Want to bid on a house but still have to put mine on the market?

Saw a house we would be interested in yesterday - have I a hope in hell of expressing an interest but expecting them to wait for me to sell our house?

I heard open bridging is out of the question - would a bank accept deeds from my parents house as a "temporary" guarantee to advance purchase price while I got my house sold or is this out of the question?

Thanks!


(current house = 450k, new house = 650k, outstanding mortgage 190k so incl stamp duty would be getting a mortgage of about 450k in total - which will not be a problem)

The estate agent will want to know if you have a property to sell.

If you are bidding against anyone who is sale agreed or doesn't have a property to sell, they will be the preferred bidder, unless you offer more.

Of course if there is no other interest or you bid, say, €10k more, than it mightn't be an issue.

The bank will give you bridging for a deposit when you go sale agreed.

You need to actually sell your property before the bank will let you draw down.

I'm not sure about the bank accepting deeds-but I doubt it.

Thanks CCOVICH
I can raise the deposit myself. It's more that I can't complete the sale until I get my own house sold! Cheers

It would be quite risky (never mind the cost of servicing two mortgages) to actually close the sale without having your own house sold IMHO.

If you can sell your house quickly then you should be able to time things so that you close on your own house first.

It sounds like you are a million miles from agreeing a purchase. Get your offer in. The owners of the house you want to buy may not have secured a new property yet either. Don't worry about being late for the wedding until you are at least engaged.

If you're trading up, maybe the sellers are looking to trade down.

I was in a similar position recently and found that Estate Agents were not taking my bids seriously because I didn't have my own property on the market.

Once I put my property on the market the EAs were a lot more interested in me, but I still found myself bidding against 'cash buyers'. As I wasn't 'Sale Agreed' at that point I was at a disadvantage. Being a cash buyer is music to an EA's ears.

I got the distinct impression that a lot of the bidders out there were in the same position as me, but were more economical with the truth when talking to the EA. Be careful when talking to the EA and don't give away anything more than you have to.

In my case I too was told that open bridging was out of the question. In the end I applied for mortgage approval far in excess of what I will need to complete the purchase and told the bank that I would be renting out my existing property. It was a bit of a scramble, but I effectively turned myself into a cash buyer.

You mention that you would have no problem getting a mortgage of 450k. Would you be able to get a mortgage of, say, 550k? Add your deposit to that and make the (slightly dangerous) assumption that your sale will have gone through before the stamp duty needs to be paid on the purchase. How are the numbers looking now?

One tip that I got from an AAM user, which could save you a lot of time, is to appoint a solicitor for your sale now, and get them to request the deeds of your property from your bank. This could shave 2-3 weeks off the delay between going sale agreed on your property and exchanging contracts with your purchaser.

If it's feasible, put your house on with the same agent on the basis that you will only sell if you secure the house you are interested in. That should concentrate their thinking. Binman's point about getting the deeds up on your own house is a good idea.

Sarah

www.rea.ie

binman said:

IYou mention that you would have no problem getting a mortgage of 450k. Would you be able to get a mortgage of, say, 550k? Add your deposit to that and make the (slightly dangerous) assumption that your sale will have gone through before the stamp duty needs to be paid on the purchase. How are the numbers looking now?

One tip that I got from an AAM user, which could save you a lot of time, is to appoint a solicitor for your sale now, and get them to request the deeds of your property from your bank. This could shave 2-3 weeks off the delay between going sale agreed on your property and exchanging contracts with your purchaser.

Click to expand...

Thanks Binman - I would be able to get a total mortgage of probably 550k but that would include the 190k I already owe on my own house so I still would not have enough to be a cash buyer.
When you say "get the solicitor to request the deeds" can he do that before a sale is agreed on my house?

Sarah W said:

If it's feasible, put your house on with the same agent on the basis that you will only sell if you secure the house you are interested in. That should concentrate their thinking.

Click to expand...

Thanks Sarah
That sounds like a good idea. BTW when solicitors quote for example €1k plus vat for conveyancing does that mean you double it up for selling your own and also buying another? Cheers

You can request the deeds before you go sale agreed.

Some solicitors charge double on a buy and sell, some don't. The usual advice applies, i.e. shop around.

Some solicitors charge double on a buy and sell, some don't. The usual advice applies, i.e. shop around.

Agreed - but I would make the point that it is not double the money for half or two thirds the work. If its a question of trying to marry the two transactions together e.g. sell house in morning, give vacant possession, clients belongings in furniture van, buy new house in afternoon........This can be unbelievably stressful for both clients and solicitors, particularly if there is a whole chain involved i.e. if one persons loan cheque goes astray, it all falls apart. Ideally, sell one house, move out , stay with friends/family, store belongsngs, buy new house, move in. Ideal world.

mf

We're also bidding for a house even though we still haven't put our own house on the market. We thought it would be a good idea to ask the estate agents acting for the vendors to also sell our house. They don't seem keen to do so, because we'be just found out that another party who is bidding against us also has their house for sale with the same agents! It would appear that their house is more expensive and that the agent stands to gain more from selling the house to them than to use. Agent has told us that the vendors also seem to prefer the other bidders... but we're dubious... any advice...

Trying to buy before your house is on the market really isn't a viable option. If you are intending to trade up (or down) at least get some viewings before you start to look*. (*unless you can do it without resorting to bridging finance).

Sarah

www.rea.ie

Sarah W said:

Trying to buy before your house is on the market really isn't a viable option.

Click to expand...

Have to accept above point - put my house up for sale yesterday, if the house we are interested in is gone by the time we have a contract for sale we'll just have to kip with my parents until another one comes along!