How Much To Offer??

Julietta

Hi all

Going to venture into the property market soon (hopefully!), just wondering do any of you have any guidelines about first offers on properties i.e. if you see something you like, do you knock 6/7% off the asking price, offer that and then hope to meet somewhere in the middle? I saw a property I like on a website (haven't viewed it yet) and it's listed as €370K - it's nice but needs a fair bit of work done to it and I certainly wouldn't pay €370K for it, if I viewed it and decided I could make it work, would €345K be reasonable or completely taking the Michael? Hard to say without knowing the particulars but any advice would be appreciated.

Many thanks

Julietta

seamus

It's very tough to say offhand, as it depends on the property.

Gone are the days when you bought a house purely for the land underneath it.

Some of the main factors are:

1. What are other similar houses in the area going for? If another one is going cheaper, then that's your baseline.

2. Are there a lot of places in the area up for sale? This means that demand in the area is low and supply is high - which gives you the edge.

3. How much big work needs doing? Small things like repainting and cleaning up the garden are taken as a given, but if you need to spend 10 or 20k replacing the aging kitchen or reversing the previous owner's DIY f*ckups, then take that off the price straight away.

4. What are other similar properties in other areas going for? If a similar property in a better area is going for the same, or a cheaper price, why would you pay the more expensive price for this house?

5. How old is it? Older properties are generally more "solid" than newer ones, but will invariably require more maintenance work while you live there.

Best thing is to just get out there and look around. Don't feel that you have to jump in, and if you see a place you like, give yourself plenty of time to mull over it. Go see it twice if you have to. It's rare now that the property will be sold before you've decided.

You'll find that just looking at what's out there will give you a feel for what places are generally valued at. My rule of thumb when I saw a property was that I'd usually come up with a figure in my head of what I'd be willing to pay for it. If the asking price was way over that, I moved on. If the asking price was within 10-15%, I'd take a look. The former happened more often than the latter.

Most people will tell you nowadays to just knock 10% off. That's a good start, but you can easily get it even cheaper.

snellers

agree with above - unless it is incredibly well priced to start off I would offer 15 - 20% less

chances increase of acceptance (or near to) if, say, you are a 1st time buyer, or aren't in a chain - you are in a much stronger position and should definately push hard for drastically reduced price (particularly in the current market)

AARRRGH

Personally I think now is a very bad time to buy, so you would be better off playing the waiting game to see how far prices will fall.

The_Conductor

I'd be more likely to do something similar to what snellers is suggesting. If the property needs work at all- its going to be difficult as hell to shift (particularly with the startling amount of brandnew properties gathering dust all over the country). Do not underestimate how much even a very minor amount of work will put off other bidders- one property we are looking at at the moment which isn't painted on the exterior has not had any other viewers at all......

Interest rates are going up again in July, this is accepted, and its probable that they will further be going up later in the year. In addition- banks are giving a maximum of 92% mortgages (possibly lower)- so it is actually difficult to raise the finances.

If you really like the property, and are in a position where you can get the finances together- and accept that its a longterm purchase- that you are not going to be able to sell it or move for a long time (several years at very least)- then go ahead- if you have any doubts whatsoever- keep your powder dry and wait to see what happens.......

Colonel Sanders

Can't remember if it was someone on here or on the pin who said this but it makes sense, if the estate agent/vendor/auctioneer doesn't feign shock/insult at your first offer these days its probably too high :pac: