I finally have the deposit, can I flippin' find a house?? Nope!

[RubyBlueberry]

Anybody got any tips to find out when houses go on sale? Am registered with local estate agents, is there anything else i can do?

Had a lovely house on which we had our offer accepted, ticked every box, twas wonderful, we changed our rental agreement to a 3 month lease so we could move into the house in October, as the sellers requested and the buggers decided not to sell.
Am v upset. but there must be another house!!

When I was looking for my flat I found the web really useful, even though I was registered with the local agents.

Also are you sure you're registered with ALL the local agents? www.ukpropertyshop.co.uk have lists of agents in each area.

Also a tip can be to check with agents in a nearby area. I helped a friend find a flat, she was looking for a house in Stoke Newington - a very trendy part of Hackney in London (some other bits of Hackney can be a bit .. ahem ... rough round the edges - personally I love Hackney but not everyone cup of tea!)

I helped her find her flat by widening the search to agents outside her area (although still looking for a flat in the same place IYSWIM) - Islington up the road is generally more pricey than Hackney. People in trendy Stokey may well identify more with plush agents in the more affluent place up the road, and choose to advertise their property there instead of using the local ones, and in the end we did find her flat in a posh Highbury agent.

Whereabouts are you looking?

Ooh, waaaaaay up North, in Northumberland. There are some slightly .. rough round the edges places here too... so all I want is 3 beds, be within walking distance of DD's school and have a garden so we can have a slide and a playhouse!! Do you reckon I should put an advert in local paper saying "house wanted" ?

I wouldn't do that I think you will end up paying over the odds as people will see it as desperation. May not be much help but I am in SW London and have noticed that houses are selling very quickly here in the last month. I mean being on the market for a week at the most. So fingers crossed things are getting better and sellers more realistic.

Be extra nice to estate agents, make sure they know you are still actively looking, also make sure the Mums on the school gate know too, they may know someone who just had their house valued.

Like I am ready to put my house on the market but there is no point if there is no house for me to go to. I am booking to see 4 possible houses if any of them are good then we will put ours on.

My friends know this so if someone mentioned they were looking hopefully my mates would tell you mine was going on the market (sadly I am in West Yorkshire)

I love rightmove.co.uk

Ruby I sympathise with you. We moved into rented and it's 10 months later and no house yet. We have been scouring various counties, I am tempted to start a blog on relocation with ins and outs of each place. Still looking. We are chain free but has not helped a bit.

fizzy do you not think it's a good idea to put your house on the market if you haven't found one you like? I said this to the estate agents that I was worried if I sold mine I would feel pressure to find one quickly and might not - they just said i would find one i liked!! Haven't put it on yet anyway.

It's fairly pointless looking at houses before yours is on the market because you can't put any offers in. Therefore if you find one you like someone else will buy it before you are sold.

We have sold & are desperately searching but to no avail. We keep popping into the Estate Agents & asking them if they have anything about to come to market. I feel weird doing this but we need a house so I (reluctantly) follow DH into the Estate Agents...& let him do the talking . Good luck with your search, I am absolutely fed up with the entire process.

brettgirl that's not accurate though is it as alot of houses are on the market for months and months. If I found one i liked then mine could be on the market within 2 weeks. I would never put an offer in until I'd sold mine anyway even though I know people do.

Rightmove is great, are there any others?

I was really sad today, I drove past the house that was almost ours and I shed a little tear!

globrix.com

propertyfinder.com

& I think primelocation.com

I hope you find something equally as nice or superior than the house you didn't get. Good luck )

ooh thanks for those LTS, I only had signed upto one.
I am now quite (selfishly, sorry ) worried that house prices are going to go up again and I'll never be able to afford a house!