Quantcast
Menu
Save, make, understand money

First-time Buyer

‘I’ll buy your Porsche’: the bizarre ways house hunters secure a deal

Paloma Kubiak
Written By:
Paloma Kubiak
Posted:
Updated:
24/05/2018

Buying a house can be an emotional journey and it seems some house hunters are willing to go to extreme lengths to get their dream property.

NAEA Propertymark, the trade body for estate agents, asked its members to reveal the unusual things they’ve seen buyers do over the years to secure their dream home:

‘I’ll buy your Porsche’ 

One potential buyer was worried a sale wouldn’t be accepted, so offered to buy the owner’s Porsche as well as the house to help guarantee the sale.

Luxury retreat

Hoping to make their offer stand out from the crowd, one buyer took the owner away to a country manor hotel and spa for a weekend of pampering. 

Tending to a garden

After putting an offer forward, a persistent buyer volunteered to landscape and tend to the owner’s new garden for two years free of charge, in exchange for accepting the offer.

Trolley full of dosh

While viewing a potential property, a prospective buyer asked the agent to close and lock the front door behind them at the viewing. The agent later discovered this was because the viewer had brought the full asking price, in cash, in a shopping trolley, with a view to make a deal there and then.

No view, no problem 

An impatient buyer couldn’t even wait to see their perfect property before putting down an offer. The buyer only had the description via email with the agent and a blurry video – she hadn’t even seen any photos!

Throw money at the situation

A determined buyer offered £32,000 over the asking price to secure a property that was already under offer, in order to gazump the other party, while another offered £50,000 when a vendor withdrew a house from the market.

Paying for tenancy

In a desperate bid to get their offer accepted, one prospective buyer offered to pay a full 12-month tenancy for the sellers to go and rent somewhere else, so they were more likely to accept his offer.

Wining and dining the owners

One potential buyer invited the vendor out for an indulgent dinner at an expensive restaurant, with the hope to persuade them into accepting their offer on the property. It worked.  

A surprise introduction 

Another buyer took matters into their own hands and presented themselves on the doorstep of the seller asking to pay the deposit in full there and then to secure the deal.

Mark Hayward, chief executive, NAEA Propertymark, said: “Buying a home is a big financial investment and buyers want the process to go as smoothly as possible. We hear many bizarre stories about buyers trying to woo sellers in a desperate bid to secure the deal, but this is something that can be easily avoided.

“It’s important to build a relationship with your agent to help ensure you’re getting the best possible advice about your purchase. Experienced agents will anticipate any issues that could arise and prevent potential buyers from having to go to these extremes to secure an offer on their dream home.”

Is this legal?

Hayward added: “The agent cannot control the offers that they receive and are duty bound by law to put them to the seller, any attempt to avoid stamp duty is in effect tax evasion and will be treated accordingly.”