Realistic offers on houses

Hi all

My husband and I are currently looking at buying our first house in the Castleview area of Swords. We have viewed 2 three bed semis in that development thus far and have been told in each case that offers have been made at or above the asking price.
Do you think this is true given the way the market is going at the moment? I would have thought everyone would be putting in bids well below asking.
We are now interested in a property priced at €367K and are thinking of putting in a bid of €350K. Does this seem reasonable?
Thanks for help.

ask what allowances you get ie: tiling, shower doors, kitchen units/appliances/built in wardrobes...some builders don't want to decrease their price but will put extra's in if you agree to pay their asking price, you won't know unless you ask

Hi JohnnyG

We're looking at second-hand houses at the moment. Would €350K seem reasonable for a 2nd hand home asking €367K?
Thanks

johnnyg said:

...some builders don't want to decrease their price but will put extra's in if you agree to pay their asking price, you won't know unless you ask

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i think this is a bit of a scam by the builders - you are getting some extra's you may not need (flat screen tv's, kitchens you could fit out yourself for cheaper etc.) instead of a price reduction to the houses true value. looked at another way, you are getting a flat screen t.v. that you will pay 4/5% interest on for the next 30 years - hardly a great deal???

Hi Carolk,

to answer your question - even though I'm a vendor at the moment - my advice would be to offer E340,000 and work from there. I know of a friend whose house if on the market for E440,000, he was made an offer of E400,000, he thought about it did the sums and went back and said he would take the offer but the woman who had offered the E400,000 the offered lower again which was a bit cheeky. So in the current client I would offer E340,000 and see what reaction you get. To get an offer at all is a positive alone - people are sitting on the fence to wait and see. Best of luck.

Agree with the last poster too €340 is a reasonable offer.

Also are you first time buyers or have you already sold your house?? If this is the case then stress this when making the offer. You're in a very strong position.

We're first time buyers so we're not depending on the sale of another house. We're ready to go. That surely puts us in a strong position....?

Seen yesterday in Balally...... Auctioneers sign on a house with a new sign over it in large black letters on a yellow background "Reduced to Sell" . When you see this in the cold light of day it brings on a cold sweat.

carolk said:

We're first time buyers so we're not depending on the sale of another house. We're ready to go. That surely puts us in a strong position....?

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Yes, this definitly puts you in a strong position, especially if you have mortgage approval and all sorted out.

Are you aware of how long the property is on the market and if it has had any price reductions so far?

Also, who toldyou theother units in the place had gone at or above asking price?

I would be wary of those reduced to sell signs. If the price was set at the market value in the first place there would be no reason to reduce the price. If you were buying a coat say and it was reduced there are certain laws to protect consumers such as how long it had been on sale at the original price. Property is as we all know supply and demand yet purchasers tend to forget economics and lead with their hearts not their minds. When you see these signs ignore them you are not picking up a bargin check similiar properties in the area and judge the market value based on this.

xb_deai,

You say if the price was set at the market value there would be no reason to reduce the price. Look at www.irishpropertywatch.com - there are some 928 house prices reduced in the first two weeks september. I had my own house valued by 4 different auctioneers, I'm a realist I know the market value they put on the house is not attainable if I want to sell. I have reduced price by 5% and realistically will probably have to reduce by a further 2.2% if I really want to sell. Until the backlog clears there will be price reductions.

2.2%? that'svery precise!

That house in Ballally has been for sale for a long time now, over a year I would have thought.

Go with the low offer, it appears that nowadays the advertised price is the AMV, where the M stands for maximum.

I have friends living in Castleview in Swords and they have had their eye on 3 beds for a while now. It seems there've been a few on sale there for a while.

Theres only 1 house I can see in castleview at that price and it appears to have been put up for sale in the beginning of July (10th), so has been on the market a while. So try putting in a lower bid, say -10% at E330. The worst that could happen is they reject it and you put in a revised bid. Its a buyers market so you have the advantage.

Thanks to everyone for the advice. As we're new to this game we thought the EA might laugh at us if we put in such a low bid but we're slowly coming to the realisation that they'd be rubbing their hands with glee if we put in a bid just below asking.
There seem to be an awful lot of 'For Sale' signs up all of a sudden and not that many buyers.
Will keep you all posted on how the negotiations are going :0)

carole obviously offer as little as possible its definitely a buyers market dont mind gimmicks like flat screen tvs etc. maybe offer 340 like some people were suggesting or even less

For what it is worth this is what we are advising buyers

For the past ten years homebuyers have been abused as property sellers have used every trick in the book to force buyers to pay more for their homes. Buyers have been abused by the government that insisted on charging them outrageous stamp duty for the privilege of buying a home while at the same time failing to provide any community services or schools with these taxes. The government has propped up a grossly unfair legal system which is totalling biased in favour of the sellers. Buyers have been abused by estate agent who have failed to provide honest and competent answers to the most basic of queries homebuyers may have about a potential home not to mention the dubious sales tactics employed to push up the price of homes.

Well now it is payback time.

Homebuyers should not wait six months to see what happens. They should go out looking and if and only if they see something they like that they can afford they should put in a bid at 30% below the asking price and see what happens. Buyers are sick and tired of playing the game by the sellers’ rules and should now take matters into their own hands and give the sellers a taste of their own medicine. It does not matter if you are a first time buyer, an investor or looking to trade up – use your new found strength to your advantage and don’t wait around. Go in fast and low and see what happens!