Would I be mad to pay for a deposit on an apartment I haven't seen

shadowcomplex

The situation is this , there is a 1 bed apartment in an apartment block in Waterford city that I want to move into . From the photos they look nice however there isn't one availed till April and the agent cannot show it to me as there are already people in there , he said they are the best 1 beds in the town but I need to pay the deposit to lock down I get the next one going in April , what you reckon?

bjork

Of course the agent is going to tell you that-whether they are or not. Is there a shortage of apartments in the area?
"Lockdown" sounds like sales talk when they can't even arrange a viewing for you!

Personally, I wouldn't pay a deposit unseen.

AfterHrsProp

shadowcomplex wrote: »

The situation is this , there is a 1 bed apartment in an apartment block in Waterford city that I want to move into . From the photos they look nice however there isn't one availed till April and the agent cannot show it to me as there are already people in there , he said they are the best 1 beds in the town but I need to pay the deposit to lock down I get the next one going in April , what you reckon?

Well, a booking deposit is fully refundable until the contracts are signed so you have nothing to lose as far as that is concerned.

However, of course I would advise you to have a look at the property before you sign those contracts though & get a structural engineers report as well.

AfterHrsProp

bjork wrote: »

Of course the agent is going to tell you that-whether they are or not. Is there a shortage of apartments in the area?
"Lockdown" sounds like sales talk when they can't even arrange a viewing for you!

Personally, I wouldn't pay a deposit unseen.

I wouldnt entirely agree with this. Gaining access for a viewing to an apartment thats rented can be extremely difficult especially if a tenant is not co-operative concerning the whole thing.

Mrs OBumble

Is this to rent or to buy?

Frankly, I'm surprised if there's a shortage of apartment in Waterford.

LawCQ91

shadowcomplex wrote: »

The situation is this , there is a 1 bed apartment in an apartment block in Waterford city that I want to move into . From the photos they look nice however there isn't one availed till April and the agent cannot show it to me as there are already people in there , he said they are the best 1 beds in the town but I need to pay the deposit to lock down I get the next one going in April , what you reckon?

If you REALLY want that particular apartment and actually HAPPY to pay,
I would just make sure the agent is legit ( do a background check.. just in case it's a scam, prob isn't - just to be safe than sorry if you were going to pay a place you haven't seen) and make sure you have record of paying and get confirmation that you have paid

shadowcomplex

its one of these

http://www.daft.ie/lettings/olympia-court-parnell-street-waterford-city-waterford/1522041/

http://www.daft.ie/lettings/parnell-street-waterford-city-waterford/1469068/

http://www.daft.ie/lettings/olympia-court-parnell-street-waterford-city-waterford/1522502/


http://www.daft.ie/lettings/apartments-to-let-olympia-court-parnell-street-waterford-city-waterford/1514093/


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/newreply.php?do=newreply&noquote=1&p=94423214

The agency are these

http://www.michaelguiry.ie/

Del2005

AfterHrsProp wrote: »

Well, a booking deposit is fully refundable until the contracts are signed so you have nothing to lose as far as that is concerned.

Something being fully refundable and getting fully refunded can be difficult, better to have the money in your account than theirs', so if paying a deposit make sure to use your credit card.

Victor

AfterHrsProp wrote: »

Well, a booking deposit is fully refundable until the contracts are signed so you have nothing to lose as far as that is concerned.

For a purchase, this is usually the case, but often **not** for lettings.

foggy_lad

They don't appear on the current register of property agents in Waterford as Michael Guiry Auctioneers but they are listed with a trading name of Waterford Lettings.

I would not give any deposit for property unseen in Waterford as there are a lot of buy to let properties which are let year after year to students so there is a good chance the place is not like what is shown on Daft.ie.

http://www.psr.ie/website/npsra/npsraweb.nsf/0/B603277475399EBD80257B2D005166F5/$File/Current%20Licence%20Holders.pdf

"Licence Type" in Column G relates to the Property Service which the Licensee is licensed to provide. There are four different types,
namely:
Licence Type A - The Auction of Property other than Land
Licence Type B - The Purchase or Sale, by whatever means, of Land
* Property Management Services means the management of a Multi-Unit Development on behalf of a Management Body. It does not
mean the management of a letting on behalf of a Landlord. Such service is covered by Licence Type C.
Licence Type C - The Letting of land
Licence Type D - Property Management Services
NOTES
* The legal definition of "land" is wide and includes buildings or structures of any kind on land.

WD 002352 Mr. Michael Guiry (Waterford Lettings),
23/24 The Quay, Co. Waterford
Waterford Lettings Property Services Employer 05/07/2015 [A],,[C]
WD 002352-004758 Ms. Deidre Hennigan Waterford Lettings Employee 05/07/2015 ,[C]
WD 002352-004872 Mr. Jeffrey Brophy Waterford Lettings Employee 31/03/2015 [A],,[C]

CatFromHue

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Is this to rent or to buy?

Frankly, I'm surprised if there's a shortage of apartment in Waterford.

There isn't.

BabySlam

shadowcomplex wrote: »

The situation is this , there is a 1 bed apartment in an apartment block in Waterford city that I want to move into . From the photos they look nice however there isn't one availed till April and the agent cannot show it to me as there are already people in there , he said they are the best 1 beds in the town but I need to pay the deposit to lock down I get the next one going in April , what you reckon?

Yes, quite mad.

rightoldpickle

No chance!! And you obviously have doubts if you posted the question.

You have no idea what state it's in. I couldn't take that risk.

the_syco

AfterHrsProp wrote: »

I wouldnt entirely agree with this. Gaining access for a viewing to an apartment thats rented can be extremely difficult especially if a tenant is not co-operative concerning the whole thing.

If the tenant is making things hard for the EA to view the property, the tenant may not move on time either.

Actually, I'm betting the EA has been inside it, and it's a hole. But getting you to pay upfront takes away any negotiating power you have before you move in.

AfterHrsProp wrote: »

Well, a booking deposit is fully refundable

Unless it says it is, it's not.

davo10

Forget whether there is a glut of apartments available to rent, the op wants to move in to this one and he/she believes they are among the "best" otherwise he/she would be looking somewhere else.

There have been numerous threads on here where tenents would not allow EAs in to show properties, in fact the majority of the advice given is not to let EA in unless it suits you so to suggest that the EA is dodgy just because he isn't showing op the apartment until the current tenant moves out is at odds with that.

Op if you want that apartment, you have two choices, one you pay deposit agreeing let and rent rate or two, you wait until the viewings start but there may be others who also want to rent it and who would be willing to pay the deposit either on the day they view it or beforehand.

It really depends on whether you are sure that this is the apartment you want.

Zamboni

I think the OP new the answer before they typed the question.