Buying contents

I'm torn as to whether to post this in the Homes and Gardens forum or this one, but it involves the EA, so I've decided to run with this one!

Oops, I've done it again. Quite frankly, I should give up trying to play hardball with anyone cos I'm a wuss.

We have the opportunity to purchase contents with our house, which bar one item are all in good condition, albeit a couple of years old. We were advised (by parents) to negotiate on the price, which we did, sending the EA our suggested price this morning.

I have now got this reply:

"I heard back from the vendors about the contents. They said thank you for the offer but they won’t be accepting it. They don’t want to negotiate on the price."

This means we should just stump up, doesn't it???

Do these prices seem reasonable??

Zanussi Washing Machine 150
Zanussi Dish Washer 150
Sharp Microwave Oven 40

Beech Dining table + 6 chairs 300
Beech TV unit 40
2 Beech Lamps - TV area and Kitchen 40
Black leather couch Maybe for sale closer to closing date
Navy couch and 2 armchairs 300 (We're NOT taking this)

Canvas Wardrobe in Single Room 20
Desk in Single room 40

Montfield Petrol Lawnmower-(bought 6 mths ago €190) 120
Mirror on Landing area 40

The total (less the suite) is €940. We offered €750, planning on meeting halfway?

But hey, no negotiation means no negotiation, right?? I just need to crawl back with my tail between my legs!!!!!

Do you really want / need the stuff? Even if you do - act as if you don't. They obviously don't want to take it all with them - and should be prepared to negotiate. I would stick to your guns and say "thanks - the offer of €750 stands so if they change their minds let me know". It's easy for me to say though ... I'm not in your position - but I don't think they're giving you an amazing deal on the stuff.

Yeah that's what I figured. But this is the couple that ended up holding out when we withdrew our bid on the house and made us sweat it out for a couple of weeks until WE gave up and crawled back.

And yes, some of the stuff (like the dining room table) is good and would make life easier for us.

can you buy the items individually rather than as one deal? Might be better option.

Yeah, I wanted to do that. I wanted to show how we reduced the price by listing what we were offering for each item - do you think that would be better?

i would inform them that the bid of €750 would stand for 24 hours and after that it would go down by €20 per day, remind them that it will cost them to get rid of the stuff.
stick to it.
j

How old are the appliances? Friends of mine purchased the appliances from the people the bought the house from, only for the wahsing machine and dishwasher to break after six months.

My best guesstimate is 2 to 3 years old. The EA couldn't tell us.

dont buy anybody else seconds, you will regret it in the long run

N.I.H said:

dont buy anybody else seconds, you will regret it in the long run

Click to expand...

Might be true with regards to mechanical and electrical items but not with regards to furniture\tables etc that are in good condition.

Well, the vendor only has 3 options.

1. Sell to you at your price

2. Take it all with them

3. Dump it all.

Unlike the house purchase, there are no competing buyers.

You have to upper hand. Stick to your offer price. Tell them, ok no negotiation - Euro 750 is final offer.

After all, who else will buy all that stuff before they actually have to move out ?

Just a thought, is the contract finalised and not dependant on the contents offered ?

I'd say NIH's point is that after spending all the money on the house make sure that you don't end up unhappy by sitting on someone else's couch. If you like it and are happy with it, great, if not, if you only go with them cos they are cheap you mightnt be happy with them.

Still, they could be very useful during the lead time for new couches which can be ridiculous. Personally I can't understand how the furniture industry can maintain a viable business with such poor customer service - especially when many of the items are shipped from China 6 months after you ordered (as per my experience with Diamond Living chairs). If its a custom design I can understand the wait, but knowing someone who works in the furniture industry I'm amazed at the stories she tells me of how they just need to constantly lie to the customer about when they will receive their product. My solution was to buy most of my furniture in IKEA - couches were made to order and arrived in 4 weeks and I absolutely love them and have not found anything close to that quality for similar money in Ireland.

Sorry - bit off topic but might be relevant.

If I was you in this case I would tell EA that you don't want the couches, end of story. I would then give it about a 50-50 chance that you would get the keys and find they just didnt bother getting rid of them, so you'll get them for free.

No contract is finalised (but yet to be signed). We also have a list of items included in the sale, which include oven/fridge freezer/curtains/bed/chest of drawers, etc. All of which we will probably replace over time but can live with for the moment.

Just make sure before you close to go down the moring before and check that all that stuff is left.

We agreed items to be left with the sellers and checked it out the night before we closed - all items were still in the house - and when we got our keys the next morning, it was all gone!

We were p**sed off - paid a good deal more than the asking price!

Solicitor said it would be costly to go after them and too much hassle

there is a lot of hassle involved in taking on the contents
what happens if dishwasher/washing machines breaks down in a month's time ? the prices they are offering aren't that great, you could buy brand new for a few quid more.

crystal said:

Just make sure before you close to go down the moring before and check that all that stuff is left.

We agreed items to be left with the sellers and checked it out the night before we closed - all items were still in the house - and when we got our keys the next morning, it was all gone!

We were p**sed off - paid a good deal more than the asking price!

Solicitor said it would be costly to go after them and too much hassle

Click to expand...

my god are there people like this around? that's bad.

Unfortunately, yes.

sun_sparks said:

Do these prices seem reasonable??

Zanussi Washing Machine 150
Zanussi Dish Washer 150

Click to expand...

If you can confirm your guess of 2-3 years and they are in good nick I don't feel this is too bad a price, bearing mind they already in situ and plumbed in etc. so you avoid the hassle of fitting new ones.

If you check the buy and sell now...You seem to be able to get the items you are looking for much much cheaper. That is not to say that the hassle involved in going around looking and collecting is a bit off putting.

If you are happy with the gear in the house meet them half way with the offer. 100 eurobucks extra is not a big deal in order to eliminate hassle. At the end of the day they WILL struggle to get rid of everything, especially desks, mirrors and canvas wardrobes... You'll probably find half the stuff packed into your wheelie bin the morning you move in anyway.

Best of luck

Best of luck

I would ask the estate agent if you can call around, that way you get a 2nd look at the items and you can neogiate a price with them directly & individually on each item. It's very messy going through the EA for all those things. And you get another look at your new house and you can ask them a few question about it etc.