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Original poster

Here we go again - think we've found a house to make an offer on.

32 replies

NoseyNooNoo · 09/05/2010 23:17

We saw a house we like that we think we'll put an offer on. Well DH is certain we will but I need to view again because it didn't win my heart but it tick all of the boxes and is just under our budget by £50!

I think I've viewed so many houses, and had ffers declined on a fair few, that I'm just jaded by the whole thing. I'm still wondering when you 'know' it's the right house. I'm not sure such a think exists anymore.

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LIZS · 10/05/2010 08:35

I felt like that when we bought this house . I took dh to the second viewing and he could n't understand why I wasn't more excited as from his pov it was ideal, in fact almost too good to be true and ticked most of our boxes immediately. However 3 years on I still feel it is more practical than homely if I'm honest.

minipie · 10/05/2010 10:07

Hmm, I'm on the other side from LIZS. The last place I bought, I offered because it ticked the boxes, not because I'd fallen in love with it. But I think that was because, as you say, I'd seen so many places by then that I was jaded by the whole process, and was being so picky that no place was going to "win my heart". A few months after moving in I absolutely loved it.

notasize10yetbutoneday · 10/05/2010 10:11

I think that the frame of mind you are in when you view can affect your intial feeling about a house.

We viewed a house friday night when we were tired after a long week and wanting to get home. It ticked all the boxes but I didn't walk in and thik 'wow, this is the one'. However we went back for a second viewing on saturday and then i began to get excited about all the things we could do to it, make it ours, etc. We put an offer in Saturday afternoon and had it accepted. Now I am already thinking of it as 'our' house and would be distraught if it fell through.

So I guess what I am trying to say is- definitely have a second viewing, and just because you don't walk in and think 'wow' doesn't mean you won't eventually (or within 24 hours in my case!).

mintyfresh · 10/05/2010 11:12

We are buying (our rented) house for practical reasons - mainly location and size. It is not a house I would ever have looked at thinking it's my 'dream home'!! We've rented it for 4 years now so has sort of become home and I guess when we do our own thing with it it will feel more 'homely'.

I hated our last house purely because of the location - was a really cute house which I fell in love with straight away but was the worst place ever to live!!

NorkyButNice · 10/05/2010 11:16

We offered on a house after viewing just 5 in total - I fell completely head over heels in love with the place, and luckily (I thought) our offer was accepted. Yes, it had faults, but the feeling of the place was just perfect.

However, after 2 months of the vendors getting more and more unreasonable, all the faults that I'd previously have lived with became unbearable, and we pulled out.

A couple of months later, I'd viewed another 25 houses (no rushing into anything this time!) and we finally made an offer on a house that was the exact opposite of the one we'd nearly bought, and which wasn't a house to fall for by any stretch of the imagination. It had great potential and was in a great location.

So don't worry about having to fall in love with somewhere - if it ticks the boxes then it'll be right!

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 10/05/2010 11:35

Thanks for the pep talk ladies. I'm seeing it again tomorrow. I actually picked up the full particulars this morning and I felt happier seeing the photos.

Part of the problem may have been that we had our (feral) children with us when we viewed. Hopefully a walk around on our own will make things seem better.

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fruitstick · 10/05/2010 12:19

Ooh nosey, didn't see that you've found a house too.

Yes I agree about take the children with you - you spend all your time trying to herd them about rather than looking at the wiring.

We are going back for a second viewing today without them.

I love this house which we're looking at. I have seen so many in the past year that I thought would do but didn't fall in love with.

I have no idea which way is best - this could be an absolute money pit and ruin our marriage as opposed to the 'this will do' rental we are in at the moment which the landlord refused our offer on.

I have fallen in love with too many houses and lost them to try to get too excited.
Fingers crossed it will all work out in the end.

cathbath76 · 10/05/2010 15:13

Just joining in as we are in the same situation. We were gazzumped last week on a house we liked (but in retrospect it did have flaws which would have annoyed us).

We have now put an offer in another house which we have both fallen for - except it hasn't been touched for decades so will need everything doing. Argh! But that was kind of part of its charm. The house has so much potential, and we could stay there for 20 years or more so can make it our own. I have a clear idea of how I want the interior to look, but am trying not to let myself get too excited!

Despite the fact the house needs a lot of work, the owners (who have inherited it from deceased parents) are holding out for the asking price. We offered £10K under (2% under) and were rejected! We are thinking of upping our offer slightly as we see so much potential in the house - but I think we're probably overpaying. There is just so little on the market and nothing else that felt right.

We need to move to put DS's name down for school, so might have to go into rented if this falls through...

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 10/05/2010 15:20

Just 2% below - some people are just greedy - don't know a good offer when they see it!

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fruitstick · 10/05/2010 15:38

Our offer was rejected. It's on the market for £405k and the relative won't consider less than £400k!

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 10/05/2010 15:46

Gosh - that really is a bit unrealistic. I hope our vendor is a bit more flexible!

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jonicomelately · 10/05/2010 16:03

We've just accepted an offer but there's nothing left for us on the market. Looks like rental for the time being. Btw noseynoonoo, glad I caught up with you. Did you see the election result for our mutual 'friend'

fruitstick · 10/05/2010 16:51

Hmm yes indeed.

I currently have no idea how to read the estate agent at the moment. They are being very attentive and have given me numbers for plumbers to get quotes etc. One of them rang just to introduce herself earlier . Very different response to previous ignorant swines.

Thing is, it hasn't actually officially gone on the market yet so I think they are hoping they can talk us up to the asking price so that we don't lose it.

We can't afford the asking price so I'm convinced someone else will come along with the full asking.

Am so sick of wondering what will happen to the housing market and how much we should expose ourself to it. Even to get close to where they want to be will take every spare penny that we have.

and breathe

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 10/05/2010 23:27

Hee hee Joni, yes I did. It raised a snigger in our house. I said to DH that I felt a bit sorry for her but he was having none of it - he said, 'what goes around comes around'.

Fruitstick - you can only offer what you can afford - no point stretching yourself in this financial climate. We probably could afford the asking price on the one we want but then we'd have no spare cash so we have a limit and we have to stick to it (although DH is better at sticking to a limit than I am)!

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fruitstick · 11/05/2010 09:21

Right - we have offered £390k.

If he accepts, we'll be living on beans for years and I will be on here permanently for advice on how to negotiate down builders!

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 11/05/2010 10:49

Good luck Fruitstick!

I've just been to see the house again. The vendor is quite lovely. Just have to work out what to bid. She is hoping to buy a new build and needs to have agreed a sale before she'll have her offer accepted. She wants a quickish sale because the house she's buying will be complete in July and was happy that we are renting.

DH has put me in charge of the bidding process. She said that there is a figure she'll accept and won't decline our offfer just because it's the first one. My first offer is 95%, 2nd offer if required will be 96% and final offer is 97%. Anymore than that and I'll be on here too wanting advice on how to do things on the cheap.

I'm going to hang on a short while because she had someone else viewing at 10.45 - they drove past about 6 times! I don't want them to hear the EA ring with our offer.

OP posts:
fruitstick · 11/05/2010 11:33

Fingers crossed nosey. She'd be mad to turn down a 95% offer I think.

jonicomelately · 11/05/2010 12:24

Hope it works out for you Noseynoonoo. Keep us posted.

As for the other matter, couldn't agree with your DH more. Tee hee

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 11/05/2010 12:42

I put the offer in at 11.20am. I wonder how long it will take to hear back.

In the past I've had responses that took as long as a week (which was accepted but fell through)and a decline that took 20 seconds, although I don't think EA put the offer forward. Both of the above are still unsold as it happens!

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cathbath76 · 11/05/2010 14:05

Hope you hear back quickly NoseyNooNoo. The waiting is painful. We are still waiting to hear whether our last offer was accepted... DH has asked the EA to say we are looking at alternative houses so they may lose us if they delay!

fruitstick · 11/05/2010 14:55

Well we heard back. He hasn't rejected our offer but he's not accepting it until he's had some more viewings today and tomorrow.

What is one supposed to do in this situation?

Just wait and hope noone better comes along I suppose.

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 11/05/2010 15:19

Fruitstick, that is painful. Hopefully it needing work wil put people off.

My update is that EA rang to say vendor needed 98% of asking price to be able to afford her onward purchase but would speak to developer. She expressed that she was happy about us buying it though - I was ever so charming this morning! I subsequently rang back. Vendor was actually on the phone to EA at the time, reporting back that she'd spoken to developer and was waiting for a call back. I upped our offer to our previously agreed final offer which conveniently sits between our last offer and her supposed minimum so it looks like a perfect compromise.

We won't hear back from EA until tomorrow at earliest because EA is out for the rest of the day anyway.

My nails are going to be so short by tomorrow!

Oh, and the other couple this morning are interested but have others to look at and are 'under offer' so not as good a position as us.

OP posts:
fruitstick · 12/05/2010 12:38

It went for asking price

Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 12/05/2010 13:39

Oh no, I'm sorry to hear that. How totally frustrating. I can't think of positive words to say.

Meanwhile I'm still waiting for EA to get back to me - I suspect that yesterday's viewers might be 'in play'.

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Original poster
NoseyNooNoo · 12/05/2010 15:21

Well, the other couple from yesterday made a full asking price offer (3% more than us). This was accepted because they are in as good a position as us. When I question this it seems they are actually in chain.

Am really pissed off with it all frankly.

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