Bidding strategy

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jvr1980

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Help needed please!

What is the best strategy for bidding?

I currently have a bid in that is the AMV - I was told today it was upped by 1K.

I'm willing to go higher than this, but I dont want to show my hand too early, likewise I dont want to drive the price up with a series of tit-for-tat small bids.

If an EA comes back and says there is a new offer on the table, how long should you wait before you respond?
 
jvr1980 said:
Help needed please!

What is the best strategy for bidding?

I currently have a bid in that is the AMV - I was told today it was upped by 1K.

I'm willing to go higher than this, but I dont want to show my hand too early, likewise I dont want to drive the price up with a series of tit-for-tat small bids.

If an EA comes back and says there is a new offer on the table, how long should you wait before you respond?
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There's no one "right" answer to this. I've usually hmmed and haaed but told them fairly promptly. If the other bidder is really interested, then the price is going to go up until one of you hits their ceiling - that's just the way it is. The really important thing is to know where your limit is, and stick to it. And make sure it's not just the maximum of what you can afford, set a limit property by property, taking into account its condition, work required, and how long you think you'd live there.

When a property goes to a bidding war, the real danger is that you get carried away, and bid more than you can really afford or are comfortable with given all the other variables - and then either you'll withdraw and walk away, which is no good to anyone, or buy a house at a price which may well turn you off it.

Yes, there's a danger of fake bids - but I think this is less common than many suggest. I've lost several properties where I hit my limit but was afraid I was bidding against myself. Turns out I wasn't!
 
Dreamerb said:
There's no one "right" answer to this. I've usually hmmed and haaed but told them fairly promptly. If the other bidder is really interested, then the price is going to go up until one of you hits their ceiling - that's just the way it is. The really important thing is to know where your limit is, and stick to it. And make sure it's not just the maximum of what you can afford, set a limit property by property, taking into account its condition, work required, and how long you think you'd live there.

When a property goes to a bidding war, the real danger is that you get carried away, and bid more than you can really afford or are comfortable with given all the other variables - and then either you'll withdraw and walk away, which is no good to anyone, or buy a house at a price which may well turn you off it.

Yes, there's a danger of fake bids - but I think this is less common than many suggest. I've lost several properties where I hit my limit but was afraid I was bidding against myself. Turns out I wasn't!
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It's hard to tell isnt it - like I said I can go higher but I dont want to unless I have to. The more I bid the more I'm determined to get the place - which is probably why people end up going over budget and spending more than they intended to just because they are so determined not to lose.

Thanks for your answer by the way :)
 
Ah bidding...what a nervous time...

Dreamerb is right - you need to set a limit and stick to it. The temptation is always there that maybe the extra €1K will get it, but chances are it won't. I was in a few bidding wars earlier in the year and tried a number of different tactics - but if someone else is interested they will bid against you and there is nothing you can do to stop them. In my first bidding war I did stretch my original limit, but still got outbid, the other bidder was an older gent who was downsizing. On each subsequent occasion though I set a limit beyond which I would not go and I have no regrets. I got emotional about one place which I thought was my "dream home" but that has since been forgotten!

Anyway, the place I bought in the end was one I lost a bidding war on and got offered it 2 months later as the other bidder had bid way beyond their means and had to give it up in the end.

Good luck!
 
stresshead said:
Anyway, the place I bought in the end was one I lost a bidding war on and got offered it 2 months later as the other bidder had bid way beyond their means and had to give it up in the end.
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A friend of mine was sale-agreed after a bidding war on a house in 2004 but pulled out after the survey highlighted some serious problems with an extension. The underbidder bought the house. We later found out that the estate agent had told the underbidder that my friend had "got ahead of himself" and didn't have the money. The buyer was a teacher in the same school as my friend's sister!
 
whathome said:
A friend of mine was sale-agreed after a bidding war on a house in 2004 but pulled out after the survey highlighted some serious problems with an extension. The underbidder bought the house. We later found out that the estate agent had told the underbidder that my friend had "got ahead of himself" and didn't have the money. The buyer was a teacher in the same school as my friend's sister!
Click to expand...


I thought the exact same thing had happened to me! I found some problems in the survey too and negociated a reduction - at the time I thought that the other bidders had dropped out post-survey. I accused the EA of spinning me a line, but later discovered that the issues were completely unknown to the vendor (my dad knew someone who worked with the vendor).

The problem had existed before the vendor had bought the house and last I heard they were pursuing their surveyor for damages! If you follow me!

Anyway, I'm a bit off topic now. the lesson is stick to your guns and ALWAYS get a decent survey done!
 
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