An Agent Rang Me Today...

[TheCountOfNowhere]

Just had a call from an agent i registered with 6 months ago.

She called to see if I had found a house yet and told me things had really picked up ( tho isnt this traditionally a quiet tiome for EAs ).

I said I wasnt interested in buying at the moment because there were some deluded people out there and hadnt she seen the healined unemplyment rate increase today.

I thanked her and she asked me to call when I was ready to buy.

First call ive had from an agent in a long while.

[kilroy]

Just had a call from an agent i registered with 6 months ago.

She called to see if I had found a house yet and told me things had really picked up ( tho isnt this traditionally a quiet tiome for EAs ).

I said I wasnt interested in buying at the moment because there were some deluded people out there and hadnt she seen the healined unemplyment rate increase today.

I thanked her and she asked me to call when I was ready to buy.

First call ive had from an agent in a long while.

yeah, picked up so much that she has to phone you, when you registered 6 months ago

[Timm]

yeah, picked up so much that she has to phone you, when you registered 6 months ago

Quite.

Agents never ring people who have been looking for more than two weeks, unless the agent is utterly desperate.

I should know.

[Bloo Loo]

Just had a call from an agent i registered with 6 months ago.

She called to see if I had found a house yet and told me things had really picked up ( tho isnt this traditionally a quiet tiome for EAs ).

I said I wasnt interested in buying at the moment because there were some deluded people out there and hadnt she seen the healined unemplyment rate increase today.

I thanked her and she asked me to call when I was ready to buy.

First call ive had from an agent in a long while.

so what was she offering?

[Fudge]

Just had a call from an agent i registered with 6 months ago.

She called to see if I had found a house yet and told me things had really picked up ( tho isnt this traditionally a quiet tiome for EAs ).

I said I wasnt interested in buying at the moment because there were some deluded people out there and hadnt she seen the healined unemplyment rate increase today.

I thanked her and she asked me to call when I was ready to buy.

First call ive had from an agent in a long while.

I am suprised she had the time.

[VeryMeanReversion]

I had an agent call this morning and there are people queuing up to view a probate house I have to sell. They have so little to sell, the buyers are getting desperate. (The exact word one buyer said to me when I showed them round).

The agent has been begging to see if the estate will sell one of the BTLs that will be kept, one of the buyers that missed out on the other one I had to sell (SSTC now) still wants one. The Will says not to sell that one so it won't be sold.

There is so little for sale, its getting ridiculous. The house I have to sell is standard 4-bed detached in a market town and there are only one or two properties in the area priced within £100k! Its very difficult to price anything when there is so little on the market.

I'm pricing at peak -15% and planning to hold at that for the first 6-8 weeks.

Everyone is waiting.....

VMR.

P.S. The buyers I refer to above all had finance in place and nothing to sell. One downtrader, one cash buyer (for daughter), one family being formed out of two.

[ReJoyce]

I had an agent call this morning and there are people queuing up to view a probate house I have to sell. They have so little to sell, the buyers are getting desperate. (The exact word one buyer said to me when I showed them round).

...

I'm pricing at peak -15% and planning to hold at that for the first 6-8 weeks.

Aren't you tempted to up the asking price based on the desperation?

regards

J

[Orbital]

It's true that supply is utterly terrible right now. I looked around a few months ago with a serious view to upsize, but it ground to a halt when there was just nothing there. I remember looking in my chosen area a few years ago and there were plenty of viable options.

The 3 new properties I have noticed on rightmove were under offer within a week. imo there is no sign of things picking up, but prices where I am looking just aren't moving because there is so little supply. Annoying.

But back to OP's point, I recall an agent telling me that they were doing 10 valuations every day and they have a load of new stuff to show me. Not a single new property has come along. The EA's turnover must be desperately low right now! But that said, the properties that come up do seem to be selling quickly which does suggest asking prices are being met?

[TheCountOfNowhere]

so what was she offering?

I didnt ask.

I just made my point politely and said I'd stopped looking till reality hit the market.

[DiggerUK]

Interesting tactic that we used when buying as FTB's in the crash in the 90's.

When we were shown properties, to facilitate a quick exit from the EA's presence we always put in a bid.

It was usually a ridiculously low offer. i.e., if asking 62 we would offer 46.

We soon discovered that after the offer being turned down it was only a few weeks before we got a call.

"Mr. D, are you still interested in such and such property"

It didn't take long to realise that this worked best with a 3D sale. (3D, properties being sold due to death,debt or divorce)

Give it a whirl.

[Bloo Loo]

I didnt ask.

I just made my point politely and said I'd stopped looking till reality hit the market.

did she have a counter to your objection, or did she just hang up?

[Mrs Bear]

Just in case it might cheer anybody up, here are some green property shoots that have suffered a hefty dose of weedkiller.

In a small Dorset seaside area I'm watching (limited supply of props. at the best of times) , there has been quite a bounce over the past couple of months. Quite a few props. that had been languishing for ages going U/O and anything new and halfway decent going U/O very quickly.

OTOH, just in the past couple of days, 3 of the languishers that had gone U/O are now back on the market, 2 of them shortly going to auction.

1. One bed flat needing work, for sale since Aug 07, orig. AP 132K, reduced several months ago to £120K, briefly U/O, now going to auction for GP of £90K.

2. House also needing work, for sale for well over a year, orig. AP £345K ('sensible offers considered' ), subsequently reduced to £315K-ish, briefly U/O, now going to auction for GP of £225K.

3. 2 bed flat needing work (I think probate sale) up for sale for at least a year, orig. AP £138K, subsequently down to £120K and then £99,950, briefly U/O and now back on market at £99,950.

I was expecting some kind of bounce-reversal, but probably not until mid-September, and was certainly not expecting to find 3 'rebounds' all on the same day.

[29929BlackTuesday]

Here in the nice part of Worcestershire there are MASSES of houses for sale and dozens more coming on per day even. All this chatter about lack of supply is a red herring from some FAKE BEARS I think.

Get onto Rightmove and you're literally swamped with houses of all shapes and sizes for sale. I get emails with price DROPS from the EAs every day - more and more now.

Supply is great and will get vastly greater soon!

[Mal Volio]

I have heard (elsewhere), that buying has slowed down markedly in the past 1-2 weeks,

That's exactly what I was told by an EA who called me on Friday. I've had 3 or 4 call me in the last couple of weeks, after months and months of stony silence. I don't think it's a sign of being over-busy selling.

[pete.hpc]

so what was she offering?

Oral without, or I'm walking away.

[TheCountOfNowhere]

did she have a counter to your objection, or did she just hang up?

No, she didnt disagree, only said things had really picked up, which I dont believe. If anything the next few months for agents will be desperate IMHO

P.S. I wouldnt buy through an agent now anyway. Id/when I buy It'll be at Auction.

Edited August 12, 2009 by TheCountOfNowhere

[Alfie Moon]

Here in the nice part of Worcestershire there are MASSES of houses for sale and dozens more coming on per day even. All this chatter about lack of supply is a red herring from some FAKE BEARS I think.

Get onto Rightmove and you're literally swamped with houses of all shapes and sizes for sale. I get emails with price DROPS from the EAs every day - more and more now.

Supply is great and will get vastly greater soon!

I'm finding exactly the same through my watching of Birmingham, Worcester, Bromsgrove, Lichfield, etc. - that there is no shortage of properties on the market, and through PropertyBee can see that there was a major drop off in activity sinceJune time. That is the number of properties going SSTC has dropped back to about 1 per Estate Agency per week. Also since June there has been a steady stream of previously SSTC properties becoming available again and a great many properties that remain SSTC just don't seem to get through to completion. It looks like a large proportion of accepted offers on properties are failing to turn into income generators for the Estate Agents.

Through PropertyBee observations July was very poor for Estate Agents up here - 1 SSTC per week on average - and August is shaping up to be worse (for the Estate Agents) so far.

Estate Agents - when are you going to learn that any indication of rising prices is very bad news for you - it will kill off any chance of recovery in the transaction numbers. It is a sustainable rise in transaction numbers that you need - rising prices will kill this, whilst falling prices will making rising transaction numbers possible.

[Bloo Loo]

No, she didnt disagree, only said things had really picked up, which I dont believe. If anything the next few months for agents will be desperate IMHO

P.S. I wouldnt buy through an agent now anyway. Id/when I buy It'll be at Auction.

shame..what a waste of a phone call.

thanks for the info.

[_w_]

First call ive had from an agent in a long while.

Did she call to tell you there were so may buyers it was scary?

[wealthy]

Did she call to tell you there were so may buyers it was scary?

A new EA tactic.

"Hello sir this is monica from ***********"

- "Hello"

"I'm just ringing to ask if you're still looking for a property"

-"Well I've been thinking...."

"The thing is don't bother, we already have too many buyers"

"Ok..."

(Click)

[TheCountOfNowhere]

Did she call to tell you there were so may buyers it was scary?

Well, if she was telling me things have really picked up then it really isnt the time to grab a bargain

[_w_]

Well, if she was telling me things have really picked up then it really isnt the time to grab a bargain

Perhaps you made an impression on her and she called to chit chat after an exhausting day selling bargain properties to all and sundry. She probably needed to share her anxiety at not being able to satisfy those hordes of pent-up (?) buyers.

[pie-eater]

I had a voicemail from someone at Bairstow Eves, as did my wife. We registered with them back in Feb and they know we decided to rent instead of buying.

First time since registering they've called....

Neither of us returned the calls

[pete.hpc]

"Hello sir this is Hamish from ***********"

[the flying pig]

I had a call from one just now [nearly 6pm - a bit odd, he's been rushed off his feet no doubt, probably had so any buyers fighting over limited stock].

I've spoken to this guy before, I quite like him really based on his phone manner, but unfortunately, like all EAs, he needs sales to put food on the table, and is desperate to get me looking at properties, when all I really want to do is talk a bit to find out more about what's out there.

I had a quick look at his website and it seemed to have plenty of places where I'd be happy to love but not at anything like the advertised prices.

I think it's going to be a lean winter for this chap and his colleagues