Home buying "protocol"

[unavailable]

We have viewed a house for 2nd time, and are very interested. It is grade 2 listed and we wanted to get an idea of how much replacing like-for-like windows would be, when needed. The local council recommended a specialist surveyor, and we asked vendors if they would mind if he came around to take a look (10/ 15 mins visual inspection only)They said ok.

Today I have had a curious conversation with the estate agent who basically accused us of time wasting and not following the proper "protocol". He also said he thought our request to be "odd." I am quite put out.

Surely its better to find out as much as possible before putting in an offer rather than withdrawing after an offer is made if we were to get a nasty shock about the cost of replacing the windows?

As a vendor, I would have no problem with this, but the estate agent implied the vendors were unhappy. He (agent)was clearly irritated and a bit rude. Am I missing something? Have we broken some unwritten rule?

Not at all, often people take along builders/handymen and even surveyor friends with them to 2nd/3rd viewings.

Perhaps he knows that it will cost a lot of money and is a bit scared that you won't offer.

He should be moving heaven and earth to get you to offer tbh!

I've never heard of anything like that not being protocol. Seems very sensible to find out whether you can afford needed work (I assume that the windows will need replacing as soon as you buy pretty much - if it won't need doing straightaway, then YAB slightly odd)

Anyway, matters not what the agent thinks

CMOT - actually the windows look in pretty good nick, so maybe we are! Its just the listing that is the issue - we have no idea if they would cost £5,000 or £50,000 to replace because of that.We are asking the surveyor what he thinks the "life" of the current windows is, and how much they will cost when they do need replacing. We were advised that a normal survey would not give us this information, just flag up any current problem

I think you are being sensible, do whatever will put your mind at rest before you think about offering.

Thank you lizzy. I didnt think we were being unreasonable, but the agent was so off with me that I started to doubt... (not very experienced in all this buying/selling mallarky).

I shall now take a rightously indignant stance with said agent.

I do think it's a wee bit weird if there's nothing wrong with the windows tbh - afterall, if they're fine now, as long as you maintain them, they may never need replacing. Are you also going to get a specialist to quote for roof replacement before you offer?

That said, if i were the vendor, I would not have a go at you - though I wouldn't drop the price either assuming the windows are fine now.

Oh dear, Koppakate - do you really think its weird/over cautious? If they were ordinary windows, we wouldnt have thought twice about it. We are just trying to cover all the bases to make a really informed decision.

I don't think its weird unavailable, very sensible imho.

We we sold our house back in 2007 the buyers sent round a specialist surveyor to check the soil as parts of my village are liable to subsidence. I thought he was just the normal house surveyor until he turned up!

God one of our previos buyers sent a firm round to extract a sample of our foundations under the garage AND had all the drains cctv'd.

The estate agent sounds like an arsehole. If I were you I'd let the vendors know what he said so they can tell him to wind his neck in.

When I have bought and sold houses in the past, I have always dealt directly with the buyers and sellers and involved the estate wankers agents as little as possible.

Sorry if I wasn't clear, I too think the estate agent was an arse and you should be able to check what you like.

But if the windows are sound (according to the full structural survey you will presumably get) I just think it's odd that you need to know how much they'll cost to replace before you make an offer.

IMO surveys of drains and subsidence risks are a bit different because they're looking for faults which would not be covered by a normal full structural survey - here you are doing an extra check on an aspect of the house which has no obvious faults and which would be covered by a full structural survey.

All that said, although I don't personally see why you're so focussed on the windows (as opposed to, for example the roof) I don't see why the estate agent would stop you. We just withdrew our offer on a house where the vendor wanted 10k BEFORE he'd even let ANY surveyor in. Now THATS really weird!

unavailable - he is just trying to jump you and bully you into making an offer.

Don't fall for it. You have a perfect right to inpsect the building and could insist on a full structural survey if you like. He will probably next try the "I have an other interested party who have made an offer".

The agent is being stupid. There is no such thing as 'protocol'. There is a normal procedure that is generally followed in making a formal offer, contracting, searches and so on but that is usually in the hands of the solicitors.

Before the formal offer is made you have a perfect right to do what you like as log as the vendor is happy to continue the discussion. To be absolutley frank you can just ignore the agent and ring up the vendor and talk direct if you like.

Listed buildings take a lot of consideratin in my experience as they can be money pits. You are doing the right thing.

Thanks for all the replies.

I did feel a bit bullied, but will be more prepared if I have to deal with him again.