Bidding Strategy

2Clueless

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Hi,

House I'm interested has unexpectedly come up for sale. I've been outbid on 3 houses in the past and want to make the most of this opportunity. I'm VERY fussy about properties that appeal and this ticks a lot of my boxes. My brother thinks that I wear my heart on my sleeve when dealing with the Estate Agents and show my eagerness regarding the properties for sale-his advice to me is to slow it down. I tend to panic when the EA comes back with a higher bid and up my bid straightaway. My brother thinks I should get a solicitor to do the bidding for me-has anyone experience of what this involves? The house has an open viewing next week and other viewings by appointment. I want to view the inside but would prefer not to go to an open viewing-I think that I'd be looking at the other bidders rather than concentrating on the house itself! I think that I'll arrange a viewing before the weekend. What other tips would ye give me?
 
Chill.

Decide how much you can and or will pay for this house, at a max. Not thinking about asking price or other property prices.

Then compare with asking price.

Look on PSR website for recent prices of similar properties.

After looking at the house and if you are still interested make a goldilocks offer.

Then the important bit, do nothing for at least 2 weeks.

Maybe after 2 weeks get your brother posing as a new enquiry to ask the EA what the position is.

As a general point, some houses have a set price. If the house is one of a hundred similar in an estate then within 6 or 7 % the price is obvious. A one off house in the country could have a much wider range.
 
You are way too eager for someone who is yet to see the inside of this house.

I would go to the open house and see what you think. If the viewing is at 12-1 then go at 12.45 as there will more than likely be less people there. If your objective is to not give away your eagerness then I would not get a solicitor involved. Why would someone engage a solicitor if they weren't very interested? Set out a number you can afford/are willing to go for and do not go over this figure.

In relation to the actual bidding do your research by looking at comparable properties in the area from the property price register. A lot of pictures/old ADs can still be located online sometime after a house has been sold. For urban areas a price per sq/f is a good gauge and add/subtract various amounts for garden/BER/renovation costs. If your budget is close to the asking price and you feel it is worth it then I would be offering the asking. At least if it doesn't work out you can walk away knowing there is not much more you could of done.
 
Along with Cremeegg's advice, looking for a private viewing rather than going along to the public one potentially shows a lot more interest. It might be better go along to the public viewing, if it's a 30 minute slot, arrive ~15 minutes in and any rush will likely have died down.

To help you focus on viewing the property, make out a list of questions and areas to view and focus on completing that checklist during the viewing. Forget about trying to assess others there, there is nothing to be gained there.
 
I think that I'll arrange a viewing before the weekend. What other tips would ye give me?
Naturally you will get different advice from different quarters. What you should do depends on your situation and how much the house is worth to you.

If it was a house that I really wanted and it was sensibly priced and within my budget I would arrange a viewing prior to the open viewing. Then I would make a decent offer close to asking before the open viewing. I'd want people at the open viewing to be told that there is an offer of X so many of them would write it off. This is what I did when I bought my current house having tried various other strategies on other houses (although I wasn't as pushed about those). At the time I probably could have got the house for €5k less, but I would have offered at least €10k more than I paid if I had got into a bidding situation.
 
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Everyone has there own way. I would go to the open viewing. I would consider it an initial scouting expedition. Just because the house seems ideal now, it may not be so (or as much so) after you attend the viewing. Based on this, and an examination of sale prices for comparable houses in the area, identify your maximum price - and keep it to yourself.

If I was still interested at this stage I would request a private viewing. This is your chance to get a more considered look around and ask relevant questions from the Estate Agent (Eg,If relevant, is the estate in-charge or are there management fees? If the latter, how much, and are the accounts of the Management company available?). If possible, try to bring someone with you who knows something about property - have you a relation or friend who is in the business insome way or, at least, is good at the DIY ? Also, scout the area a few times apart from the house viewings, eg, in the evenings.

As regards bidding, I doubt there is a foolproof way. But you may like to have a read of this advice from a Buyers Agency, particularly 3 - 7. I have absolutely no connection to them and never used them:
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There’s a pair of us in it!...my sister has been rotting my ear all morning about going in to the estate agents! I’m trying not to show my hand. Really it’s a great house (potentially) for me. Location is super (close to family & friends). She’s panicking that it might go before the open viewing-I think that’s unlikely
 
There’s a pair of us in it!...my sister has been rotting my ear all morning about going in to the estate agents! I’m trying not to show my hand. Really it’s a great house (potentially) for me. Location is super (close to family & friends). She’s panicking that it might go before the open viewing-I think that’s unlikely
Get someone calm and rational to assist you. Your sister might mean well but she doesn't sound helpful.

My brother thinks that I wear my heart on my sleeve when dealing with the Estate Agents and show my eagerness regarding the properties for sale-his advice to me is to slow it down. I tend to panic when the EA comes back with a higher bid and up my bid straightaway.

You're making this too emotional and complicated. Go to the viewing. Ask all you need to ask. Make an offer a few hours or a day later. Don't go over your budget. Walk away if the price goes above your budget.
 
There is no great art to buying a house.

The agent just needs to demonstrate to the vendor that she's advertised it well, so a little bit of bidding looks good. Agents are lazy (just like the rest of us) and are not really interested in your state of mind.


So simply pick a maximum in your head in advance, and slowly bid up to it. If it goes over, walk away and start again.
 
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My 2 cents... It may be a great house, but there are a lot of other great ones. I saw about 15 houses, some I really liked and would have been great for us, but I knew others would come up. Unless you're desperate to move now, don't rush things. Also, the house may be great, and come with a lot of issues that will make you change your mind after a few weeks. Avoid getting too attached.

Go to the open viewing rathen than a private one. Observe other viewers and their reaction, eavesdrop. Don't comment on how much you like this or that, stay neutral. Ask casually to the estate agent if he has others similar to that one it shows you're interested but not particularly attached to that specific one. Don't make an offer there and then, but check if there is another one. If the current offer is much lower, you have a bit of time as it's unlikely the vendor will take it. If the offer is much higher, you may want to top it up sooner but stay within a reasonable margin. To be honest, houses tend to get lower offers first these days, and several I've seen went for lower than the asking price. We had the experience from the boom years and were quite pleasantly surprised that people didn't go crazy straight away.
If you want to make an offer, and you feel the current offer is still low, wait a few days and top that up by at least 5k. No point bidding by 500, it only wastes everyone's time.
So let's say house is 300k asking price, current offer 280k, offer 290k. Set yourself a price you won't exceed.

And remember, there could be 15 people visiting, but only 1 making an offer. So don't panic
 
If you feel totally inadequate at the thought of it and feel you'll fail, just remember there are professionals out there who will do it for you. They will charge, but if they save you money and it still comes in cheaper than you'd have got it for then is it not worth it? The thing is, some people will tell you that they could have done that for nothing, but could they?
 
Go to the open viewing rathen than a private one. Observe other viewers and their reaction, eavesdrop. Don't comment on how much you like this or that, stay neutral. Ask casually to the estate agent if he has others similar to that one it shows you're interested but not particularly attached to that specific one.

This advice is all completely superfluous.

Estate agents aren't FBI profilers.

They just need to demonstrate to vendor that they've marketed the house well and get the sale through with as little hassle as possible.

They are not incentivised to squeeze the last drop out of you.
 
This advice is all completely superfluous.

Estate agents aren't FBI profilers.

They just need to demonstrate to vendor that they've marketed the house well and get the sale through with as little hassle as possible.

They are not incentivised to squeeze the last drop out of you.

That was my experience with multiple EA. You might have had another experience, and that's great for you.
 
Went to my first (& last) open viewing ... lots of neighbours (& other interested) people in Audi’s there. I went round in a bit of a daze tbh. Anyway, the interior was nicer than expected (I was hoping that would put potential buyers off). A friend had gone to the earlier open viewing and said lots of interested parties there also ... he bumped into a good friend who came down from Dublin midweek to view with his wife! EA seems a nice guy (family have dealt with him lots before). He said that he’d expect offers to be in next week ... tbh, I’d say that it’s already started. As my friend said, this could go for silly money.
 
Went to my first (& last) open viewing ... lots of neighbours (& other interested) people in Audi’s there. I went round in a bit of a daze tbh. Anyway, the interior was nicer than expected (I was hoping that would put potential buyers off). A friend had gone to the earlier open viewing and said lots of interested parties there also ... he bumped into a good friend who came down from Dublin midweek to view with his wife! EA seems a nice guy (family have dealt with him lots before). He said that he’d expect offers to be in next week ... tbh, I’d say that it’s already started. As my friend said, this could go for silly money.
Viewers are not necessarily interested parties. They might just be nosey people. Don't adjust your bidding strategy after seeing the brand of cars other viewers drive. Stick to your budget and good luck.
 
As above, cars are a poor indicator of intent in house viewings.

Did you have a checklist or other guide with you when doing the viewing? You really need to move on from whatever is causing that daze, and a planned systematic approach is probably a good way of doing that. If you lose out on this house, it might be an idea to go view a few you are not quite as invested in so you can get used to the process and better are ensuring you check out the relevant details in an efficient manner.
 
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