Up my offer or wait.

W

Westy29

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Having made and offer on a house that has recenly gone to market the seller said he was delighted with the offer but would I wait for a few days so he could see if he got any more interest.

I told them the offer lasted until first thing the following morning.

Got a call this morning to say that another bidder has entered the bidding and raised the bid by 5K.

Having little experience in this I am worried this may be a phanto bid. Does this really go on?

I ahve the option of going higher or sticking my guns and hoping the bidder is in fact fictitous which of course there is no wa of knowing.

What are peoples experience with this
 
I smell BS too.

Don't bother getting back to them. Magically the other bidder will withdraw too...
 
"I ahve the option of going higher or sticking my guns and hoping the bidder is in fact fictitous which of course there is no wa of knowing."

Thats your answer. For what its worth, its probably not a bad idea to look at a few properties, guage what is happening in your chosen area and observe if properties are selling quickly, slowly or not at all.

People on an anonymous board can't really advise you on your specific circumstances.
But do look at some of the threads on the board - there is a great deal of general information available.

mf
 
You told him your offer lasted for one day. If you up your offer now the vendor won't take your next bluff quite as seriously.
 
Westy29 said:
Having made and offer on a house that has recenly gone to market the seller said he was delighted with the offer but would I wait for a few days so he could see if he got any more interest.

I told them the offer lasted until first thing the following morning.

Got a call this morning to say that another bidder has entered the bidding and raised the bid by 5K.

Having little experience in this I am worried this may be a phanto bid. Does this really go on?

I ahve the option of going higher or sticking my guns and hoping the bidder is in fact fictitous which of course there is no wa of knowing.

What are peoples experience with this
Click to expand...

You gave the offer and put a gun to his head by putting a very short time limit on it. My own reaction would be to do something to buy some more time, so that's probably what he's doing. You now need to stay true to your word and remove your offer if you are to have any credence
 
At the end of the day, it is all about what the house is worth to you. If it is the house of your dreams, then you will be inclined to chase it. If it is a standard 3 bed semi where there is a regular supply, then step back.

The estate agent has obviously seen that you are very eager and they are trying to get the maximum price for the property. It makes no difference whether you are bidding against a real or imaginary person. If it is a phantom bid, they are taking a calculated risk of losing you. You have a choice whether or not to buy this property, your decision should be based on what it is worth to you.

You can tell them that you are not making a counter offer because another property has come up that interests you and you are going to see it in a few days. Ask them to keep you informed. That is, unless you would have an ethical issue with claiming that there is a phantom alternatve property... I certainly wouldn't.
 
I don't think it matters what the EA thinks or that credibility comes in to it.

One thing you might do is this. If you are a first time buyer or aren't otherwise caught up in a chain (i.e you don't have to wait till you sell your own place) then you are at an advantage. Ask the EA about the status of the other bidder, they could very well be in a chain and their bid effectively worth less than yours because of the risks of that chain breaking down. By gently pushing the EA for info you might get some inkling of how honest they are.

If you get no joy from this you're best off waiting about a week and thinking it over before getting an update from the EA at that point. By doing this you would panic a dishonest EA.
 
I wanted an the offer either accepted or rejected as he had indicated he had a big ad in the paper tomorrow and wanted to see if that generated anything.

The EA has now turned it back on me saying she wants an indication if we are still in for the huse tomorrow morning
 
I would turn it back on the auctioneer and ask to view any other similar houses he has in the same area within your price range. That way he'll have to get back to the owners and it will look like their going to lose the sale because of his games. It's definitely BS, the way the housing market is now.
 
If the ad is only going in tomorrow the 'other' really interested people will only be viewing it later in the week earliest, so why does the estate agent want to know are you still in the game by tomorrow morning? What's the rush. Perhaps she just wants your offer to be still valid so she can use your offer as leverage on someone else.
 
Flax said:
I smell BS too.

Don't bother getting back to them. Magically the other bidder will withdraw too...
Click to expand...

I agree.

I had counter bids on a house that had been on the (slow) market for months and there were counter bids. It'd happened with another place I was bidding on and lost, so rather than go on and on, I told the EA this offer was final, and I was prepared to walk. The place was mine within 48 hours, with a 8 week closing.

Funny how the EA told me I was bidding against FTB, but his reason for them backing out was being caught in a chain. Hmmm.
 
Definitely take the good advice above, unless it’s the house of your dreams. Look at the bare facts of the current property market; There are plenty of houses currently for sale, there are not plenty of folk looking for houses and most importantly prices are dropping.
 
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