Agent selling my property to council but not happy with terms. What to do?

Hi there,

We instructed an agent on our behalf late spring to sell our home. While in the meeting I expressed to the agent that I had no interest in selling to anyone unless we had a property lined up the other end as with the rental market so dire it would not be doable with kids, schools etc.

This guy has returned to me saying we had very limited interest in the house and the only offer we had was from the council.

He went onto to tell me the pros of selling with the council so I agreed to let them view the house followed by a valuation by same.

The agent came back last week saying that they had offered a sum but we must be out of the house within 12 weeks! He also said that other agents in the area are pedaling properties to the council and that they’ll move on should we refuse and the deal will be off the table (we get the impression forever).

I rang council and they have not returned my call. Are they in partnership with certain agents and running some kind of a racket?
Helpful replies welcome.
Thanks
BB

P.S. also our daft figures 2 weeks ago were in the region of 850 and have now dropped to 470 and seem to remain at that no matter how many times we go in and out of daft. Can agents massage daft figures?

The Daft figures revert to zero every time the add is renewed I think, or else weekly.

How many times did you have to leave the house for viewings? Do you think there was more interest than the agent is letting on? What makes you think that?

How have you progressed in your own search for a house?

If there are numerous properties in your neighbourhood for sale then it is quite likely that the Council could decide to move on to other properties.

Were you happy with the price offered?

Hi Derek,

Thanks for your reply. We have left the house 3 times in total. Twice for viewings and another for valuation. Obviously the viewing included the council.

To answer your question yes I think that the house would be of huge interest to those trying to get on the ladder as its:
1. In turn key condition.
2. I got other agents out before putting house on the market so that I could sell and they all agreed that property is in hot demand in the area.
3. We had approached the council ourselves last year and they said that they would be very interested in property.

In relation to the price:

1. There are only 26 houses in total for sale in our village and 3 including our own one are similar/same.
2. There was another similar property sold in different estate but with side entrance for 10k more.
3. Another house (in our estate) with one less bedroom and no sitting room (only kitchen diner)and much smaller square footage sold for 10 grand less.

So, I think that he could do a bit more on sale price and let the council know that once I’m over the line i’ll sign over the property with joy!

In relation to our own search we have put offers on 3 houses and are currently waiting to see how they go and are viewing a further 3 properties this week.

From my perspective, I have to prepare for the worst possible scenario which is the purchase of new property falls through and we’re left homeless and disadvantaged (as prices continue to skyrocket!)

We have expressed to agent that I want to move on ASAP so it’s in all parties interest that the house is sold.

Thanks

BB

Bigbird you state that you have "put offers on 3 houses" This is the type of nonsense that goes on in Ireland. Your complaining about been messed about and your messing others about by putting offers in on 3 houses and going to view 3 more. Maybe by next week you will have an offer in on 6 houses.

Have you experienced a bidding war and ever been outbid?

I’ll give you an example of just one (of many) experiences we’ve had over the past few weeks).

We were looking at the property price registered in relation to a particular area. Semi di houses were selling at 265. The last one sold was March at that exact price. A new one came on the market so we expressed an interest and put a bid in for the asking price.

We were very surprised when A bidding war started and the house went for 330. That’s just the way the market is at the moment! It’s all over the place and unpredictable! We have to spread our eggs hoping that we’ll secure something as the bidding wars are rife!

Depending on the market where you are, offers on three properties isn't a bad approach so long as you are prepared to complete the sale if successful on any of them. The vast majority of bids are declined, so it's only messing about if you're not prepared to close at the price offered. If three properties all meet your criteria, then you'd be foolish to only bid on one and risk losing out on all three. How frustrating would it be to see one of the others being listed on the Property Price Register for less that you were prepared to pay?

One problem you may face is that some vendors of property in any demand will not accept bids from anyone that isn't at least sale agreed. They won't wait around potentially for months for an extra few k if they can go with a cash buyer, especially if they are looking to buy somewhere else themselves as they won't want to risk losing that.

Ask a friend to phone the agent as a prospective buyer and get them to suss out the situation.

If there isn't a large turn-over of properties in your area, there's a chance the council will still be interested when the time comes to sell your own.

I fully understand the market and as Leo stated not a bad approach if your willing to complete a sale on all three. Usually people identify a property and might have a second choice on such an important purchase. Your going on to view three more are you going to put an offer in on 3 more properties? Surely you know what property you want to purchase? Messey messy.

Yes Leo I agree, we have a list of criteria and when the suitable houses pop up we set them against our list and score each criteria out of 10. Leo I agree with with your perspectives.

We are eager to move on ASAP but don’t want to be left high and dry if the vendor pulls out as it’s impossible to rent and also the prices continue to soar in my part of the country.

For example in another bid we offered the asking price. The vendor accept and then we heard back from the agent saying that he decided to change his mind and take the house off the market and re rent!!! Thankfully we hadn’t signed contract to sell on our home!

I’m boggled at this stage!!

We are open and very flexible people DCD which is something you need to be in the current market!

We are responding to the messiness on the other side - vendors pulling out and bidding wars to name but a few! We are navigating the current market as best we can!

Bigbird said:

For example in another bid we offered the asking price. The vendor accept and then we heard back from the agent saying that he decided to change his mind and take the house off the market and re rent!!! Thankfully we hadn’t signed contract to sell on our home!

Click to expand...

Many agents will list the asking price below the vendor's minimum price in an attempt to engage a few parties in a bidding war. It quite often works, and you can see the evidence in the Property Price Register.

You likely don't want to have active bids on many more than 3 properties, but you'll need to judge that on how prices are going versus your budget for properties that meet your criteria. You can ask to be consulted prior to closing and be given the opportunity to place a bid at that stage, some agents will accommodate such requests.

There are a few areas where certain segments of the market have very little supply and a lot of competition. If your budget doesn't stretch to ~20-30% above asking, it wouldn't be unusual to miss out on multiple properties, so you need a lot more than a single back up if you are trying to wrap the process up quickly.

It's not entirely clear what your issue is. The Daft figures is cleared up as this is due to the ad being renewed.

The council rightly won't speak to you. They don't have to. They have put in an offer. It's up to you to accept or decline. You want how much more? 10,000 is it? Or what? Have you told your estate agent therefore that you are declining the offer. (how much is the offer by the way)

Where are you going to live in 12 weeks time if you accept the offer and move out?

It will never happen in 12 weeks of course but maybe I'll be amazed.

Is your solicitor on notice and have you asked the legal price for selling?

Bigbird said:

To answer your question yes I think that the house would be of huge interest to those trying to get on the ladder as its:
1. In turn key condition.
2. I got other agents out before putting house on the market so that I could sell and they all agreed that property is in hot demand in the area.
3. We had approached the council ourselves last year and they said that they would be very interested in property.

Click to expand...

Why are you selling?

Bronte said:

Where are you going to live in 12 weeks time if you accept the offer and move out?

Click to expand...

I think that's the nub of the thread. They are looking for a purchaser to wait until such time as they have found their new home, and complete in a chain.

Spot on Leo and I think that the council are in a good position to do so. The house is ring fenced for them (easier sale by all accounts as no other homeowners involved) but give us a chance to close off on something!

We put a fresh bid on Thursday and agent was very keen saying that vendor would definitely accept offer but hasn’t been ‘playing ball’ in terms of engaging with us. We rang late morning to get a yes/no answer and they won’t give us one. They said they’d call back but never did!