay asking/2k over/whatever... we will commit exclusively to you as a buyer and no more viewings and while you'll try to minimise it...if you are in a chain you are in a chain.

Both subject to proof of funds and evidence of AIP/MIP

That said it really depends how soon you need to move for schools. If it took until summer 2025 to sell and autumn winter 2025 to complete would it be an issue?

Bird in the hand is worth two in the bush etc....

Okay - I'd push for what you want then. They'll want to buy as soon as they can. You don't have to say why they want your particular house, but I can guess at a few things. You hold the cards. As a buyer, if a seller told me they'd carry on marketing I wouldn't commit and pay for a survey, I'd keep looking. Get the deal done and use the length of time their sale has taken to your advantage.