Landlord Products / Services
Dear Diary,
The last time I checked in I confessed that I may have discovered the one. She’s very decent looking.
Not earth-shattering by any means. Very decent.
She’ll make a fine addition to my non-existent BTL property empire. Rome wasn’t built in a day.
I say “confessed” because it’s been three days since I saw her, and I still haven’t told my estate agent that I’ve been won over.
Is playing ‘hard-ball’ really a legitimate strategy in the world of property acquisitions, which can lead to riches, or just a sure-fire way to miss out on a golden opportunity?
Another confession: playing hard to get has never worked in my favour in all my other past pursuits, so I have zero success rate with it.
Here’s what running through my naïve mind:
- I want to make an offer on the property, but below the current asking price (£164k). Yes, I want to low-ball the vendor with £155k. My concern is that if I act too soon, the vendor may smell my desperation and hold firm. So maybe sitting on the bench for a few days may pay dividends.
- I don’t want to miss out, I like the property! I know that the longer I play it cool, the greater the chance of someone else swooping in and snatching it away from right under my nose!
- Maybe I’ve watched too many property TV shows and overthinking it all. I should just make an offer and go from there. This isn’t ‘Homes Under the Hammer’ afterall!
I’ve been in touch with Stuart (my agent) today; he’s scheduled for more viewings with a few other properties. He also mentioned, very casually, that other buyers’ have been eyeing her up.
My heart skips a beat or twenty.
Is he simply keeping me informed just because, or does he know? Did he see through my poker-face? Or was he just doing what agents do and create artificial demand, tempting me into showing my hand?
Either way, I had to act quick – he was on the other end of the phone – I decided to continue the charade and acted disinterested. I just as casually skipped past his update on her, and enquired about the other properties he had lined up.
I think he fell for it.
But the question is, how long do I continue this bluff for, and will it even make any damn difference?
I think there’s a good chance I might be playing on my own over here.
I’ll carry on playing either way.
Ignorance is bliss!
Disclaimer: I'm just a landlord blogger; I'm 100% not qualified to give legal or financial advice. I'm a doofus. Any information I share is my unqualified opinion, and should never be construed as professional legal or financial advice. You should definitely get advice from a qualified professional for any legal or financial matters. For more information, please read my full disclaimer.
