Well over asking price and seller refuses

TearFairy

Hi guys,

We have been bidding on a house for over 3 weeks, we are now the only bidders left and the price is 27K over the price. Spoke to EA who said the seller thinks he can get more and has refused our offer. He said he advised him to take our offer, it was a fair price etc

I know this happens all the time but its incredibly unfair. The house was on at a price (possibly slightly underpriced no doubt to get people interested) but our offer is more than fair given the location, work its needs doing etc.
I understand the seller is out to make as much as possible but there really sure be some sort of ethics and fairness to this process!

As much as it galls me because I don't want to give him a penny now given he is being greedy we are just left in limbo and are leaving our offer on the table. Obviously we will keep looking at other houses but I guess there is nothing else we can do regarding this house? We wont withdraw our offer because we do want the house and hope he doesn't get anymore bids in but the seller said he is prepared to risk us withdrawing our offer for the chance of getting a higher one. Should we just forget the house??

sweetie

He's entitled to do what he likes, its not a shop. You could put a time limit on your offer but he may still hold out.

Slydice

Leave the offer with them if you want but ...

Walk.

Willfarman

Tell them that's fine and withdraw your offer. He won't stand as good a chance of a higher offer with no offer to outbid if you follow me. Auctioneer may not be telling you the whole truth as well.

alias no.9

Don't necessarily withdraw your offer but ask to view another house on the same estate agents books

MarkAnthony

You've a bankers vendors - they're a fairly large club.

Keep looking and say nothing, you'll have the last laugh if they come back to you and you're closing on somewhere nicer and cheaper.

Also fairness in buying and selling houses, best joke I've heard in a while. :pac:

gaius c

They are either greedy or not actually selling.
Move on.

In other news, some states in the US have it that if you get a bid of the asking price, you have to pay the agent their fee. Gets rid of the messers pretty quick.

MarkAnthony

gaius c wrote: »

They are either greedy or not actually selling.
Move on.

In other news, some states in the US have it that if you get a bid of the asking price, you have to pay the agent their fee. Gets rid of the messers pretty quick.

I could see how that's turn out here :pac:

gaius c

Well there's an incentive to actually sell the property because otherwise you'll be paying them their fee just for the craic.

They've done their job and brought you a bidder at the asking price (or better). Why shouldn't they get paid?

MarkAnthony

gaius c wrote: »

Well there's an incentive to actually sell the property because otherwise you'll be paying them their fee just for the craic.

They've done their job and brought you a bidder at the asking price (or better). Why shouldn't they get paid?

Because every bidder would be suspiciously named Ted and live in Kerry with no way of being contacted.

I understand where you're going but let's get the current process a bit more transparent before we start this craic!

c montgomery

gaius c wrote: »

Well there's an incentive to actually sell the property because otherwise you'll be paying them their fee just for the craic.

They've done their job and brought you a bidder at the asking price (or better). Why shouldn't they get paid?

I actually think it's a great idea.

davo10

TearFairy wrote: »

Hi guys,

We have been bidding on a house for over 3 weeks, we are now the only bidders left and the price is 27K over the price. Spoke to EA who said the seller thinks he can get more and has refused our offer. He said he advised him to take our offer, it was a fair price etc

I know this happens all the time but its incredibly unfair. The house was on at a price (possibly slightly underpriced no doubt to get people interested) but our offer is more than fair given the location, work its needs doing etc.
I understand the seller is out to make as much as possible but there really sure be some sort of ethics and fairness to this process!

As much as it galls me because I don't want to give him a penny now given he is being greedy we are just left in limbo and are leaving our offer on the table. Obviously we will keep looking at other houses but I guess there is nothing else we can do regarding this house? We wont withdraw our offer because we do want the house and hope he doesn't get anymore bids in but the seller said he is prepared to risk us withdrawing our offer for the chance of getting a higher one. Should we just forget the house??

Print off this post, laminate it and put it aside, to be taken out and viewed by you when it is your turn to sell and the purchaser comes to you and tells you that what he/she offered you is fair and that you should sell for what they offer even though you think it is worth more.

The "asking price" is just the price at which it was brought to market, what it is "worth" is the maximum amount that someone is willing to pay for it, the seller believes, rightly or wrongly only time will tell, that the property is worth more.

Jen44

agreed, of course the seller is going to try get the best price, he may end up cutting off his nose to spite his face but its his decision to make, his house his sell.

TearFairy

Thanks for all the replies.

davo - I take your point but I don't think I'd ever have it in me to dick people around whether I was selling or not. If he wants X for the house, put it on the market at that price or close enough to it. Like I've said we have offered almost 30k over it, to me its taking the p++s after almost a month of bidding to turn around and say nah give me more. I understand its a business but there has to be some level of good faith and common decency. I don't agree with you, what its worth is what its worth. What someone is willing to pay for it can depend on a number of things - my reason is I commute 2 1/2 hours a day, I barely see my child, this house is close to work, family etc and we went way over for those reasons. It needs a lot of work, this price is more than what its 'worth' in monetary value. And yes sweetie he is entitled to ask what he wants for it my point is why not just ask for it at the very beginning!


I definitely think there needs to be some system in place to stop peoples time and energy being wasted - be that is the vendor get the asking price offered the EA gets his fee. We have had to email in all our bids so I am assuming this to provide some sort of transparency to the bidding process?
For some reason people seem to think its actually ok to do this when selling/buying a house yet we wouldn't accept it in any other type of purchase.

MarkAnthony - I hope you are right and we do get the last laugh!!!!

Flatzie_poo

TearFairy wrote: »

I definitely think there needs to be some system in place to stop peoples time and energy being wasted - be that is the vendor get the asking price offered the EA gets his fee.

That won't happen - the entire contract law process would be broken.

Think of Invitation to Treat.

TearFairy wrote: »

We have had to email in all our bids so I am assuming this to provide some sort of transparency to the bidding process?

There is a standards body over EA's, maybe so someone with more knowledge on their control/powers could chip in here... I'm out of my depth bar knowing it exists.

TearFairy wrote: »

MarkAnthony - I hope you are right and we do get the last laugh!!!!

I'm with you here. I was d!cked around for 2 weeks with an EA, ended up getting a really good deal in the meantime, and telling him to withdraw my offer was a highlight of my year so far!! Best of luck to you - there are bargains out there - they just need time & effort to find.

I saw my house, offered a price, and it was accepted the next day. In hindsight, to stop my time being wasted I would go to the Agent, offer "€xx" and say that the offer is valid for 4 days... If they'll sell at the price you offer, you'll find out by then - otherwise you save wasting your own time here.

Live an learn OP! Hang in there!

davo10

TearFairy wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies.

davo - I take your point but I don't think I'd ever have it in me to dick people around whether I was selling or not. If he wants X for the house, put it on the market at that price or close enough to it. Like I've said we have offered almost 30k over it, to me its taking the p++s after almost a month of bidding to turn around and say nah give me more. I understand its a business but there has to be some level of good faith and common decency. I don't agree with you, what its worth is what its worth. What someone is willing to pay for it can depend on a number of things - my reason is I commute 2 1/2 hours a day, I barely see my child, this house is close to work, family etc and we went way over for those reasons. It needs a lot of work, this price is more than what its 'worth' in monetary value. And yes sweetie he is entitled to ask what he wants for it my point is why not just ask for it at the very beginning!


I definitely think there needs to be some system in place to stop peoples time and energy being wasted - be that is the vendor get the asking price offered the EA gets his fee. We have had to email in all our bids so I am assuming this to provide some sort of transparency to the bidding process?
For some reason people seem to think its actually ok to do this when selling/buying a house yet we wouldn't accept it in any other type of purchase.

MarkAnthony - I hope you are right and we do get the last laugh!!!!

I'm sorry op but this really isn't true. The seller has not "dicked" you around, he has not accepted your bid and will not sell at that price.

You seem to think that the advertised price is the price that reflects its worth and that it should be sold at or close to that price. Worth is subjective, to one person the house might be worth X, to another it could be worth X + €100k if it is exactly what they want in the location they want. That is the reality of property purchase, just because you feel your offer equals its true value does not make it so. The seller may lose out by taking this course of action, but he also may make more money, only time will tell.

Don't be codding yourself that you wouldn't do the same. A time may come when you and your family outgrow your home and need to trade up. For every euro you sell below the maximum achievable price for your property, that will be another euro you will have to take from your savings/borrow from the bank to buy your new home, if you take the moral high ground and are happy to use €30k of your own hard earned money just so that you don't hurt the feelings of the people you are selling too, ( think how much you would have to earn in order to have €27k in your pocket to spend, I'd say it would be around €100k) you are a true Christian, but a bad business person who will have cost yourself and your family a lot of money.

TearFairy

But davo again my point is dont put the house on at a price you won't accept!! That is dicking people around. The seller is a landlord with several properties, this house was rented out until a few weeks ago so its not a case he is trading up. I keep agreeing its a business and he is out to make as much as he can but be upfront about it. State your price and then hold out till you get it.

I am far from a good Christian and of course I would want to get as much as possible for it if I was selling but I would advertise at the price I wanted to sell it at. We are the highest/only bid in now for over a week, according to EA the last two viewings where very quiet.

Anyway I put this up to get peoples opinions and I do appreciate hearing them. We would really like the house and I was just wondering if we stood any chance of getting it, we cant go any higher price wise so I guess its not to be!

Avatar MIA

I've no problem with what the seller is doing. He suspects you are desperate.

What I would do is ring the EA, drop your offer by as much as possible, what was the offer from the last remaining other bidder and say it is on the table until next Wednesday. Then don't contact them again unless you are willing to give them your first born child.

Willfarman

Letting a sound mortgaged buyer off the hook that is giving you the value of your house isn't sound business sense. It may of been so in the Celtic pantomime but not now.

sweetie

TearFairy wrote: »

But davo again my point is dont put the house on at a price you won't accept!! That is dicking people around. The seller is a landlord with several properties, this house was rented out until a few weeks ago so its not a case he is trading up. I keep agreeing its a business and he is out to make as much as he can but be upfront about it. State your price and then hold out till you get it.

I am far from a good Christian and of course I would want to get as much as possible for it if I was selling but I would advertise at the price I wanted to sell it at. We are the highest/only bid in now for over a week, according to EA the last two viewings where very quiet.

Anyway I put this up to get peoples opinions and I do appreciate hearing them. We would really like the house and I was just wondering if we stood any chance of getting it, we cant go any higher price wise so I guess its not to be!

You seem very naive about the housing market. It's all about marketing, some price higher whilst others price low to get interest and more bidding.
It is what it is.

TearFairy

Sweetie I am far form naive, I am very aware this happens all the time I just don't see the point in it. As I said previously we wouldn't accept this kind of crap in any other type of buying/selling arrangement. As I have pointed out, it was under priced possibly but not to the extent yer man reckons it is worth!

Avatar, I was actually considering that also thanks!

Willfarman, thanks. Yes we are mortgage approved, first time buyers so not in a chain. I actually thought that was a positive when it came to buying a house!

As for the comment they sense we are desperate - nope certainly never came across as that. We have viewed several other properties with the same agent during this process. We took our time with each bid we submitted and was involved in bidding on another house with the same agent before this and told him we had X price we would pay given the work needed doing and walked away as soon as it went over that. So the agent knows we wont go over what we say we will

seamus

Ring the EA this morning. Tell them the current offer is valid until 5pm today, after that it's gone.

If they ring you next week or in two months to "accept" your offer, tell them that offer is gone and offer asking again.

You have to actually follow through with this though, which can be tough when you've been looking for months.

Flatzie_poo

sweetie wrote: »

You seem very naive about the housing market. It's all about marketing, some price higher whilst others price low to get interest and more bidding.
It is what it is.

I don't think he's naive, I think he's frustrated.

It's a very long drawn out process, you see a house you like listed at a price you can afford and you find out it's not available for what you thought it was.

Anyone who gets a mortgage for 300k, instantly goes to Daft or MyHome & looks for a property within those parameters. OP did the same.

You're not wrong in what you say whatsoever about the market, but I think OP's reaction is normal. Disappointment. Later comes acceptance!

AlanG

They may be just trying to value the house so they can sell it to a part owner or relative. You should just ask the EA has he got anything similar who is serious about selling.
After that set a deadline and walk away.

Sunny Dayz

OP if the house is owned by a landlord with a number of properties, it's not by any chance a receivership sale? I seen with a house near us a receiver was appointed and put the house on the market, the couple renting it put in a good bid, it was rejected and the seller wanted more, the tenants wouldn't bid any higher, no other interest in the property and it ended up in an Allsop auction going for less than what the tenants had offered!


OP put a time limit on your bid, if he's serious about selling it he would be mad not to accept.

horsebox7

I can empathise completely. A good friend of mine also had to pay well over the asking price. If you don't feel doing this is worth it you really have to walk away. But if you think you like the area and the house is good for you as much as it hurts the only thing that talks out there is not ethics or morals its hard cash unfortunately.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k

What? You're not entitled to it. It's his property and he can hold out for as much as he likes, in fact he'd be a fool not to get as much as he possibly could. If that doesn't suit you, maybe look for somewhere else

ec18

eh it's not asking price ono....why shouldn't the seller get as much as possible for it?......I'd do the same in his place

TearFairy

Flatzie_poo - you have summed it up thank you. Its very frustrating but hey I have read enough on here to know unfortunately its the norm. You spend ages going through the mortgage process, then trying to find a house within your budget, then weeks of bidding to be the highest bidder only to be told they want more money - frustrating isnt the word.

thanks for all the advice ref where to go next regarding where to go next with this. Will think about it over the weekend and hope that somewhere else comes up that we might have a chance of getting!

anvilfour

alias no.9 wrote: »

Don't necessarily withdraw your offer but ask to view another house on the same estate agents books

I think this is the best advice, the estate agent may subtly let the seller know you are shopping around.

3DataModem

I think we should move to the Scottish system, done through solicitors (not EAs) and where you can price your house on a "first offer that meets it" basis.