Can estate agents tell you there is an offer on a property when there is not? We recently rang up an estate agent and asked about if there was an offer on a property and were informed there was, however after speaking to the vendor, it turned out there was not. Is this common practice, are there any laws against this?

You can tell when an estate agent is lying Batul ................................
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...... their mouth moves. :D

Maybe I'm a glass half full person, ...................................surely there must be one honest estate around! Seriously is this allowed?

The simple answer is yes.

Seriously Batul, if you were looking at a few thousand quid commission on the sale of a house, would you let the truth get in the way of a quick profit.

Nobody I know who has had dealings with estate agents - either buying or selling - has had anything positive to say about their ethics.

Cosy = Small and cramped
Rustic = Old and crumbling
Suitable for modernisation = Falling to bits since 1960
Close to amenities = Front garden serves as a litter/puke/condom dumping ground
Recently restored = Bodged up specially for this sale.

Could be that there had been an offer in the property and the estate agent had not seen fit to inform ther vendor, even though they are obliged to do so.

There's an ancient thread on here that tells the story of how somebody was duped by a local estate agent who pulled this stunt - not knowing that the two parties involved in purchasing the property would eventually meet at a barbecue :suspect:

1. It's illegal

2. They are still doing it

3. We never make an offer via an agent, we discuss it with the vendor onsite - it's a much better guage as to whether they are likely to mess you about or not ;)

Do fish swim?

Is the Pope Catholic ?

Can estate agents tell you there is an offer on a property when there is not? We recently rang up an estate agent and asked about if there was an offer on a property and were informed there was, however after speaking to the vendor, it turned out there was not. Is this common practice, are there any laws against this?

there are laws against it yes. You should report them to whatever governing body exists.

Thanks for your comments, I did not know the pope was catholic!!...............he he, I'll def check out reporting this, who would I contact?

This happened to me when i was buying my house, they pretended there was an offer on my house to get me to put the asking price in. I put the asking price in anyway as i was going to and they told me the other 'person' had gone higher and would i like to raise my offer by £1000. I said no (knowing they were playing games) and i got a phone call later saying the 'other person' had decided not to go any higher and my offer had been accepted!!

I hear it happening all the time, ive even heard of E.A's taking cash backhanders to secure a deal...!!

x

They are all lying robbing gets but it's proving it that's the problem.
:mad:

Do sqwirells put nuts in their mouths?

They do lie - all the time - but that is the sort of thing you should report to the relevant Ombudsman - because i'm pretty sure it is illegal!

Yes Estate Agents lie, all the time, about everything.

Of course they lie - they're not that bothered about getting you the best price for your house either.... round 'em up and shoot 'em :)

Estate Agents are governed by the Estate Agents Act (sorry I forget the year) and they have to follow certain rules as regards offers. They cannot make up the fact that an offer has been made when it hasn't and they have to disclose all offers to the vendors.

There is an Ombudsman Scheme that I believe is going to become mandatory for all estate agents to join (but at present I think it's still voluntary) and this lays out particular guidelines when it comes to offers. I would encourage anyone wanting to use an agent to use one that is a member of the OEA as they are OFT appoved.

If you want to know more about estate agent rules, type any of the following into a search engine:
OEA
NAEA
Property Misdescriptions Act
Estate Agents Act

Hope it helps!

Eastate agents (realtors) as we call them in the States get 6% commission, I understand they get 2% in the UK.

I wouldn't trust any of them, and thats from experience.

I do believe them.
It is as jnrshu mentioned, they do follow some form of ethics set out by governing bodies. I remember doing some checks as well cos I was getting gazumped. Anyway, sometimes greedy vendor just want to put the dealings into the hand of the EA, so they wouldn't even converse with you !

The scenario mentioned by the OP... can it be that the Estate Agent have not had a chance to forward the information to the vendor before the OP contacted them direct ?

I've been in bidding wars as well. I don't believe that they're lying to me. Sometimes you can 'sense' when a person is lying or not. The thing is, the buyer do NOT have to go into a bidding war. You can pay what you want, and you *should* know when to stop. That's the buying process. I recall vaguely that at the time I made the offers, I was told of the opposing offers. I think I was told...and I slowed things down. i.e. just giving something stupid like 150. It's how you know whether the other person know the market's worth, as well as how much they want the place. Sometimes if I add a small amount, the opposing biddee could jump up to 1-2k, and I'd play along. If the price is too high for that area, I think the EA sometimes steps in and mention it has to be an anonymous bid. That would seal the fate of that place. This was how things happened for myself, when the market was rising.

I wouldn't advice anyone to do this now though. Especially now that borrowings and salary levels have not also increased accordingly...

My advice to anyone making an offer is to let the vendor know that you have put an offer in to the estate agent, and the amount. Selling my mum's house some years ago, despite four viewings, the agent told us there was only one offer, which we accepted. Some months after the sale we called in to visit the old neighbour who told us that the new owner worked for ..... yes you've guessed, the estate agents who handled the sale. We never got to know if any of the other people had put an offer in but it seemed a bit suspicious.

thats actually illegal. Might be worth taking some legal advice

Do estste agents lie?


Do bears **** in the woods?

Do estate agents lie?

Do one legged ducks swim in circles?

treat EVERYTHING they say with suspicion.

especially if their name begins with B

Or ... Specially if their name begins with Martin and Co. :rant:

Anything for a buck. Most of them are a disgrace...

Had a prime example of the topic's title today. We put an offer (around 5% below the asking price) on a house that had been on the market for 6 months with no offers, to be phoned back with a rejection in an unbelievably fast time. Then, a few hours later, by incredible coincidence, they phoned to say another person had offered asking price, and did we want to match it...

Whilst 2 people may have put an offer on at the same time after 6 months on the market, I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

Not just buying and selling, we moved back to sheffield from Cornwall, drove 300 miles with 3 kids and 2 vans full of stuff to find the house not even ready. Thanks again Reeds Rains you scumbags! x