First time buyer query - what to offer

caramel08

Hi,
I am a first time buyer interested in a house that has a current asking price of 182k. How low should I go when making an initial offer?

Thanks

RentDayBlues

As low as you want, you're trying to buy the house not please the estate agent. If they house is only worth €100K to you then you start lower than that. Work out what is the maximum you can spend and use this as an offer guide

jetski

Excellent advice from the previous poster. Spotted a lovley house myself, 6 bed on 4 acres in Dublin for €2M, personally i can only afford to day 50k so going on your advice im in with a chance, and certinly not going to waist everyones time and make a complete tit out of myself.... happy days.

The OP shouldnt be asking advice for a descission that will affect his whole life more or less on a public internet forum. seek professional advice and do the leg work yourself, we all have biast opinions here.

whizzbang

Whatever you do be sure to look up the house on www.irishpropertywatch.com so you know how long it has been on the market and what they have been doing to the price.

Duckjob

jetski wrote: »

Excellent advice from the previous poster. Spotted a lovley house myself, 6 bed on 4 acres in Dublin for €2M, personally i can only afford to day 50k so going on your advice im in with a chance, and certinly not going to waist everyones time and make a complete tit out of myself.... happy days.

Thats right Jetski, work that buyer fear of looking foolish

The OP shouldnt be asking advice for a descission that will affect his whole life more or less on a public internet forum

Eehhhhhh, public forum. OP can ask what he/she likes. And people can give the opinions that the OP is asking for.

seek professional advice and do the leg work yourself

who would this professional advice come from now Jetski? An estate agent? A developer?

, we all have biast opinions here.

True, and one has to assume that the OP recognises this and wants to get a cross section of these biased opinions.


@OP, first reply is good advice. Decide how serious you are about buying right now and price your offers accordingly.

Try not to think in terms of a fixed percentage off asking when making offers. Instead try to gauge how realistic the asking price is in todays market in the first place and work from there.

Many current asking prices are off the wall and have little or no chance of selling in todays market. Of these, some are sellers just chancing their arm, others are simply delusional. The ones chancing their arm will likely accept lower offers put on the table. The delusionals will hold out for their silly price and will not sell their property.

Rafa1977

Offer whatever you think the house is worth to you. We offered 200k for a house yesterday, where the asking price is 299k, the estate agent told me that the seller wont sell for something as low as that and that the house is worth a lot more than 200k, but he has to say that as low sale for him equals low commission. Most of the stuff that comes from their mouths is lies and such crap. Dont be scared to put in a really low offer, yes it maybe rejected but you can up your offer or go somewhere else, as it is very much a buyers market now.

rugbyman

Step 1, convince the agent or seller that you have the funds, or mortgage approval.

Step 2, offer far less than you would be inclined to.( I do not mean 50 k for a formerly 2m house) Lets say 60% of asking price, provided the asking price relates to a recent sale in the area.

Step 3, ask for an answer by return, or withdraw the offer.

Rugbyman

ei.sdraob

research house prices in the area (what sold, what hasnt and for how much), plot everything in excel

then take 20% off, and work your way from there with EA, see what else they can throw in to the pot

remember if your are not embarrassed by the offer then its not good enough

Jo King

caramel08 wrote: »

Hi,
I am a first time buyer interested in a house that has a current asking price of 182k. How low should I go when making an initial offer?

Thanks

The asking price is the wrong place to start! It may be a house which might on a good day make 195K but the owners want a quick sale. On the other hand it may be a house which should only get 160k and the owners are hoping that some idiot thinks 175k is a good bargain.
In order to know what to offer you need to train yourself as a valuer. After looking at a particular market segment for a few months and trying offers you should be able to value houses reasonably accurately. Once you can value a house you can then check the asking price and decide if it is worth going for it. If it is way too high forget it. If it is too low, try and find the catch. Do not be afraid to pay more but beware of being hooked into a bidding war.

Eurorunner

Would be more transparent for all if they implemented the same system as in the UK - and recorded actual sales prices with that info being available to anyone who has an interest...

ellejay

ei.sdraob wrote: »

remember if your are not embarrassed by the offer then its not good enough

Excellant Excellant advice, you can always go up, very hard to go down once sale agreed.

Can you give an indication of area, house size and age? (just curiosity)
It could be, that the asking price is as realistic as it gets for that seller.

As a previous poster said, have a look at what other houses were asking and recently sold for in the area.

Personally I think if it means knocking on a strangers doors who have just moved in, what harm?!!!

seamus

Rafa1977 wrote: »

Offer whatever you think the house is worth to you. We offered 200k for a house yesterday, where the asking price is 299k, the estate agent told me that the seller wont sell for something as low as that and that the house is worth a lot more than 200k, but he has to say that as low sale for him equals low commission.

Actually he has to say that because the seller won't sell at that price. The agent can't force the seller to accept an offer and probably already knows what the absolute minimum is. If the seller is asking 299, and has a mortgage for 250, then he's simply not going to accept anything less than 250, at the minimum. Whether the house is worth that or not is irrelevant - your offer isn't guaranteed to be accepted if it's what the house is worth.

Most of the stuff that comes from their mouths is lies and such crap.

Yep, and be particularly wary of them telling you that the seller will throw in X and Y appliances. They often do this to get the sale in the hope that the buyer won't realise it's not on the contract or the buyer won't be bothered with chasing it.

ei.sdraob wrote: »

research house prices in the area (what sold, what hasnt and for how much), plot everything in excel

then take 20% off, and work your way from there with EA, see what else they can throw in to the pot

I'd say that's pretty much the best advice, but keep in mind the price of the house. If your calculations above show that you should offer €190k, then take 10% off the €182k as the low price indicates a desperate seller.
€182k may be on the lower end of the scale in that area, so you may not be able to take much more than 10% off - as I mention above, the seller is probably not going to sell to you at any old price; They will have their own debts to clear and will simply stay put if they don't get a high enough offer.
On the other hand, €182k may be on the higher end of the scale, where the average asking in the area is €170k, so you can offer €140k and be serious about it.

Remember that it's business, not personal. If someone gets upset at a low offer, then they've lost sight of what's going on and they're likely to waste your time or cause hassle in other ways. Don't be embarrassed at throwing in a low offer, and don't be afraid to keep your cards close to your chest:

- Never, ever, ever, ever tell an EA how much you have been approved for, or how much you can afford.
- Every time you increase your offer (*if* you increase your offer), tell the EA that you've had to move money around and make promises and that you're absolutely stretched to your limit.
- Fight for every euro. You can be sure that the seller will. Every €1k added onto the offer will increase the length of your mortgage by about a month.

mmalaka

Hi...

Sorry to hijak this post...

I am in the same position as the OP... first time buyer...intersted in a 3 bedrooms house in Lucan-Castle Riada state...the asking price is 270k...would like to know your view on the price

Thanks

jimmycrackcorm

mmalaka wrote: »

Hi...

Sorry to hijak this post...

I am in the same position as the OP... first time buyer...intersted in a 3 bedrooms house in Lucan-Castle Riada state...the asking price is 270k...would like to know your view on the price

Thanks

You would definitely get away with an offer of 240k but I'd doubt you can go lower unless it's a forced sale. Live in the area and am aware of a couple of sales that went through recently.

ei.sdraob

on some further thinking (and as someone who had to recently do this)

its all about research, research research, i spend days upon days gathering info on houses in area, also had a chat with a neighbor about the area and what he would offer


if your looking in a rural location, the options widen

since then you can find the cost of a similar plot of land and work out a rough cost to build, obviously enough no one will sell less than cost to build

oh i know it might be hard, but dont get attached to any particular house, if your gut is not happy about something then listen to it

fletch

Recently offered 80% of the asking price of a property. Estate Agent sounded disgusted at me and told me that my offer was totally irrelevant. Are people really getting away with offering such low first bids...60% sounds extreme

Colonel Sanders

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

You would definitely get away with an offer of 240k but I'd doubt you can go lower unless it's a forced sale. Live in the area and am aware of a couple of sales that went through recently.

You can rent a 3 bed in Lucan for less than a grand a month

Using a 6% yield would imply a value of about 190k (I assumed a rent of 950 a month and also used 12 months rent rather than 11)

And this doesn't factor in that rents are still falling (and IMO will continue to fall) and there is no shortage of rentals in Lucan

I'm not saying that a house couldn't sell for more than 190k at present but looking at rentals you'd be mad to pay any more

gurramok

fletch wrote: »

Recently offered 80% of the asking price of a property. Estate Agent sounded disgusted at me and told me that my offer was totally irrelevant. Are people really getting away with offering such low first bids...60% sounds extreme

It depends how pushed the seller is. Some are only testing the market and others are desperate to sell. Its the latter that has turned the tables towards buyers since the bubble years.
I do know of one 3bed place which had an asking of 250k(reduced from 290k) and ended up been sold for 180k with only one buyer interested.

leahyl

Hi all just came across this thread and thought i would ask what you thought here - i spotted this house in Cork on the Ballinlough road - terraced, 3 bedroomed has just been refurbished - looks lovely from the pics - 285 grand. I'm totally new to all this house hunting stuff - i was just half thinking about moving out of the family home and was wondering if i were to 'haggle' how much would i get off this price?

http://www.daft.ie/searchsale.daft?s%5Bcc_id%5D=ct3&s%5Ba_id%5D=341&s%5Bmnp%5D=&s%5Bmxp%5D=&s%5Bbd_no%5D=&search=1&s%5Bsearch_type%5D=sale&s%5Bfurn%5D=&s%5Brefreshmap%5D=1&search_type=sale&refine.x=21&refine.y=9

it's the second one on this page

johndaman66

ei.sdraob wrote: »

remember if your are not embarrassed by the offer then its not good enough

ellejay wrote: »

Excellant Excellant advice, you can always go up, very hard to go down once sale agreed.

I'd second that assuming ei.sdraob means bad as opposed to good depending on what way you look at it. Also in addition do remember that perhaps your greatest bargaining tool if you are a buyer is that you can walk away at any stage and bear that in mind throughout the bargaining process.

On the assumption that you are taking out a mortgage OP make sure you stress test it before you buy. For example if interest rates shoot up next year or in 2011 (which many commentators are now predicting is inevitable) such that so too will your mortgage repayments shoot up will you still be able to afford the expected mortgage repayments. If you are taking out the mortgage with a partner and one of ye is made redundant and out of work for a year or more how would this affect yer repayment capacity, unexpected pregnancy, flood damage not covered by insurance, etc etc. Not saying any of these scenarios may pan out (apart from interest rate rises which surely is a certainty over the lifespan of any mortgage being taken out these times) but you should theoretically play out the scenario or a combination thereoff if they are a possibility.

johndaman66

fletch wrote: »

Recently offered 80% of the asking price of a property. Estate Agent sounded disgusted at me and told me that my offer was totally irrelevant. Are people really getting away with offering such low first bids...60% sounds extreme

I tend to get the same reaction from estate agents. I'm sure the fact that I'm not a very decisive person doesn't help but in general when discussing a house price with an estate agent it typically goes something like this.

"He had the house on at 250k 15 months ago and it didn't sell. He is now asking 210k, I'll have to check but think he'll accept 200k and that would include kitchen appliances and blinds. I have another guy to look at the house tomorrow evening also"

The general impression I get is don't even bother trying to bargain as that's the lowest price I'm giving you and nothing lower will even be entertained.

I would also seriously question whether offers of as low as 60% of asking prices is being accepted as has being previously suggested in the forum. Is this akin to drunken pub talk or whats the story? Surely a sane and serious seller would price the property at much closer to the accepted price of 60% of asking price in the first place to generate interest in the property?

Straffan1979

Intersting post,
I'm currently looking at a house that was for long time on the market at a €440 000...I think higher during the real good times.
It recently dropped to in the region of €360 000. How do people read the term 'in the region'. I'm strongly considering making an offer 0f €290,000
in the new year...Its a big game with the EA.
I've gone and sat down with an EA to look at a derelict houses/sites etc...one for €150 000 comes to mind. Before I even opened my mouth I got the line...'now I've had an offer of €115 000 on this and thats been rejected outright by the seller'...basically trying to set the bar. I didn't make an offer...judging by the drop in price of 0.5 acre sites in same area its only worth €75000.

Just on the 60% thing. If you take a 290 000 offer now on the asking price of 440000 which this house was for sale in November ...It would be offering 65% of the value. Now obviously it has dropped but an offer well below €440 000 obviously would have been considered all last year!

ei.sdraob

Straffan1979 wrote: »

.judging by the drop in price of 0.5 acre sites in same area its only worth €75000.

well lets do some maths

75K for 0.5 acre (quite reasonable) with planning
+
build an average sizish house 200sq m @ a round figure of 100€ per sq

were looking at 275K

johndaman66

ei.sdraob wrote: »

well lets do some maths

75K for 0.5 acre (quite reasonable) with planning
+
build an average sizish house 200sq m @ a round figure of per sq

were looking at 275K

Your saying 275k seems good or bad ei.sdraob or just meerly pointing out the figure? To me it still seems a lot of banana's never mind the 350k it would be working out at if Straffan were to pay full asking price for the site. Location, specification and quality/ level of finish would need to be taken into account also no doubt. 200sq m seems to be considerably on the large size of average to me...Then again I may be thinking more in terms of your more regular 3 bedroom semi detatched and hence 200 sq metre may well be the average for a detached bungalow or dormer.

Also 200 sq m by €100 equals 20,000. I'm by no means an expert but €100 per sq metre seems incredibly low to me, even €100 per sq foot would be on the low side I'd be thinking so I assume you mean €1,000 per sq metre?

Straffan1979

I think just to get back to the point of this tread...I was merely throwing out an example of how EA's in my experience will try and push you towards a price where they want to seal the deal...with lines like 'now i've had an offer of x amount on this property that has been rejected outright' are commonplace in my experience...ie don't even think of offering less....bolloxology.
At the moment there are very few offers on any properties and many guide prices haven't moved south much since the celtic tiger days...They count for nothing.I think alot depends on how badly the seller needs to get rid of a house.
I'm coming round to the lads thinking that if your not embarrassed by your first offer its not low enough!

ei.sdraob

johndaman66 wrote: »

Your saying 275k seems good or bad ei.sdraob or just meerly pointing out the figure? To me it still seems a lot of banana's never mind the 350k it would be working out at if Straffan were to pay full asking price for the site. Location, specification and quality/ level of finish would need to be taken into account also no doubt. 200sq m seems to be considerably on the large size of average to me...Then again I may be thinking more in terms of your more regular 3 bedroom semi detatched and hence 200 sq metre may well be the average for a detached bungalow or dormer.

Also 200 sq m by €100 equals 20,000. I'm by no means an expert but €100 per sq metre seems incredibly low to me, even €100 per sq foot would be on the low side I'd be thinking so I assume you mean €1,000 per sq metre?

oops sorry! mixed up my feet with my meters!

sorry i mean when building €100 per square foot is not bad at all, you can check many threads in this forum , some people have a cost to build of €75 per sq foot and some have over 120 per sq foot

so
* land 0.5 acre @ 75K (seems a little expensive, can get an acre with permission in galway country for 50K)
* 200 sq meter 4 bed dormer -> 2100 square feet, thats fairly average size of new-builds around east co galway
thats 2100 * 100 = €210,000

€210 + 75 = 285K

now can get something like above done for cheaper of course, around 220-230 since costs have gone down, and there are newbuild houses that price range for that price around galway nowadays which i would imagine is very close to cost price


to the side of my table is a surveyors report for 195 sqm house to complete, the surveyor put down a figure of 93 euro a sq foot so i could be a bit generous here

of course the price of land with a good permission is what matters most

Freddie59

jetski wrote: »

Excellent advice from the previous poster. Spotted a lovley house myself, 6 bed on 4 acres in Dublin for €2M, personally i can only afford to day 50k so going on your advice im in with a chance, and certinly not going to waist everyones time and make a complete tit out of myself.... happy days.

The OP shouldnt be asking advice for a descission that will affect his whole life more or less on a public internet forum. seek professional advice and do the leg work yourself, we all have biast opinions here.

1. Who would give this 'professional opinion'?:rolleyes:

2. The 'biased' opinions on here are probably the voices of reason, trying to prevent you from getting screwed.

Try these sites as well:

www.irishhousehunter.com

www.thepropertypin.com

Just to give you an example of how volatile things are, here's what happened with us:

Sold in November 2008 (did very well). Viewed a house in August. Three houses for sale in same estate (nice area, 100 homes). Tow on at €299k and €287k respectively.

The one we looked at (in better nick than one of the others) for €195k (executor sale). Settled for €175k. So - my advice to you is sit tight, and keep a close eye on Daft.ie and the irishhousehunter site.

It will pay you dividends. Remember - you're talking about saving TENS of thousands of Euro over the lifetime of your mortgage. So be very, very careful.

Best of luck with it.:)

ei.sdraob

^ a fellow pinster so

good site it is, tho some of the people there are of the "stock up on beans as the end of the world is nigh" opinion, but otherwise alot of good info on that site to knock sense into any prospective buyers

Freddie59

ei.sdraob wrote: »

^ a fellow pinster so

good site it is, tho some of the people there are of the "stock up on beans as the end of the world is nigh" opinion, but otherwise alot of good info on that site to knock sense into any prospective buyers

Oh yeah. That site saved us THOUSANDS of Euro.:D

Idbatterim

OP are you in a rush to buy? be wary of catching a falling knife! whatever you borrow to buy the house will be doubled atleast by the time you have paid it back! interest rates are the lowest they will ever be and will rise! Regarding the comment about seeking proper advice IMHO you have come to the right place! where is the OP going to go and seek good IMPARTIAL advice from? her bank, the estate agent, or someone with a crystal ball? Dont make me laugh! Whatever you do, do not offer the asking price! There are so many factors that could influence the sellers decision and thus the final selling price!

johndaman66

Straffan1979 wrote: »

I think just to get back to the point of this tread...I was merely throwing out an example of how EA's in my experience will try and push you towards a price where they want to seal the deal...with lines like 'now i've had an offer of x amount on this property that has been rejected outright' are commonplace in my experience...ie don't even think of offering less....bolloxology.

That would pretty much sum up my experiences of dealing with Estate Agents too. No doubt they are preying somewhat on the fact that people who aren't accustomed to bargaining will blindly accept and pay asking price or very close to it. Do try and bear in mind though that their job is to get the best price possible for the seller. While some have less scruples than others try not to loose sight of the fact that their job in acting as agent for the seller is to get best price possible for property and/ or maximise their commission which is no doubt a higher priority among many.

Straffan1979 wrote: »

At the moment there are very few offers on any properties and many guide prices haven't moved south much since the celtic tiger days...They count for nothing.I think alot depends on how badly the seller needs to get rid of a house.

Would agree with this also. Despite all the talk of seemingly hugh price drops it would appear to me that asking prices remain very high (stupidly high in many cases). Maybe I'm wrong but I think sellers with silly high asking prices are just testing the water and have no real intention or even half realise they will not sell at all with advertised price.

johndaman66

Freddie59 wrote: »

1. Who would give this 'professional opinion'?:rolleyes:

2. The 'biased' opinions on here are probably the voices of reason, trying to prevent you from getting screwed.

Would be inclined to echo your sentiments Freedie59. There are extremes on both sides using the forum which one could assume is going to be the case when discussing such an emotive subject. I think to be fair though the very vast majority of posters maintain and provide a balanced and fair opinion and assessmet. You have to apply your own bit of common sence in certain cases and disregard certain comments as the case may be. Overall though I do find the forum to be highly informative and usefull:)

_aggie_

Rafa1977 wrote: »

Offer whatever you think the house is worth to you. We offered 200k for a house yesterday, where the asking price is 299k, the estate agent told me that the seller wont sell for something as low as that and that the house is worth a lot more than 200k, but he has to say that as low sale for him equals low commission. Most of the stuff that comes from their mouths is lies and such crap. Dont be scared to put in a really low offer, yes it maybe rejected but you can up your offer or go somewhere else, as it is very much a buyers market now.

Thanks for that! I'm about to do the same in next month- knocking around 80k of the asking price in the first offer. Let me know, when the ea/vendor comes back to you with the response.

Rafa1977

_aggie_ wrote: »

Thanks for that! I'm about to do the same in next month- knocking around 80k of the asking price in the first offer. Let me know, when the ea/vendor comes back to you with the response.

Hi Aggie, sorry I meant to post on this earlier, anyway EA came back to me on XMAS Eve regarding this, and said seller would do a deal if I could beat 260k, but I have stuck to my orginal offer. EA stated there is an offer of 260k by somebody else!!, there may be an offer by somebody else for the House in question, but no way for 260k, this house has been on the market for 11 months, and somebody is prepared to offer 260k, where ask is 300k. On Christmas Eve, I told EA I would think over things, and today rang him and told him I wont budge on 200k, he did his best to persuade me otherways, telling me how great and lovely the area is, that made me believe even more that I am the only one with an offer on the table. As much as I love this house I wont budge on the offer, its important that we all learn from the mistakes of people from the past.

Idbatterim

I was just checking around my local area and some houses up for sale are still very overpriced! its wrong to assume everything across the board has come down! there are some very good prices and there are some rip offs! One house, very similar to alot of the houses in my area for sale was priced at about 60k less than the rest, i only saw it the other day on daft and it is now gone i.e about 5 days later! Property in decent locations at a realistic price will sell!

stepbar

Let me tell you a story....

Back about 3 months ago I went out to have a look at a few apts in Waterville - http://www.waterville.ie/ - 1 beds specifically.

So in I go into a show apt with a few more interested people. Nice apt I thought, with furnishing it was well dolled out.

So I ask the estate agent the price -150k. Right I "thought" :rolleyes: .

So I go "... and that includes furniture?" (knowing full well it didn't, however appliances and the kitchen was part of the price).

"Ah No, that will be 7k extra". Now, I knew full well most places come for sale without furniture but I kept going.... "What??? 7k for a sofa, a coffee table, a roll of carpet and a bed? What???"

"O but it's good value..."

"Ok, what's the management fees?"

"€750"

".... Ok, and in your opinion what would it rent for?"

"I'd say you'd get €800...."

Then some guy piped up....

"There's places going for €700...."

So there and then I whipped out the calculator....

"Right, €700 by 12 months less management fee... I want a 6% yield.... comes to <pause>..... Ok, I'll make you an offer here and now....... €127,500 with furniture....."

"Thanks, for the offer but we have an offer for the full price on this apt (with furniture and it was refused, I'm afraid"

"Really, eh? Jeasus, do you know what?.... I'd grap that guy with both hands and shake the sh1te out of him..... My advise to you would be take that offer before he changes his mind....."

And there ended our conversation..... and the others filtered out shortly after me.

Guess what? Apartments are still for sale there so......


Point is.... If that's what you want to pay, stick to it and leave it sit. If after a while there's no progress, withdraw the offer and move on.

johndaman66

Rafa1977 wrote: »

Hi Aggie, sorry I meant to post on this earlier, anyway EA came back to me on XMAS Eve regarding this, and said seller would do a deal if I could beat 260k, but I have stuck to my orginal offer. EA stated there is an offer of 260k by somebody else!!, there may be an offer by somebody else for the House in question, but no way for 260k, this house has been on the market for 11 months, and somebody is prepared to offer 260k, where ask is 300k. On Christmas Eve, I told EA I would think over things, and today rang him and told him I wont budge on 200k, he did his best to persuade me otherways, telling me how great and lovely the area is, that made me believe even more that I am the only one with an offer on the table. As much as I love this house I wont budge on the offer, its important that we all learn from the mistakes of people from the past.

Which pretty much goes to show that the Estate Agent invented this phantom offer. If there was an offer of 260k in by somebody else why is he so eager to persuade you to up your offer to 260k when you are quite clearly not budging from 200k? Its one thing playing one bidder of against another but inventing phantom offers is just plain lousy in my book. I say name and shame the EA in question for that matter. I suppose the sad thing is so many would people fall for the bait. It just astonishes me how estate agents are so brazen, they name the price and almost make you feel guilty or even ashamed to put in an offer against this price:mad:

Duckjob

Straffan1979 wrote: »

I think just to get back to the point of this tread...I was merely throwing out an example of how EA's in my experience will try and push you towards a price where they want to seal the deal...with lines like 'now i've had an offer of x amount on this property that has been rejected outright' are commonplace in my experience...ie don't even think of offering less....bolloxology.

Yep, I've come across that one a lot and it definitely is a favorite EA line.

Best strategy I've found is to counter straightaway with a throwaway "well, we wouldn't be offering anything near that...", and just continue the viewing. Just completely ignore the implications of what EA is impress on you.

I actually make a point now of only asking EA questions about the property itself and never about whether there are offers on it. If I'm interested I'll make an offer based on what the property is worth to me. I don't need to hear a load of fantasy to "help" me decide what to offer.

SoupyNorman

I wonder is the FTB bug back in the air?


I and the GF are thinking of possibly buying in 9months, it will be the end of our 3rd lease...Ive shelled out about €18000 on rent in that time and although I do believe it was money well spent considering what I would have lost in negative equity I am sick to the teeth of not being able to put a nail in the wall, or not having a garden etc.

Notwithstanding my reasons, what is the best possible way to hedge against negative equity!!! Our max budget is about €300k (3bed semi) but ideally I'd like to buy at the €250k mark with some room left for furnishing/renovation.

Now I would consider myself to be pretty savvy, I've been watching DAFT like a hawk for the last couple of years, I'd have little or no time for EA's and I have no shame in putting in an offer of €195 for a house on at €300k. I have the property bee toolbar and there have been two houses that caught my eye. One of which is on at €310k, it was put up on DAFT in May 2009 and has no price drops recorded...I mean IMO all bets are off there?? Am I wrong.

The GF disagreed, saying there was an etiquette in putting in an offer...I said, there WAS back in the bubble but now it's a different game of shuttlecock.

Idbatterim

there is no etiquette when putting in an offer! who are you trying to impress, the eager bank manager or estate agent! fortunately they arent calling the shots anymore!

Sofiztikated

Just put in an offer today on a house valued at €120k, 3 bed semi in Cavan.

I offered €90k, and was refused flat out. I can let her sit for another while. I'm in no hurry, can wait for asking to drop more, and then I'll offer even less.

I understand EA's are sales people, but unfortunately for them, so am I, customer facing sales, and when I'm working, I get the best I can for what I'm selling. Works the other way. I'm not budging anywhere over €95K.

Am mortgage approved for €120k, but that was just to see if we could.

Quick question, does anyone know if an EA is operating on behalf of a Reciever's, does that have a bearing on what price they can go to?

bangersandmash

SoupyNorman wrote: »

The GF disagreed, saying there was an etiquette in putting in an offer...I said, there WAS back in the bubble but now it's a different game of shuttlecock.

If she means that low-ball offers are likely to be rejected, then that's quite possible. But if she means that it would somehow be rude, inappropriate or embarrassing to make an offer below the asking price, I'd be a little concerned! Even in the current market that kind of attitude strangely seems to persist.

It's a business transaction after all - and as many of the above posts illustrate, I wouldn't rely on an agent treating you with any form of etiquette or concern. More likely you'll be taken for an easy target, especially as an FTB.

stepbar

Sofiztikated wrote: »

Just put in an offer today on a house valued at €120k, 3 bed semi in Cavan.

I offered €90k, and was refused flat out. I can let her sit for another while. I'm in no hurry, can wait for asking to drop more, and then I'll offer even less.

I understand EA's are sales people, but unfortunately for them, so am I, customer facing sales, and when I'm working, I get the best I can for what I'm selling. Works the other way. I'm not budging anywhere over €95K.

Am mortgage approved for €120k, but that was just to see if we could.

Quick question, does anyone know if an EA is operating on behalf of a Reciever's, does that have a bearing on what price they can go to?

I think you're pretty much on the money there. Just make sure you stick to it!

Sofiztikated

stepbar wrote: »

I think you're pretty much on the money there. Just make sure you stick to it!

Thanks. But the EA threw me when she said that they're working undetermined instructions from the Receivers, and there's nothing that can be done on price, and it would be different if it was a private seller. Is that true?

seamus

Sofiztikated wrote: »

Thanks. But the EA threw me when she said that they're working undetermined instructions from the Receivers, and there's nothing that can be done on price, and it would be different if it was a private seller. Is that true?

Possibly. I imagine the receiver has specified a minimum return they want from the property and has priced it deliberately lower than local properties in order to have it shift ASAP, but they won't accept anything less than the minimum.
It probably depends on what the original mortgage on the house was and how much of a bad debt can be written off against their tax bill.

It's a different ball game with receivers because they can sit on it for longer, but they too will drop the price of any property that's not moving.

Freddie59

We sold in November 2008. A month later we viewed a house which was on at €235k (3 bed semi in the estate where we were renting). I got the whole 'the first one in with €200k gets this' and 'you'll be sorry if you don'y buy this now' finger-wagging from the EA.

Eight months later we bought a far bigger house (block-built) which was on at €110k less than others (executor sale) in the area. We ended up buying it - and getting a further €20k off the price.

So sit tight - and don't listen to the EA BS. Have to laugh at the 'we have an asking price offer already'. What a cock and bull story. The brass balls of these people.:mad:

Unpossible

Just a quick question (rather than start a new thread), would that 80% rule work on houses under 150k in the Tralee area? Or would it be scrapping the bottom of the barrel ? If we can get it for a certain amount we would not need a mortgage (she has some inheritance comming), so would it be helpful to mention to an EA that we already have the money?

Freddie59

Unpossible wrote: »

Just a quick question (rather than start a new thread), would that 80% rule work on houses under 150k in the Tralee area?

Why not? Nothing ventured etc. A house is only worth what someone is prepared to pay for it.:)