Pay less for your perfect property

Follow these simple steps and you'll never overpay on a property again

When my wife and I bought our home last year, truth be told we didn’t really know what we were doing. I knew how the mortgage worked and all that sort of stuff, but this was our first property purchase and it was all very new to us.

One area in particular where we didn’t really have a clue about was working out what to offer. Sure, I’ve seen a few episodes of Location, Location, Location in my time, but real life isn’t the same as Phil and Kirsty making their calls from a sleepy country pub, negotiating the price while working through a lovely bottle of red.

Thankfully, we did have someone who knew what he was doing: My dad.

A helping hand

My dad, for his numerous sins, is an estate agent. And he came into his own, taking over the negotiations for us, and doing an incredible job, talking the vendor into accepting the best part of £20,000 less than the asking price.

We were obviously the lucky ones. Not everyone has an estate agent in their immediate family to call on in such circumstances (nor would many of you want one, in all likelihood!). However, one company has launched a new service which it reckons will ensure that its customers never overpay for a property again.

The pre-offer survey

A firm called the Homebuyer Centre has launched a pre-offer survey, a survey carried out by a qualified chartered surveyor before you actually make an offer.

The survey will then identify any issues that may exist within the property, which should help you if you want to negotiate the price down. As a result of the information contained within the survey, buyers should never overpay for a property as they will be armed with all of the facts before they even make an offer.

The pre-offer survey costs £150 to £250 plus VAT, depending on the value of the property.

However, you won't have to pay this fee if you go ahead with the purchase and use Homebuyer Centre for either the Homebuyer's Report or buliding survey.

Negotiate the best price yourself

Of course, you don't necessarily need a pre-offer survey to negotiate a good price. Here are some tips I learned from my dad about how to negotiate a great deal, and ensure you pay the perfect price for your dream property:

Set a budget

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This is a very important place to start. Before you even think about putting in a bid for a property, you have to know just how high you are willing to go to secure the property. You also need to be prepared to walk away if you can’t negotiate the price down sufficiently.

Emphasise your advantages

If you can present yourself (and your offer) in the best possible light, then you might be able to knock a few quid off the asking price.

For example, part of the reason we were able to knock so much money off our own purchase was by highlighting to the vendor that as, we were first-time buyers, there was no chain involved, and so we could move swiftly. If you are in a similar position, be sure to emphasise that fact to the vendor as it can make an awful lot of difference to the price you end up paying.

All about context

It’s not just the property itself which will dictate what offer the vendor is likely to accept, but the back story as well. Why is the property on the market? How long has it been on sale for? Are there other offers already in place? Have previous negotiations fallen through?

If the property has been on the market for a while, you’re more than justified in going in low initially, similarly if the vendor needs to sell quickly, perhaps to reunite with family in another part of the country, there will certainly be some room for manoeuvre.

Do your research

Don’t just leave it to the estate agent to tell you how much properties in the local area have been selling for – get online and do some research of your own. The Land Registry is obviously the best place to start, but there are dozens of sites which will give you a similar rundown. And if the sold figures are markedly less than what the vendor is asking for, make sure you find out just why they think their property is so special.

Take charge!

Once you’ve convinced the vendor to accept your bid, don’t be fooled into thinking your hard work is done. There is still plenty for you to do to make sure the deal goes through – namely ensuring that it never goes quiet.

Sadly, when it comes to sales, certain involved parties – I’m looking at you, solicitors – tend to drag their feet, to the point the whole thing can come crashing to a halt. Don’t let them.

A friend of mine got his move all done and dusted within a couple of weeks, simply by being a pain. He phoned all of the involved parties a couple of times a day to find out what was happening, and to ensure everything was going through as quickly as possible.

The funding

It’s not just about getting the price right though – there’s no point negotiating a cracking purchase price, but then saddling yourself with a rubbish mortgage to fund it. Below are some of the best deals in the market today, while if you fancy taking advantage of some completely free advice, why not head over to our mortgage centre and pick the brains of our mortgage team?

More: The best and worst types of property to own | The fastest way to sell your home

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