Buyer wants a second viewing 3 months after offer accepted.

[tackytriceratops]

I know no one will be able to shed any really light - I always thought it was odd the buyer bought without a second viewing! Just wondered if any insights

We accepted offer at the end of July. They are renting and have been looking for a house in this area- houses go v quickly due to school system here. Searches only started in sept and take weeks. They haven’t wanted to do a survey (yet). Highly likely that they’d like our house in order to get into a specific school.

unfortunately there were issues up the chain and the original idea of moving in Nov was moved to Jan which our buyers were happy with. The house we had an offer on we withdrew from but had an offer accepted within days on another. So it’s still probably Jan as a possible date.

we are worried that they’re getting cold feet….? Though searches may have thrown up some work being done next door.

argh to the tidying again!!

What?! That’s bonkers by the estate agents. It’s very common for buyers to come back for viewings.

This. They are dragging their feet, perhaps hoping that something they like better will come up. You’ll have to agree to a second viewing - it’s normal - but I would be pushing the agent to push them to get a survey done. When they’ve got more financial skin in the game, you can be more confident.

Maybe it’s different in the Scottish system? I’m not sure but it’s what I’ve been told every time I’ve sold a property.

apparently the local school catchment has shrunk hugely this year due to siblings. I think it’s the smallest it’s ever been. If they want it for school they’ll definitely want to keep it. If not it will quickly go again for that reason

They will want to measure up for curtains so they order, maybe check furniture fits etc. it's quite normal.

I was buying my current flat during the lockdowns and it took so long for the sale to go through (nearly a year) that I went for an additional viewing just before signing the contract to make sure that the flat (which was empty) hadn't deteriorated in condition during that time.

Agh! House selling and buying in this country is a total mare. We've done it 4 times and it never gets any easier. You've done the best you can. If they drop out, they drop out. Accept it. Just pick yourself up and start again. Its possible that you'll get a better house than the one you're currently trying to buy. Good luck x

I did two viewings on the prevous house I bought, then made the offer which was accepted. Later on, after the survey was done and we were full steam ahead, I took my plumber around with me as the bathroom was going to be moved upstairs when I eventually moved in and wanted him to see the upstairs room where the new suite would go.

Current one, I did two viewings, made the offer and never went back till the day I moved in.

My buyers didn’t have a survey, they asked me to repair two broken tiles on the roof and address a faulty door handle, it was a cash purchase so you don’t have to have one.

They would pop round regularly to chat about the sale, just a genuine lovely couple who were buying for their daughter, lucky girl.

Have they booked a survey yet? It's a good idea to check over a house before paying for a survey to identify things you may want the surveyor to particularly address, or to be sure you want to go ahead and pay for a survey. I withdrew from a sale the day before a survey as a second viewing identified a really boggy area in the garden and heavy water run-off from a neighbour's drive.

Ours have been four times - the first time he viewed alone, on the second time they came as a couple and put an offer in. Then they came to pick what fittings, furniture and window dressings they wanted, and the fourth time to measure up for a sofa. We don’t mind at all, they are lovely and we want them to be as happy here as we have been. They have an open invitation for coffee and questions if they’re passing!

I wouldn't refuse to let them view, but it's a bit worrying. I could understand if they wanted to come in and measure after they'd exchanged though.

We don’t mind. It’s just a bit odd that they’ve left it so long. And didn’t want a survey.

but I could understand if it’s a school led buy. Many buy the smaller houses that are close to the school and in this catchment area and then move further out to larger ones later on.

Thought all house sales were subject to contract?

I understand that potential buyers may need several viewings. Reasonable and par for the course.

But these sound dodgy. Something going in the background that could be illegal or that they don't want you to know about.

Seller Beware!!!

Our buyers did this about 4 months after. It was a week before we exchanged contracts. The sale went through smoothly but it did make us worry. We were told it’s something the solicitors recommended

So glad this chain system doesn't happen in Scotland. I couldn't do the stress

As a buyer I’d probably pull out if this happened. Mostly people want to measure up/are thinking about decorating etc and need a second or third look at their hundreds of thousands of pounds (or millions) investment. If you declined I’d think you were either hiding something or just very difficult and I’d look elsewhere.

I really can't see anything wrong with them wanting to see the house again. They will just be getting an idea for furniture etc.

@OdeToTheNorthWestWind
"Just be wary that house buyers can use a viewing near to exchange date, to
"find" a problem which will require £5k off the price. This happened to me in a previous house move".

Yes, it could possibly be that this is also why they've not done a survey yet, I'm afraid that it is a buyers market at the moment and some people are stinkers.

I suppose it also depends on how well house prices are holding up in the area where@tackytriceratops lives, though their buyer will have to get a move on if they want a school place for the next academic year.

How long ago did you buy the house? And how old is it?

We sold our first house (1980s build) to other FTBs after we had been in it for 4 years, in 2018. We had a survey when buying, nothing out of the ordinary came up and we refurbed the entire house in the time we lived there. The next couple (also FTBs who were pregnant) did not do a survey, presumably because they felt confident that there would be nothing untoward with a relatively new build mid terrace 2 bed house. They were spending the best part of £500k on it as we are in SW London, so it would have been small change on their overall costs, but they obviously had their reasons.

Beware

Could be genuine & they just want to measure up. Although strange they did not do a second viewing closer to the first viewing.

However, my buyers asked to do a third viewing 3 weeks before completion to 'measure up'.
After the viewing they then knocked me down by £16,000 due to superficial cosmetic painting they suddenly thought needed doing, otherwise they would pull out.

I had already paid for searches, solicitors fees & a full survey on the maisonette I was buying. I could not afford to go back on the market & loose the maisonette I had already paid out on so had to accept the reduced sale price.

I hope their second viewing is purely to measure up.
Good luck OP

I’ll be insisting on seeing the house we are buying pre exchange and pre completion.

no kids yet.

yes house prices good and go quickly here. Just not much on market as there’s a lack of houses for upsizing

yes this is possible.

There’s not a huge amount that would need to be done beyond basic decor. The decor we have is very minimalistic / skandi

I fell in love with a property at the 1st viewing, but it was a 2 hour journey.
Full survey done, contracts prepared. Everyone knows you don't spend nearly £2k if you're not serious !
Had the second viewing before signing the contract - 5 months later - to check a few things. Neither the EA nor our vendors thought it was odd.
We move tomorrow !!!