Offer to purchase question

[Napalm2880]

I put in an offer for a house on Sunday and gave the seller till 5pm today to accept the offer.

Seller ghosted the agent all week and then after 5pm today finally took the agents phonecall and said she didn't have enough time to decide and wants an extra day - no other comments were given.

I've confirmed verbally with the agent that I'll give the seller till lunchtime tomorrow to accept the offer. What would you guys do in this situation?

 

[ToxicBunny]

I put in an offer for a house on Sunday and gave the seller till 5pm today to accept the offer.

Seller ghosted the agent all week and then after 5pm today finally took the agents phonecall and said she didn't have enough time to decide and wants an extra day - no other comments were given.

I've confirmed verbally with the agent that I'll give the seller till lunchtime tomorrow to accept the offer. What would you guys do in this situation?

At the end of your amended deadline, put in a new offer at 5% lower than your original offer....

 

[ToxicBunny]

Is it generally frowned upon to discuss price right then and there when one goes and view a property?

Either with the agent or even the sellers if they are there? Or even both at the same time?

While walking through with the agent, we tend to mention to each other things that need work or might need an upgrade in a while. Like outdated kitchens or bathrooms. Or like last night the garden which will need a couple months of TLC and some proper eradication and trimming to get things back from a forest to garden.

Things that we think might give us reason the offer a lower price. But seems like all agents go deaf right about then and start changing the subject.

Honestly... Even if its frowned upon, it's up to you... This is the biggest purchase you'll ever make, don't care about upsetting the agent or the seller... It's a business transaction.

 

[Napalm2880]

At the end of your amended deadline, put in a new offer at 5% lower than your original offer....

That's exactly what I'm thinking. So irritating getting messed around by a seller - especially since I've already put my current house on the market and have already started doing show houses.

 

[RedViking]

Thank you @APoc184 for this thread. Was super tense to read. I rate mission impossible III 8/10, I rate this thread 9/10.

I believe the same can be applied to buying a vehicle. Never feel pressured or pushed into a deal and take your time that you are comfortable with.

I have have had the unfortunate situation to look after a property that was in the market for a long time, and seeing how every agent in town has taken people through the property. They are ALL snakes. (okay, maybe one or two that were honest, but they didn't get very far). That said, the clients were just as painful. Was hectic and I never want to relive that.


Can't wait till one day I can buy a house. I will avoid an agent as far as possible if I can help it.

 

[APoc184]

Honestly... Even if its frowned upon, it's up to you... This is the biggest purchase you'll ever make, don't care about upsetting the agent or the seller... It's a business transaction.

Reason I'm asking is because we went to view the Garsfontein property again this afternoon. Pretty much followed this advice. It is a massive decision and I approached it humbly.

We already liked the place last night, but time was limited and with it already darkish we weren't really sure if we saw everything.

Took our time tonight and really checked out everything. Even sat down with the sellers for a cup of coffee and had a nice long chat about family and the kids.
Apparently it is not really allowed with the Covid regulations but the people insisted we have a cup.

Turns out the old man built the house himself back in 1988. Lovely people and you can see the pride in his eyes as he explained everything and told about the building process. The tannie even took the kids around the pool while we checked out the garage.

I took the plunge and straight up told the owners and the agent that we love the place.

Close to schools, work, highways, malls and a really safe and secure neighbourhood. 4 bedrooms, 2 garages and 4 extra parking spaces, 3 large living rooms as well as a bar area. The sleeper wood bar is staying he said. Big pool, mini lapa with braai area and a Wendy and tool shed. Solar geyser, gas stove, solid wood kitchen cupboards and a big enough garden for kids to still have fun.

Went on to ask them what their best price would be, as the garden needs loads of work and I would love to upgrade the kitchen a bit. Also oldish carpets in all 4 rooms that we would like to replace with laminate or tiles.

We had a talk and the owner named a price.
No awkwardness and agent was actually cool about it.

We are seriously considering.

 

[APoc184]

Thank you @APoc184 for this thread. Was super tense to read. I rate mission impossible III 8/10, I rate this thread 9/10.

I believe the same can be applied to buying a vehicle. Never feel pressured or pushed into a deal and take your time that you are comfortable with.

I have have had the unfortunate situation to look after a property that was in the market for a long time, and seeing how every agent in town has taken people through the property. They are ALL snakes. (okay, maybe one or two that were honest, but they didn't get very far). That said, the clients were just as painful. Was hectic and I never want to relive that.


Can't wait till one day I can buy a house. I will avoid an agent as far as possible if I can help it.

Haha... Glad I could provide some suspense.

Definitely not fun at all. But I'll be damned if we didn't learn a crap load from the experience and also all the advice and tips here even after we got off the hook.

 

[APoc184]

I put in an offer for a house on Sunday and gave the seller till 5pm today to accept the offer.

Seller ghosted the agent all week and then after 5pm today finally took the agents phonecall and said she didn't have enough time to decide and wants an extra day - no other comments were given.

I've confirmed verbally with the agent that I'll give the seller till lunchtime tomorrow to accept the offer. What would you guys do in this situation?

Good luck. Hope the seller stops playing games and your offer gets accepted.

We are a bit excited about the new property we viewed twice now. But still somewhat careful and pessimistic after what happened.

Lots of talking going on in this house the last 24hrs.

 

[bokka1]

Reason I'm asking is because we went to view the Garsfontein property again this afternoon. Pretty much followed this advice. It is a massive decision and I approached it humbly.

We already liked the place last night, but time was limited and with it already darkish we weren't really sure if we saw everything.

Took our time tonight and really checked out everything. Even sat down with the sellers for a cup of coffee and had a nice long chat about family and the kids.
Apparently it is not really allowed with the Covid regulations but the people insisted we have a cup.

Turns out the old man built the house himself back in 1988. Lovely people and you can see the pride in his eyes as he explained everything and told about the building process. The tannie even took the kids around the pool while we checked out the garage.

I took the plunge and straight up told the owners and the agent that we love the place.

Close to schools, work, highways, malls and a really safe and secure neighbourhood. 4 bedrooms, 2 garages and 4 extra parking spaces, 3 large living rooms as well as a bar area. The sleeper wood bar is staying he said. Big pool, mini lapa with braai area and a Wendy and tool shed. Solar geyser, gas stove, solid wood kitchen cupboards and a big enough garden for kids to still have fun.

Went on to ask them what their best price would be, as the garden needs loads of work and I would love to upgrade the kitchen a bit. Also oldish carpets in all 4 rooms that we would like to replace with laminate or tiles.

We had a talk and the owner named a price.
No awkwardness and agent was actually cool about it.

We are seriously considering.

Just keep in mind that someone has to pay the agent.

I say put a offer in and let the two of them discuss commission.

The market is picking up.

 

[ToxicBunny]

Just keep in mind that someone has to pay the agent.

I say put a offer in and let the two of them discuss commission.

The market is picking up.

100% this, someone has to pay the agent, but at the end of the day that is the sellers problem and the agents problem.

@APoc184 You are 100% within your rights to discuss a price with the sellers directly and come to an agreement (if you can) before putting pen to paper...

Out of interest, is the pricing that you discussed seemingly acceptable to both parties?

 

[APoc184]

100% this, someone has to pay the agent, but at the end of the day that is the sellers problem and the agents problem.

@APoc184 You are 100% within your rights to discuss a price with the sellers directly and come to an agreement (if you can) before putting pen to paper...

Out of interest, is the pricing that you discussed seemingly acceptable to both parties?

It would seem so yes. Agent seems genuine and very relaxed. Complete opposite of what we experienced at the start of this thread.

Whilst sitting down and discussing everything the agent pretty much agreed to all our points about garden, kitchen and floors needing some TLC or upgrades. He even pointed out to us and the seller that for this area and average price it is quite standard for the garages to have electric doors, which this property does not have. Not a deal breaker for us but nice to have the agent chip in with what he experiences in the market.

Price discussed is a substantial R80k drop from listing price. And to be honest, it wasn't priced badly to begin with for the area and size of the property. Many other properties in the same street sold for up to 35% more in the last 3 years.

So it is very tempting indeed.

We are now in the position where we will have to decide quick again because we know the property won't hang around for that long (area & price) and there has been plenty of interest but no actual offer yet.

 

[ToxicBunny]

It would seem so yes. Agent seems genuine and very relaxed. Complete opposite of what we experienced at the start of this thread.

Whilst sitting down and discussing everything the agent pretty much agreed to all our points about garden, kitchen and floors needing some TLC or upgrades. He even pointed out to us and the seller that for this area and average price it is quite standard for the garages to have electric doors, which this property does not have. Not a deal breaker for us but nice to have the agent chip in with what he experiences in the market.

Price discussed is a substantial R80k drop from listing price. And to be honest, it wasn't priced badly to begin with for the area and size of the property. Many other properties in the same street sold for up to 35% more in the last 3 years.

So it is very tempting indeed.

We are now in the position where we will have to decide quick again because we know the property won't hang around for that long (area & price) and there has been plenty of interest but no actual offer yet.

Deciding quick is perfectly fine, if its on your terms....

You seem to like the house, and if you can get it at the R80k discount, I'm assuming it becomes a great value buy, and the area seems to be to your liking as well. Almost seems that it might be the type of deal where you want to get your OTP in at a value you're comfortable with knowing that it gives you the room for projects that you think the house needs.

Also, the biggest thing if the house needs work, is can you live in the house in the state that its in for the next 2 years without touching it. That is my yardstick. I bought my house and it needed significant modernising, but it was a place I could live in for 2 years before I started the projects. For me it is important to live in a space, and see how to works to come up with the best solution to modernise it.

 

[ToxicBunny]

That's exactly what I'm thinking. So irritating getting messed around by a seller - especially since I've already put my current house on the market and have already started doing show houses.

Sellers sometimes don't seem to understand the chain that they may be impacting by dicking around... either accept an offer, counter it or reject it.. don't sit on it for weeks on end...

 

[APoc184]

We like the place. No doubt. And at R80k less it becomes a pretty good deal.

Our main point of view from the start was also to get a place where we can just move in, and over the next few years tackle one project/upgrade at a time. But even if we didn't the house would still be more than suitable.

Yes, we made the error in judgement on the first property that the roof just needs a good cleaning, repaint and some touch ups. And after rethinking everything and some warning lights started flickering about the agent and seller2, we didn't see it as a bargain or easy fix anymore. Things just felt wrong. And we just made a big mistake on our side. With work and kids and family we would never have the time to tackle such a project from the get go.

Yes the carpets might be an eye sore for a while. And the kitchen won't be my dream kitchen, but will it ever be anyway? The garden is overgrown yes, and needs quite a few weekends of blood sweat and tears to get into something we would love. But again, it is not like we will need a hatchet to get through. It is still neat and perfectly suitable for time being.

MAN!!! You guys are helping so much.

We have asked agent to send us OTP. He is seeing the owners again tomorrow and Sunday for viewings. So lets see. If we put in an offer we might even have an answer by the end of the weekend.

 

[ToxicBunny]

We like the place. No doubt. And at R80k less it becomes a pretty good deal.

Our main point of view from the start was also to get a place where we can just move in, and over the next few years tackle one project/upgrade at a time. But even if we didn't the house would still be more than suitable.

Yes, we made the error in judgement on the first property that the roof just needs a good cleaning, repaint and some touch ups. And after rethinking everything and some warning lights started flickering about the agent and seller2, we didn't see it as a bargain or easy fix anymore. Things just felt wrong. And we just made a big mistake on our side. With work and kids and family we would never have the time to tackle such a project from the get go.

Yes the carpets might be an eye sore for a while. And the kitchen won't be my dream kitchen, but will it ever be anyway? The garden is overgrown yes, and needs quite a few weekends of blood sweat and tears to get into something we would love. But again, it is not like we will need a hatchet to get through. It is still neat and perfectly suitable for time being.

MAN!!! You guys are helping so much.

We have asked agent to send us OTP. He is seeing the owners again tomorrow and Sunday for viewings. So lets see. If we put in an offer we might even have an answer by the end of the weekend.

Ok, a few additional things to look at as well..

Get into the roof and just look around at the trusses and underlay etc. You will also be able to see if the roof leaks at all due to water stains on the trusses. I had to redo my roof around a year and a bit ago, and to pull all the tiles and put new underlay and battens cost just over R120k. Though if the house is around 32 years old it shouldn't need to be done for at least another 20. My house is now nearing 60 years old.

I would look at the plumbing in the roof as well, and hope that its all copper piping.

The DB Board would be another thing I would look at in terms of seeing that it makes sense to you and that the layout/labelling is accurate, because to redo electrics is VERY expensive (or time consuming if you can do it yourself)

Are there any cracks in the exterior/interior walls that you can see? If there in specific places, it could be an indication of foundation issues that might require underpinning.

As for your dream kitchen, yes it can be (or at least near as damnit)... took me over 2 years to get to the point of finally pulling the trigger, but I do largely have my dream kitchen and done in a very unique way, but very affordable.
(for reference, it turns out that you can get the PG Bison Lifeseal counter top covering put onto any substrate, and many companies will do it for you, so think out of the box and demand it of the people doing work for you as well)

 

[Kloofvreter]

****ing estate agents are no better than journalists or used car salesmen

 

[Barbarian Conan]

I put in an offer for a house on Sunday and gave the seller till 5pm today to accept the offer.

Seller ghosted the agent all week and then after 5pm today finally took the agents phonecall and said she didn't have enough time to decide and wants an extra day - no other comments were given.

I've confirmed verbally with the agent that I'll give the seller till lunchtime tomorrow to accept the offer. What would you guys do in this situation?

Well, if you read one of my earlier posts in this thread, you'll see that I was in a similar position as the seller, but due to the agent taking their time.
The buyer verbally gave me till the next day, and when went back on their word. Nothing I could do about it. So, you are free to do whatever you want.

The offer lapsed, so you can put in a 5% lower offer if you wish. This is assuming that you don't have the new deadline in writing.

 

[APoc184]

Ok, a few additional things to look at as well..

Get into the roof and just look around at the trusses and underlay etc. You will also be able to see if the roof leaks at all due to water stains on the trusses. I had to redo my roof around a year and a bit ago, and to pull all the tiles and put new underlay and battens cost just over R120k. Though if the house is around 32 years old it shouldn't need to be done for at least another 20. My house is now nearing 60 years old.

I would look at the plumbing in the roof as well, and hope that its all copper piping.

The DB Board would be another thing I would look at in terms of seeing that it makes sense to you and that the layout/labelling is accurate, because to redo electrics is VERY expensive (or time consuming if you can do it yourself)

Are there any cracks in the exterior/interior walls that you can see? If there in specific places, it could be an indication of foundation issues that might require underpinning.

As for your dream kitchen, yes it can be (or at least near as damnit)... took me over 2 years to get to the point of finally pulling the trigger, but I do largely have my dream kitchen and done in a very unique way, but very affordable.
(for reference, it turns out that you can get the PG Bison Lifeseal counter top covering put onto any substrate, and many companies will do it for you, so think out of the box and demand it of the people doing work for you as well)

Jip. Spent all the time yesterday looking at all that stuff.

Roof, ceilings and all is in great nick. Exterior walls are facebrick so was easy to see of there are any cracks there. We also like the facebrick style outside and it also saves costs on painting. Pipes in the roof were all redone 5 years ago when they had a solar geyser installed.

DB is pretty standard and I know they will need to give us COC for that and the gas before transfer can happen. So peace of mind there.

Would also like to carefully plan the kitchen and do it once off. Kitchen is my happy place so would definitely take my time on pulling that trigger.

In short the place is really solid, and well maintained apart from the garden which is understandable with them getting much older.

Wife is coming over to my office later and we will sign OTP.

Here goes!

 

[pinball wizard]

I put in an offer for a house on Sunday and gave the seller till 5pm today to accept the offer.

Seller ghosted the agent all week and then after 5pm today finally took the agents phonecall and said she didn't have enough time to decide and wants an extra day - no other comments were given.

I've confirmed verbally with the agent that I'll give the seller till lunchtime tomorrow to accept the offer. What would you guys do in this situation?

Walk away. Sounds like a disaster waiting to happen.

 

[zerocool2009]

Have read up about it a bit and it is certainly the option we will take.

I see you can select the option after bond approval and even registration. So it shouldn't be a deciding fact for initial interest rates at all, right?

The flexi setting has ZERO to do with the given bond rate. Its just an indicator that is set on the bank's side to say => you can prepay your bond