Monday, Apr 09, 2007
B*stards!
Observer: Mass viewings push up house prices
Estate agents are using a stressful sales tactic as a shortage of homes brings buyer paranoia.
Posted by tyrellcorporation @ 08:42 AM (144 views) Add Comment
10 Comments
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1. Itwillallendintears said...
I live in Norway, and that's the way they do it over here. On Saturday and Sunday the estate agent is at the property for an hour and people are invited to view it, then on Monday the carnage begins. You have to bid for the house which is done via telephone. Sought after properties go for astronomical prices - well above the "suggested price". Welcome to buyers hell, Britain.
2. Scott said...
Hello there my Norwegian friend. I am in London. I heard that London is the third most expensive place in the world, behind Oslo and Tokyo. I have been to Tokyo and can vouch for this. I guess that you can vouch for Oslo. London is overrated. I am planning to leave this year.
3. Bobsta said...
Aren't you just glad you're not part of this last-ditched crazyness?! ... I for one have enjoyed relaxing in the garden (of my rented house) this BH weekend... safely avoiding such madness. There's more to life than this dog-eat-dog scramble to get on the housing "ladder" (or should I say "snake")...
4. Sara said...
I experienced this in Wiltshire! I haven't been now to see the house as the estate agent and I fell out. After listening to the normal drivel about how it would be perfect for me with a guest suite in the west wing (it only has 4 bedrooms ;-)) and politely told that I had to speak to their mortgage advisor before I could see the place, even though I explained that we had been looking for over 3 years what was the point. He then advised me that it was block viewings because the property was very popular and it would sell really quickly. When I pointed out that it had been on the market since before th summer with another agent so it couldn't be that popular he got rather upset and I wasn't allowed to see it!!!
5. magnifico said...
It was Royston, posting on Friday, who asked the question what about normal people having to suffer the consequences of bad debt and HPC.
When you read articles like this one you can't help but thinking the words rod and back. There will be innocent casualties in the onslaught but most of them were avoidable, normal people should have now the courage of staying put.
6. Whiteknight said...
A lot of other countries are not sharing are madness with houses. A few are.
There is no lack of natural supply.
In this context, it is a broking trick to control release of supply that will ultimately break like a dam wall because the sellers will need to sell.
If I control the supply and then sell 3 goons 4 properties each then of course there is nothing for anybody else for a while.
Until the goons realise the price is going down not up houses cost money to maintain that is....
It was said there was a "shortage of good office space" in the City to me the other day.
Again, count the square footage walking down the road. This was not the reality.
7. Fedupwithhouseprices said...
This is how they do it in Scotland isn't it? It's mad up there too with people offering 40% over the guide price. People are paying well over the odds for property and at the lower end of the market, first time buyers are being forced to go into the stamp duty threshold in order to outbid other viewers therefore win the bid! Very stressful and expensive for all
8. headmelter said...
I have to say if you are a sellerit's a great ploy!
9. sovietuk said...
"For potential buyers, the message was clear: get on the ladder now before that dream home becomes even less affordable even if the monthly mortgage repayments look a bit steep."
What happens when base interest rates hit 7%? I suppose the mortgage payments will then look very or extremely steep. Even better the original potential buyer has lost his job due to the coming recession and the payments by this time are just vertical.
10. Itwillallendintears said...
A lot of rot has been uncovered with this in Norway- for example, Estate Agents making dummy bids to push up the prices to name but one. On the good side - there is no sorrier sight than a viewing where noone turns up (=:
Scott - yes it is very expensive here - a loaf of bread costs between 2.50 and 3.00 quid !