Property buying in Scotland

[Jumpy Guy]

I'm looking at buying a flat in Scotland, in an area i know very well. Building checked out by a building surveyor friend of mine..

the flat has been on sale for two months, not sold, at an 'offers over' , not sure what the figure was..

Now, its been put on a fixed price of 115,000.

So, the question is- is this 'fixed' price really fixed? do these sales usually involve any 'haggling' ? How much lower should i offer, if at all?

Anyone got any experience in the Scottish market?

[jardinec]

Works just the same as the rest of the UK or any other line of business.

Make em' an offer and see.

My flat went to f/p from offers over and we got it for a couple of £k below the asking price.

[ScottNicol]

Where is the flat mate and who is it on the market with ? Im based in scotland and in the property game.

[Jumpy Guy]

In Glasgow, with Allen and Harris..

[cardigankid]

In England, the upset price is about what is expected and therefore a basis for haggling, up or down. In Scotland the 'Offers Over' system tends, as you probably know, to conceal the real value. I think that people currently expect 20-25% over the upset price depending where you are. This is not however a particularly good time of year to be selling, so it sounds as if this property was put on in the autumn and the sale has drifted on. Offers over hasn't worked, so the principle now is Fixed Price i.e. first person to offer the fixed price gets it. The next step will depend on your reading of the seller and the flat. The pressure on the seller will come from having bought another flat. In addition, he will be paying money for the newspaper ads, so if it is being advertised in the Herald as opposed to sitting in the agents window, it suggests that he is very keen to sell. If he is desperate he may well take an offer, although you can expect the agents to be a little sniffy about it. So far as the flat is concerned, why has it failed to sell. The residential market is not great in Glasgow just now, other than for really prime stuff. Will it get a mortgage? Bear in mind that the mortgage will be calculated on the basis of a surveyor's valuation, not what you decide to pay for it. A surveyor's valuation may or may not equate to the original upset price ( that was I think the original principle) If it wont get a mortgage why not? This would hinder you selling it in due course as well.

Any offer you make, if accepted is immediately binding. Equally, if you do make an offer, it should always be subject to a tight time limit, or it may be used to talk up other bids. I'm sure Allen & Harris wouldn't do that of course.

Hope that helps.

[nicholas blair]

Get yourself a solicitor up here and put an offer in.

email me offline if you need a recommendation.

Nick

[BigAlinEmbra]

Fixed price isn't fixed, but it depends on your valuation.
If you speak to the owner, tell them it's valued at say £105k and offer around that then if there's been no interest they may well take it.