Found our dream home! Help

[Labmum321]

Our house has been on the market for 9 weeks. We put it on for £10k more than we actually want for it in the hopes that someone knocks us down to what we want. It’s had 5 viewers but no offers. Feedback has been really positive. We’ve been in no rush to sell because the market is slow and so next to no houses have come on the market that have been right for us just yet. We even said if there’s no offers by the end of November we will just take it down as it’s becoming a pain now. We said at the start if the right house came along we would reduce ours for a quick sale.

Fast forward to now. The PERFECT house came along yesterday. We viewed last night. It ticks every box we had and the asking price is the top end of our budget, in the perfect location for us as it’s on the estate most of my family live. Its had 3 viewings so far and its only been on the market 1 day so I know its bound to get snapped up.

Ideally, we’d offer full asking price and would love the vendors to accept this offer, take it off the market and give us x amount of weeks to sell. At the viewing, they told us they were in a similar boat to us, they saw a house that had just come on the market, they viewed it and loved it, they put their house on the market that same day, their offer was accepted before their house was on the market and now they just need a buyer and said they don’t think it’s be on for long.

Realistically, one of the other viewers could be proceedable and it’s taken off the market this morning so we don’t want to reduce ours asap if that house is gone!

The viewings were all last night after the office closed so we won’t know what’s happening until this morning.

What would you do? I know if it was me I’d just go with whoever is the most proceedable and I wouldn’t blame them for doing that.

Should I ring up and offer full asking price straight away and tell them how serious we are and how much we love it etc? Or would it be pointless? Or not jump the gun with figures yet because these other viewers may not be proceedable either?

I hear you... I really do. I've got everything crossed for you x

have you got a mortgage in principal lined up?

Another phone call from EA. Someone that viewed last month has put an offer in of £195k and booked a second viewing for tomorrow at 5pm.

DH immediately asked EA to ring the couple from Saturday to let them know an offer has been made and tell them they can book a second viewing if they like. Slightly annoyed DH has done this as the couple had yet to put an offer in themselves and now we’re practically badgering them for something? Idk! Maybe it’s standard practice to do this. Though the Saturday viewers haven’t yet called back as they’re still waiting on speaking to their financial advisor first.

Not yet, but we have consulted with a financial advisor and discussed what options we have with the bank

Do I write a note to pop through letterbox once we accept an offer on ours?

Hi,

Thank you for taking the time to show us around your beautiful home last week. We fell in love with it and really thought we had found our forever home here. We have been super picky since our search began and this was the first house that ticked all our boxes. We have many family members living in this area, 2 sisters on x avenue, some cousins on y and mum on z. _ grew up here and has many happy memories that we wanted for our girls also. We’re absolutely gutted that we weren’t proceedable at the time and have been in mourning since ha!

We have since sold our house to first time buyers and are now in a position to proceed, so if anything at all happens with your current buyers, please keep us in mind. If nothing changes, good luck with everything, it was lovely to meet you all and all the best for the future.

Kind Regards
___

OR

Is that too far and borderline stalker-ish so just let the EA know and that’s it?!

Their house has now changed to Sold STC on rightmove.

I know a few of you have said it fell through with your cash buyers, how far into the process was this?

I wouldn't be so emotive with the note, but I would be tempted to put a shorter version through their letterbox. EAs can be monumentally shit, our vendors EA never contacted us about the house going back on the market even though we'd already viewed and were a keen potential buyer. It was just lucky we noticed it was back on the market, we'd stopped haunting rightmove at that point.

Your draft message is awful. Reads as if you are trying to make them feel guilty or sorry for you. They went with the first-time buyers who have nothing to sell, cash buyers too I think you said? Which was absolutely the right decision. If you really do want to write to them, say something like:

"Thank you for taking the time to show us around your beautiful home last week. We understand that it is now sold subject to contract, but if the sale falls through for any reason, please do ask the agent to contact us. We have now accepted an offer on our house and we would be delighted to have another opportunity to purchase your house. If nothing changes, good luck with everything, it was lovely to meet you all and all the best for the future."

Agree with @HealthyWeightBy40 - shorter and to the point, whilst still having lots of warmth 👍🏼

That is perfect. Thank you!!

Does anyone know why my post was deleted? I can't remember what I said.

I would also add that your offer is from FTBs (if it is). It will make your offer more appealing if there is a short chain at your end.

Thank goodness I hadn't said anything terrible. It certainly wasn't a call to arms. Just a musing.

Yes that’s better.

I know a few of you have said it fell through with your cash buyers, how far into the process was this?

The first one- a few weeks. It turned out her “cash” was inheritance from a deceased relative in Australia, but she had no idea how much she was actually getting or when she was getting it, and probate was being handled by another relative who she wasn’t on speaking terms with. She couldn’t provide proof of funds so we never even got as far as a memorandum of sale. Complete time waster.

The second- several months. Elderly lady downsizing. She’d made an offer in October? November? Last year, before she had a buyer herself, but we decided to accept her offer and wait til she got a buyer as things quiet down towards year end anyways but she got a buyer in late November or December, can’t remember exactly when. She brought one of her children around to see the place on a Friday afternoon at the end of January, who the EA told us spent the whole time slagging it off, and presumably spent the weekend bullying her out of it because she pulled out of the whole thing on the Monday. We’d just found the house we wanted to offer on too, it was heartbreaking. She only lives a few streets away, it took all my strength not to go and scream outside her windows. Her buyer had apparently already spent a small fortune on solicitors fees etc - we at least didn’t lose any money.

We’re on our third buyers now- FTBs this time, we’ve had an offer accepted on a lovely house with chain free vendors and things seem to be proceeding smoothly so far <knocks on wood>, just praying to all our gods that nothing goes wrong and it’s third time lucky!

What a nightmare! I really hope everything works out this time for you. Good luck!!

I had similar too. I received two matching offers- one from downsizing cash buyers, and another from a first time buyer who was buying with a mortgage. I was pushed quite hard by the estate agent to take the cash offer, although for various reasons I had reservations about them, and the first time buyer had absolutely fallen in love with the place. A few weeks after offering the cash buyers dropped out and we sold to the first time buyer, so it can definitely happen OP!

A lie?! I clearly said we’d only post a note IF we accept an offer on ours. The weekend viewers are first time buyers.

Definitely don't send your first draft. If I got that I'd think you were emotionally blackmailing me and not a chance I'd let you back in

Second suggested one is enough. Short and informative.

Oh yeah! Ha