Just been round to view a house(or ways you preferably would like to execute/punish an estate agent)

C.Walsh'sLoveChild

LINK

Very nice inside and there are pretty much no 2 beds in the area at all.
Left after the viewing and rung up the office and paid the holding fee with the rent at £800 a month.
Get a phone call 20 mins later and the people who went in straight after us then offered £825.
If we offer £825 it is ours. If we stick with £800 they will go with the other people and refund out holding fee.
With a holding fee, are we then entering a contract? so we have verbally and by action entererd a contract? is this allowed? what is the point in a holding fee if this can happen?

ADVICE PLEASE

Henry Irving

Don't know legally as haven't seen the contract. If you really want and can afford it take the house.

They sound like, well, Estate Agents and well dodgy

DaveMehmet

Might be a case of cutting your nose off to spite your face but I'd tell them to poke it and that you'll never use them again.

Lincsaddick

Law of property Act 1925 et seq. To paraphrase; 'there can be no interest of any kind in land unless both parties agree to the bargain IN WRITING'. Also, paying a 'deposit' or holding fee is not proper 'consideration'. You need to check the legal definition of 'consideration' in contract and land law. So unless you and the landlord or agent signed a deal for £800 before the gazumping, you're outta luck.

Estate agents like to get your money to save too many timewasters and to stick in their accounts to get a bit of interest.

Off_it

Have you got a receipt for the "holding fee" - or is there anything in writing?

I've had a look at the agents website and it doesn't have anything about holding fees, so what were you told it was for?

I think the crux of this is whether or not you have already entered into a contract (even a verbal contract) for renting the place and this will ultimately depend on the specific facts. The agent is acting for the landlord, so if the agent has told you that the holding fee holds the place for you then arguably he has entered into a contract on the landlords behalf in his capacity as agent. (NB a contract for holding it - not necessarily renting it)

Have a look on here. http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?13840-Deposits-not-held-for-security

Ultimately though, if they tell you to f*** off then there's not a great deal you can do about it, short of taking them to court. They're arseholes, the lot of them.

Lincsaddick

Have you got a receipt for the "holding fee" - or is there anything in writing?

I've had a look at the agents website and it doesn't have anything about holding fees, so what were you told it was for?

I think the crux of this is whether or not you have already entered into a contract (even a verbal contract) for renting the place and this will ultimately depend on the specific facts. The agent is acting for the landlord, so if the agent has told you that the holding fee holds the place for you then arguably he has entered into a contract on the landlords behalf in his capacity as agent. (NB a contract for holding it - not necessarily renting it)

Have a look on here. http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?13840-Deposits-not-held-for-security

Ultimately though, if they tell you to f*** off then there's not a great deal you can do about it, short of taking them to court. They're arseholes, the lot of them.

no, verbal contracts are not legally enforceable in any contract relating to buying, leasing or renting 'real estate', i.e. land property

LenGlover

I'm being thick probably but did you pay a holding fee AND £800 rent or a holding fee on the understanding that the rent WILL be £800?

If it was the first then I would say a contract has been created as the agent has effectively "accepted" on behalf of the landlord and consideration has been exchanged. If it is the second then the landlord has not got involved (even by proxy) and the agent should return the "holding" fee as he has not held it! 

Off_it

Have you got a receipt for the "holding fee" - or is there anything in writing?

I've had a look at the agents website and it doesn't have anything about holding fees, so what were you told it was for?

I think the crux of this is whether or not you have already entered into a contract (even a verbal contract) for renting the place and this will ultimately depend on the specific facts. The agent is acting for the landlord, so if the agent has told you that the holding fee holds the place for you then arguably he has entered into a contract on the landlords behalf in his capacity as agent. (NB a contract for holding it - not necessarily renting it)

Have a look on here. http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?13840-Deposits-not-held-for-security

Ultimately though, if they tell you to f*** off then there's not a great deal you can do about it, short of taking them to court. They're arseholes, the lot of them.

no, verbal contracts are not legally enforceable in any contract relating to buying, leasing or renting 'real estate', i.e. land property

What about a contract with the agent to hold the property?  Anyway, that's why I asked if he'd got a receipt or something in writing.

Lincsaddick

a contract to 'hold the property' is an 'interest in land' and MUST be in writing to be enforceable

Off_it

I'll say it again just to be clear, hence me asking if he had a receipt or anything in writing.

C.Walsh'sLoveChild

I'm being thick probably but did you pay a holding fee AND £800 rent or a holding fee on the understanding that the rent WILL be £800?

just the holding, not the rent yet.

can afford it so am going ahead as this is the nicest and cheapest 2 bed I have seen in the area. Also spoke to my solicitor and he has said pretty much what you lot have said. No ground at all. Plus even if I was to take it further and get it for £800 they would find an excuse for us not to have it with failed references or some other bollocks

C.Walsh'sLoveChild

I have a £300 receipt , nothing else in writing

C.Walsh'sLoveChild

ssssccchhhnnnneeaakkkkyyyy rushhian baaasstttarddssss

Lincsaddick

interesting, I live in a nice village outside grimsby, got a small 2 bed detatched. The one next door is identical and is offered for rent at £750 a month, he'll probably settle for around £700 i would think. so the diff between london and the stix is not all that great.

 

Enjoy your house, at least you dont have to decorate and put in a new conservatory and/or kitchen

mart77

I've just told the estate agent I'd pay £900! ;0)

Good luck, getting it sorted.

 

 

Off_it

I'm being thick probably but did you pay a holding fee AND £800 rent or a holding fee on the understanding that the rent WILL be £800?

can afford it so am going ahead as this is the nicest and cheapest 2 bed I have seen in the area. Also spoke to my solicitor and he has said pretty much what you lot have said. Not ground at all. Plus even if I was to take it further and get it for £800 they would find an excuse for us not to have it with failed references or some other bollocks

Fair do's. 

But to make yourself feel better about the low-life scumbag estate agent, I would suggest perhaps doing him £25 worth of damage every month you're in the property. A brick through the window late at night has got to be well over a years worth right there in one go, but if that's a bit extreme then a new tyre to replace a slashed one probably wont be cheap for his (no doubt) expensive motor, or a bit of key damage.

If that's all a bit too extreme then get everyone you know - including everyone on here (i'll do it) - to put their names down with him asking him to post through details of properties that we have no intention of buying/renting. He'll easily do £25 on postage, etc.

Valiantphil

Mate, pay the extra and don't risk upsetting the Mrs.

If you go somewhere else and so much as an empty crisp packets floats into the garden - IT WILL BE ALL YOUR FAULT !

Seriously, it's not worth the hassle.

Oggy Red

Best advice so far, Valiant Phil.

C.Walsh'sLoveChild

all very very tempting. If anything happens to go wrong from now on or I don't get my "holding deposit" back if something does. Then there will be some water guns filled with paint stripper doing the rounds. Not that I would condone that sort of thing

Rob

Yep. For the extra 25 quid - go for it. Not worth the hassle.

redman

I think you shouls name the Estate agent. After the deal is done (not before) tell what you have done. Hopefully people will not use him and he will ultimately lose out. This is the only way to stop these practices is by consumer power

BlackForestReds

I think you shouls name the Estate agent. After the deal is done (not before) tell what you have done. Hopefully people will not use him and he will ultimately lose out. This is the only way to stop these practices is by consumer power

Follow the link in the first post...

Leroy Ambrose

They're all c**ts - every one of them. I've never met one yet that I wouldn't want to gouge out their fucking eyes with a rusty teaspoon, or chew my own arm off to escape having a conversation with them. C**ts, all of them.

Floyd Montana

If you are
dissatisfied with the service you receive from your estate agent and
wish to complain, there are some basic guidelines to follow that should
help you resolve your complaint.



By law, all estate agents must belong to a regulatory scheme
approved by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). There are only two
approved schemes, The Property Ombudsman and the Ombudsman Services:
Property. If your estate agent is not a member of either of these
schemes they are breaking the law and should be reported to Trading
Standards.

First,
register your complaint with the estate agent themselves. Any reputable
estate agent will have an in-house complaints procedure overseen by a
senior member of staff, who may be able to resolve your complaint
without the need to take further action.

If your complaint is not adequately resolved then it’s time to contact the relevant ombudsman with details of your grievance.



For members of the Property Ombudsman, contact:



Beckett House

4 Bridge Street

Salisbury

Wilts

SP1 2LX



Tel: 01722 333 306

Fax: 01722 332 296
 

For members of the Ombudsman Services: Property, contact:



PO Box 1021

Warrington

WA4 9FE


Tel: 0330 440 1634 or 01925 530 270

Fax: 0330 440 1635 or 01925 530 271



Email: enquiries@os-property.org

Website: www.os-property.org

DaveMehmet

Or follow the c*nt home and do what Leroy suggests

C.Walsh'sLoveChild

Paint stripper is coming out. Just spoken to them and the fees have jumped up 200 since yesterday, now a stunning total of 550 in fees alone. Should be fun when I go in there after work today

RodneyCharltonTrotta

Mate similar thing happened to me but other way round.

Put in an offer £25 above what the people who viewed it an hour before us put in and got it.  Annoyed me at the time but after what i had seen in the area for the same rent it was definitely worth it.

Funny was thinking about it yesterday...it's an extra £300 a year but they didnt put the rent up the first year  and 4 years later im still here and really glad i took it when i see what mates live in for same or more money.

Was skint at the time so £25 was a material amount but at the same time if you look at it as a takeaway or 2 a month it puts it in perspective.

 

If you like it its really worth the extra £25 and weigh up how gutted youd be if you missed out.  But yes i agree (a lot) of letting agents are complete tossers.

 

 

 

Stig

Bastards!!!

I wonder if the original price was just a con to get you hooked and that no-one else has bid since then.  It would be interesting to see what they said to a new person turning up in their office enquiring about it.

C.Walsh'sLoveChild

Someone follow the link and give them a call about the house. See what they say

Leroy Ambrose

Paint stripper is coming out. Just spoken to them and the fees have jumped up 200 since yesterday, now a stunning total of 550 in fees alone. Should be fun when I go in there after work today

Take tools.

Addickted

Agree to meet the rent of £825.

When you come to sign the doucmentation, say you've changed your mind and are only willing to pay £800 a month. The other party will have buggered off to another property by then and you'll be sitting pretty, with cash waiting to sign.

After all a verbal agreement on land sales is not worth the paper it's written on.