Tips on bidding for a house.

ferry17

Hi all, as you are all aware, the property and rental market is skyrocketing. Myself and the partner have just got mortgage approved and are in the process of viewing houses in north Dublin/Meath area. Just a few questions to anyone who has knowledge of this business or has recently purchased.
If a house is on the market for 280 thousand, what would a reasonable offer be?
Can you trust an estate agent to tell the truth about other bids ect?
Is there much room for haggling when it comes to the price?
Anything else i should be asking/looking out for in the process?

Thanks in advance..

Del2005

ferry17 wrote: »

Hi all, as you are all aware, the property and rental market is skyrocketing. Myself and the partner have just got mortgage approved and are in the process of viewing houses in north Dublin/Meath area. Just a few questions to anyone who has knowledge of this business or has recently purchased.
If a house is on the market for 280 thousand, what would a reasonable offer be?
Can you trust an estate agent to tell the truth about other bids ect?
Is there much room for haggling when it comes to the price?
Anything else i should be asking/looking out for in the process?

Thanks in advance..

The offer depends on the location, rural area with over supply you can bid low 3 bed semi in Dublin make your best offer and don't go higher.

The estate agent isn't working for you.

Haggling depends on location.

Unless you have to live in an exact area be prepared to walk away.

handlemaster

Bid low for three bed semi in Dublin. .. tell me more ?

Eldarion

Have you considered holding off for 6 months to a year to see the effect that the new proposed CBI limits have on the property market and prices? I believe the general consensus from anyone watching the sector is that now would be a very bad time to buy.

BryanF

Eldarion wrote: »

Have you considered holding off for 6 months to a year to see the effect that the new proposed CBI limits have on the property market and prices? I believe the general consensus from anyone watching the sector is that now would be a very bad time to buy.

Are your comments are related to the Dublin market ?

I'm in Cork city and have watched prices for 2/3 bed room city houses increase dramatically over the last 12 months, with almost all house types selling and values increasing month on month. Demand is the problem not borrowing power. IMHO the only people affected by the CBI limits will be first time buyers and in cork at 100/300k range this will make little difference to demand or house prices.

P. Breathnach

Don't get too fixated on the asking price. It has a loose connection to the price the EA expects to achieve - that's all. Some EAs pitch it high in the hope of getting people thinking that the property might be worth a lot; some pitch it low to get as many people interested as possible and generate competitive bidding; some try to guide buyers towards what they think is a realistic expectation. The price is ultimately set by the people who want, and can afford, to buy the property. If you spend some time on sites like myhome.ie or daft.ie you will find properties that seem very similar in the same area with widely different asking prices.

Look at lots of advertisements in your target area, even for properties that don't fully match your requirements. After a while, you will find that you are forming a picture of price levels in that segment of the market. Look also at asking price changes: they tell you about sellers adjusting their expectations to a more realistic assessment of the market. Look at the property price register: that will give you a slightly behind-the-times picture of how the market has been performing.

I have been in the market as a while, seeking to purchase. I have bid asking price or higher on some properties, and not got them. I have seen properties going for less than asking price (sadly for me, properties that did not suit me). I have had EAs say things like "we're asking €300k, but an offer of €275k would probably be enough".

My message is that you need to develop an idea of price levels in your target area. If a property appeals to you, then make an offer based on your idea of value, not on a figure given by the EA. Offer a bit less than you are ultimately prepared to pay. You might get lucky or, if there is competition, you can go a bit more.

Some people here think that EAs generally lie, and invent bids. It is my view that most of them don't. I have dropped out of competitive bidding situations several times, and never had an EA come back to me to say that the other bidder has disappeared or failed to come up with the money.

Happy hunting.

Eldarion

BryanF wrote: »

Are your comments are related to the Dublin market ?

I'm in Cork city and have watched prices for 2/3 bed room city houses increase dramatically over the last 12 months, with almost all house types selling and values increasing month on month. Demand is the problem not borrowing power. IMHO the only people affected by the CBI limits will be first time buyers and in cork at 100/300k range this will make little difference to demand or house prices.

Cork owner myself. You give the cork FTBers too little credit (:P) on the impact they have on the market. They won't have the 40K/50k+ deposits ready and waiting to sustain continued bidding for 200k/300k+ houses. I don't see how prices wouldn't decrease with the proposed limits, much less continue to increase in the way we're seeing.

I'll concede your point for the higher end market at 450/500k+ but definitely not in the 100k-300k range.

handlemaster

FTB's i suspect will have more cash than y ou think especially ones that have been waiting to buy after the crash. Even with that there are still houses selling at low prices. I seen just yesterday a three bed in blanch dublin 15 for 120k .

Eldarion

handlemaster wrote: »

FTB's i suspect will have more cash than y ou think especially ones that have been waiting to buy after the crash. Even with that there are still houses selling at low prices. I seen just yesterday a three bed in blanch dublin 15 for 120k .

I suspect you're underestimating just exactly how much the rental sector is gouging them for these days. I imagine people are finding it very difficult to build up a healthy deposit given current rent levels.

arctictree

Bidding on a house I find is totally hit and miss and no strategy is foolproof.

E.g. house is advertised at 250K. You have a start low strategy, you ring and EA tells you there is an offer at the asking. He could be telling the truth and if you offer 240, you will lose the house even though you could have paid 260K.

ferry17

Thanks for the replies,
Lots of good advice and tips. I suppose all I can do is study the market in the specific area and see what the house is worth in comparison to similar houses in the area. I dont want to pay over the odds for the house but I feel now is a good time to buy as things can only get worse (IMO) with the lack of supply and building at the present time.

Thanks again..