Offer during valuation - reduced rate for EA

[Eskimole]

We’re in the process of valuation. An estate agent asked whether we’d be prepared to show the house before we’ve chosen who to go with. They have a client in
mind who wants something just like ours. We have a pretty good idea of market value of our place. Are there any cons to just going with a viewing? Estate agent suggested a reduced rate if anything comes of it - any experience of this anyone?

Worth trying- you could always refuse an offer if it's made.

We had this, accepted it and sold straight away 5k over the price we planned to market at as they wanted to secure it

What happened with the estate agents fee? It’s their client but obv they haven’t done anything to market our house yet other than this

So what?If they sell your house, and very quickly , they deserve their fee, don’t they? Or would you rather that someone showed your house to twenty people and you sold it to the twentieth, three months later?

Ask them for a written agreement of the fee for selling to this buyer, and make sure you specify that this is a one off agreement, not binding for the future if their client doesn’t proceed.

What about if they agreed to bring 16 other people round who turned out didn't want to buy your house, would that make them worth the fee?

I'd let them. If something comes of it great. And if not, that's fine too?

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We paid half their normal fee %

They have still found you a potential buyer.

We're in the process of selling and the estate agent didn't actually do an awful lot in securing a buyer but is very involved in progressing the sale, chasing solicitors, updating the chain etc so I think this is more where they've earned their fee rather than sticking it on rightmove and arranging some viewings.
I'd go with the viewing and just pay the estate agent their fee as normal if anything came of it personally.
Can't see why you wouldn't, you may not get these buyers without them.

They deserve the fee for the speed! And they will.work for you during the transaction.

I'd say yes but a one buyer only time limited agreement.

And I guess once they've viewed, if they don't offer, their name will have to be lodged with the EA you do choose just in case they come back and offer later. After all, most buyers will have contacted all EAs in an area of they are serious.

Thanks for the advice. We haven’t actually signed with any estate agents yet, this is something that has come out of a valuation meeting where the agent contacted me to say our house was perfect for one of their clients. We haven’t finished getting valuations at this point - one more agent to see. It was the agent who suggested a reduced fee if the sale goes ahead.

Bite their arm off, selling houses is so boring, if you can do it asap without the hassle of 1,000 viewings, do it!

If they view, but you choose another agent and that same viewer then offers, then that's a problem. You could incur double fees because agent #1 was the introducer, regardless of no contract. Personally, I never let them view outside of contract.

Yes I've done this. I was actually going with another agent entirely but was approached beforehand by an agent asked if they could do a one off viewing . The buyers didn't go for it in the end.

I'd be very careful. This is a well known tactic of estate agents to 'reel you in' and ensure that you choose them over other agents as you've sort of begun the process.
Strangely when I was interviewing estate agents I had the exact same 'offer' from two of them - that they had a 'perfect buyer' who was extremely interested in the house and could they do a pre-viewing.
A lot of these perfect buyers never end up following through to an offer. They may even be friends of the EA!

In my opinion you never really know how much a house is worth until it's gone on the open market.

Selling the house is only half the battle. Getting it over the finish line is the other half of the battle. I would pick an estate agent that you feel confident can market the properly but also one that will progress the sale.

I wouldn’t sign with someone because they had a buyer ready and waiting. Our estate agents who had a client who were looking exactly for our sort of house. The estate agents sent it to them, ignored the message for a few days and then they requested a Friday morning viewing on Thursday when the estate agents rang to let them know we had a lot of viewings for the Saturday. They didn’t even bother to turn up to view the house.