Need to sell my house quickly
21 April 2003, 07:19 PM
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Ok, totally on the spur of the moment, me and Mrs MooseRacer went to see a house over the weekend. We loved it and have put an offer in.
Our house isn't even on the market yet - the estate agent is coming on Wednesday.
We decided to put our house on the market with the same people who are handling the sale of the house we are interested in as we thought this may help move things on.
Anyone have any great tips for 'focusing the minds' of estate agents and getting them to pull out all the stops and get our house sold quickly?
Any offers over £165k on a lovely 3 bed semi in Wellsway side of Keynsham also considered
Our house isn't even on the market yet - the estate agent is coming on Wednesday.
We decided to put our house on the market with the same people who are handling the sale of the house we are interested in as we thought this may help move things on.
Anyone have any great tips for 'focusing the minds' of estate agents and getting them to pull out all the stops and get our house sold quickly?
Any offers over £165k on a lovely 3 bed semi in Wellsway side of Keynsham also considered
22 April 2003, 07:20 AM
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property crash negative equity- no thanks
also where on earth can one purchase a house so cheaply these days?
A one bedroom flat in the S.E costs at least that.
edited to add it must be a bad areas of Bristol at that price, is it anywhere near St Pauls?
[Edited by basal_lobe - 4/22/2003 7:21:12 AM]
also where on earth can one purchase a house so cheaply these days?
A one bedroom flat in the S.E costs at least that.
edited to add it must be a bad areas of Bristol at that price, is it anywhere near St Pauls?
[Edited by basal_lobe - 4/22/2003 7:21:12 AM]
22 April 2003, 08:08 AM
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Eh? Property crash? I don't think so. Prices might stall and even flatline, but they won't be crashing. At the very best (for us as we're looking to buy), there might be an adjustment of a couple of percent.
22 April 2003, 08:14 AM
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basal, there may be some lowering of prices in the S East, but little to suggest that around here. Prices have steadied but are still rising slowly.
Urm, read the post and it'll tell you where you can buy a house that cheaply - the rental market is strong here, perhaps you would like to add it to your portfolio?
Do you have something against St Pauls and/or it's residents?
Negative equity is only a problem if you have a large mortgage, or intend selling in the near future - neither of which applies to me, fortunately.
Now, with your obviouus knowledge (I seem to remember reading you had an extensive portfolio) have you any advice for me on the original question?
I thought not. Resort to insults, thats more your style.
Urm, read the post and it'll tell you where you can buy a house that cheaply - the rental market is strong here, perhaps you would like to add it to your portfolio?
Do you have something against St Pauls and/or it's residents?
Negative equity is only a problem if you have a large mortgage, or intend selling in the near future - neither of which applies to me, fortunately.
Now, with your obviouus knowledge (I seem to remember reading you had an extensive portfolio) have you any advice for me on the original question?
I thought not. Resort to insults, thats more your style.
22 April 2003, 08:22 AM
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St pauls- I have nothing against them, if people choose to live like that then they are welcome to it.
Property price "crash"- let's wait and see who was right- I'll be bringing this up later when they drop
If you want to sell quickly try an auction- your house will realise its true market worth very quickly.
Property price "crash"- let's wait and see who was right- I'll be bringing this up later when they drop
If you want to sell quickly try an auction- your house will realise its true market worth very quickly.
22 April 2003, 08:26 AM
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Thank you Basal 
Are you prediciting a UK wide property price crash, or just for the over-inflated areas, such as the South East? I wouldn't expect prices to drop dramatically in the South West. What sort of timescale are you thinking this might occur within?
I am wary of auctions, but happy to investigate. Would you recommend auctioning through an estate agent, or by some other means?
Are you prediciting a UK wide property price crash, or just for the over-inflated areas, such as the South East? I wouldn't expect prices to drop dramatically in the South West. What sort of timescale are you thinking this might occur within?
I am wary of auctions, but happy to investigate. Would you recommend auctioning through an estate agent, or by some other means?
22 April 2003, 08:51 AM
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Basal, are you suggesting a crash, late-eighties style (i.e, property dropping by 30-50%, massive negative equity and repossessions skyrocketing? And as MR asks, is this going to be nationwide? And over what sort of timescale? What evidence are you basing this prediction on?
I can see a drop/readjustment in the SE (it's already happening in the pricier parts of London) but can't see anything other than a flattening/slight readjustment (1-2% max) in the rest of the UK.
Don't get me wrong though - having sold my house last November, with the money in the bank whilst I rent a place, I'm hoping like hell that there's going to be a 40% drop in the UK housing market sometime in the next 6-12 months. 
I can see a drop/readjustment in the SE (it's already happening in the pricier parts of London) but can't see anything other than a flattening/slight readjustment (1-2% max) in the rest of the UK.
Don't get me wrong though - having sold my house last November, with the money in the bank whilst I rent a place, I'm hoping like hell that there's going to be a 40% drop in the UK housing market sometime in the next 6-12 months.
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22 April 2003, 10:02 AM
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"Property price "crash"- let's wait and see who was right- I'll be bringing this up later when they drop"
really? well i assume your ok with us bringing it up now while they still rise?
"let's wait and see who was right"
wait for what? more rises? why dont we look at it now, or last year, or the year before...or take an avarge over 10-20-30 years, or yesterday or last wednesday at 3pm....oh no....we'll just wait for you to be right at some undetermind point in the future that seems to have no sign of approaching?????
T
really? well i assume your ok with us bringing it up now while they still rise?
"let's wait and see who was right"
wait for what? more rises? why dont we look at it now, or last year, or the year before...or take an avarge over 10-20-30 years, or yesterday or last wednesday at 3pm....oh no....we'll just wait for you to be right at some undetermind point in the future that seems to have no sign of approaching?????
T
22 April 2003, 10:18 AM
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About the only way of concentrating an estate agents mind is to shorten their sole agency agreement. However the experience of my fiancee shows that doesn't work either!
22 April 2003, 11:54 AM
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Moose,
Get a few thousand raffle tickets printed up, £50 a pop, Id buy a couple!!! Seriously though I know 3 people trying to sell houses at the moment (in the S.E.) and are having difficulty, talking to agents it seems that things have slowed up so prices are going to have to give a little.
Good Luck
Gary
Get a few thousand raffle tickets printed up, £50 a pop, Id buy a couple!!! Seriously though I know 3 people trying to sell houses at the moment (in the S.E.) and are having difficulty, talking to agents it seems that things have slowed up so prices are going to have to give a little.
Good Luck
Gary
22 April 2003, 12:39 PM
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Hi - as you'll see this is my first post but I've been browsing the boards for a while and thought I might be able to help a bit here from personal experience.
You could try a ratchet commission structure - it's worked well for me in the past. Bascially the deal is:
Estate agent values your property at X (say £165k).
Normal comm lets say 1.5% (don't know what you're area runs at)
Instead, you pay 1% commission up to £25k below his price (ie £140k), and above this you pay 10%.
Thus if agent sells house for full valuation he gets effectively 2.4% commission -well ahead of what he would normally get. But, for every grand below valuation he loses £100, thus below £148k he starts to lose out vs the normal deal.
This has two advantages:
1) It really incentivises him to sell the house at a good price and, in the end, its a competitive market so you want to make sure the agent pushes your house ahead of the 50 similar ones on his books.
2) It forces the agent to give a sensible valuation. If he over-values to get your business, then he's going to get a lower commission when you eventually sell it £25k below his price.
Obviously you can play with the numbers and structure here to make it work differently, but the only levers you have to motivate the agent are the price of your house (cheaper=sells quicker =he gets his comm for less work) and commission (obviously the higher the better!).
If this is all too complex, just offer to pay him 0.5% above normal commission for a sale within 4 weeks.
Hope this is of some help.
You could try a ratchet commission structure - it's worked well for me in the past. Bascially the deal is:
Estate agent values your property at X (say £165k).
Normal comm lets say 1.5% (don't know what you're area runs at)
Instead, you pay 1% commission up to £25k below his price (ie £140k), and above this you pay 10%.
Thus if agent sells house for full valuation he gets effectively 2.4% commission -well ahead of what he would normally get. But, for every grand below valuation he loses £100, thus below £148k he starts to lose out vs the normal deal.
This has two advantages:
1) It really incentivises him to sell the house at a good price and, in the end, its a competitive market so you want to make sure the agent pushes your house ahead of the 50 similar ones on his books.
2) It forces the agent to give a sensible valuation. If he over-values to get your business, then he's going to get a lower commission when you eventually sell it £25k below his price.
Obviously you can play with the numbers and structure here to make it work differently, but the only levers you have to motivate the agent are the price of your house (cheaper=sells quicker =he gets his comm for less work) and commission (obviously the higher the better!).
If this is all too complex, just offer to pay him 0.5% above normal commission for a sale within 4 weeks.
Hope this is of some help.
22 April 2003, 01:09 PM
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It doesn't really matter whether there is a crash later as you are already on the property ladder. Whatever you 'lose' on a new property you will have gained on the old.
Our estate agents were pretty good at selling ours, it was no sale, no fee basis. We did chance it by having sole agency agreement
Our estate agents were pretty good at selling ours, it was no sale, no fee basis. We did chance it by having sole agency agreement
22 April 2003, 01:25 PM
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scoob_babe - I'm not concerned about any 'crash'. I'm going to put the house on sole agent to start with and hope for the best.
back marker - I like the tip about offering a 0.5% 'incentive' for a quick sale. We'll try that one, thanx
back marker - I like the tip about offering a 0.5% 'incentive' for a quick sale. We'll try that one, thanx
22 April 2003, 01:37 PM
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Been looking at property in the South East for a few months now, and there is no question that there is an awful lot of stuff that is sticking around and ending up having proce reductions.
Needless to say the good stuff is still getting snapped up.
My view is there may be a small drop in proces but nothing like the crash in the late 80's, don't forget interest rates then were well into double figures, whereas now they are at the lowest level for God knows how long and talk of another reduction in the offing. Plus mortgage companies are a lot less trigger happy on defaulting.
Anyway to answer your question, if you price to sell not make money it will shift quickly, simple as that.
Needless to say the good stuff is still getting snapped up.
My view is there may be a small drop in proces but nothing like the crash in the late 80's, don't forget interest rates then were well into double figures, whereas now they are at the lowest level for God knows how long and talk of another reduction in the offing. Plus mortgage companies are a lot less trigger happy on defaulting.
Anyway to answer your question, if you price to sell not make money it will shift quickly, simple as that.
22 April 2003, 01:39 PM
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ha ha ha ha, very good, price crash my ar$e, neva. its gonna flatten out in most areas, the area in lincolnshire where I live was so far behind budget anyhow were still gonna rise unbelievably. made about 20% last year on my house so I sold. paid off debt and bought a bigger house it still gonna rise around here, I have friends who are putting off buying an house cause they think its gonna crash but not round here, were still behind average market value
trust me t wont be crashing for a while yet
it still gonna rise around here, I have friends who are putting off buying an house cause they think its gonna crash but not round here, were still behind average market value trust me t wont be crashing for a while yet
22 April 2003, 01:42 PM
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oh aiii, forgot to mention I did this last year, looked at an house and we thought bugger it we want it, put an offer in an put ours up for sale next day with the same estate agents, it was sold the next day. problem was though cause we rushed into getting ours on the market we got ripped off by the estate agents. alot of estate agents were offering something like an £800 fixed fee etc but we got charge x% and ended up paying about 2k in fees to them 
22 April 2003, 01:49 PM
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Most of my knowledge relates to the S.E, I can see an adjustment of 20-30% in the near future. Particularly with the push towards Euro.
As far as the SW goes the rest of the proerty market in the UK follows the SE so I can see inflated areas like Bristol suffering a price readjustment.
Those with huge mortgages are bound to say that the prices will remain stable. All the evidence points to the contrary. In addition areas blighted by "buy to let" Landlords with large mortgages are going to see a glut of property on the market when they realise the bubble has burst.
Huge income multiples on overvalued property cannot be a good thing. The only saving grace which will mitigate against a huge drop will be the fact that interest rates remain low.
Its all a gamble at the moment you are at the top of the market so we will see.
As far as the SW goes the rest of the proerty market in the UK follows the SE so I can see inflated areas like Bristol suffering a price readjustment.
Those with huge mortgages are bound to say that the prices will remain stable. All the evidence points to the contrary. In addition areas blighted by "buy to let" Landlords with large mortgages are going to see a glut of property on the market when they realise the bubble has burst.
Huge income multiples on overvalued property cannot be a good thing. The only saving grace which will mitigate against a huge drop will be the fact that interest rates remain low.
Its all a gamble at the moment you are at the top of the market so we will see.
22 April 2003, 02:14 PM
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I can see an adjustment of 20-30% in the near future
Particularly with the push towards Euro.
Those with huge mortgages are bound to say that the prices will remain stable.
All the evidence points to the contrary.
Things are a bit different to the tail-end of the 80s...
Huge income multiples on overvalued property cannot be a good thing. The only saving grace which will mitigate against a huge drop will be the fact that interest rates remain low.
Its all a gamble at the moment you are at the top of the market so we will see.
22 April 2003, 02:29 PM
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SVA on Friday and should be all finished Monday
hopefully we can get it before the bank hol
Has the dream house got much of a chain? We got lucky by selling to first time buyer and no chain above us but was still hairy in getting it all synchronised!
hopefully we can get it before the bank hol
Has the dream house got much of a chain? We got lucky by selling to first time buyer and no chain above us but was still hairy in getting it all synchronised!
22 April 2003, 02:31 PM
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The house we want is being sold by a woman who's moving 'up north' to live with her new husband, so she's keen to move asap, which will either be a good or bad thing depending on how we do with the sale of ours!
22 April 2003, 02:41 PM
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Here in the South East multiples of 4-6X are not uncommon- work that one out.
Many landlords (again in the South East) are getting out of sterling before devaluation (the Euro component of my comments)- that means leaving the property market resulting in the glut of second rate properties on the market.
the 20-30% I'm talking about is a worse case scenario- as an example for you prices across the city have already taken a 5-10% price hit depending on location. For my *bullsh1t* suggestion to be true then we only need another 10%.
As I say its all a matter of opinion- mine is that prices are going down. You believe whatever you want.
I' just happy I split the risk and took profit over the past year and remain with only my modest rental portfolio happily full of Asylum seekers on benefit. Even if unemployment rises and the rental market suffers worse than it is currently I won;t be suffering.
Quick question MarkO: have you made significant sums of money from property over the past 5 yrs? I have I'm very pleased to say so perhaps my gut feelings will yet again turn out to be true. You heard it here first.
Who is making comparisons to the late eighties certainly not me. As you rightly point out we are in an entirely different situation.
One last point the only people who will gain in the current market are those with an eye to location.
Many landlords (again in the South East) are getting out of sterling before devaluation (the Euro component of my comments)- that means leaving the property market resulting in the glut of second rate properties on the market.
the 20-30% I'm talking about is a worse case scenario- as an example for you prices across the city have already taken a 5-10% price hit depending on location. For my *bullsh1t* suggestion to be true then we only need another 10%.
As I say its all a matter of opinion- mine is that prices are going down. You believe whatever you want.
I' just happy I split the risk and took profit over the past year and remain with only my modest rental portfolio happily full of Asylum seekers on benefit. Even if unemployment rises and the rental market suffers worse than it is currently I won;t be suffering.
Quick question MarkO: have you made significant sums of money from property over the past 5 yrs? I have I'm very pleased to say so perhaps my gut feelings will yet again turn out to be true. You heard it here first.
Who is making comparisons to the late eighties certainly not me. As you rightly point out we are in an entirely different situation.
One last point the only people who will gain in the current market are those with an eye to location.
22 April 2003, 02:45 PM
#29
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Is your house within the reach of a first time buyer in your area?
From our experience, the estate agents talk to each other so confirm you're genuinely selling. We did exactly the same as you, saw a place we liked (on paper) then took the plunge and put the flat straight on the market. We were then able to say honestly that ours was on the market. (we didn't like that first house but we stuck with it and waited). The next time we want to move we'll be stuck in a horrendous chain as its nowhere near first time buyer territory but its more than big enough for us and our cars now!
From our experience, the estate agents talk to each other so confirm you're genuinely selling. We did exactly the same as you, saw a place we liked (on paper) then took the plunge and put the flat straight on the market. We were then able to say honestly that ours was on the market. (we didn't like that first house but we stuck with it and waited). The next time we want to move we'll be stuck in a horrendous chain as its nowhere near first time buyer territory but its more than big enough for us and our cars now!