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Hello, I'm looking for some advice around making offers on properties which may be suitable for conversion. I'm interested in converting commercial properties to residential but I'd also be interested in what people with purely residential development have to say. I've not bought a commercial property before and I'm wondering about the following actions and whether they would normally be conducted before making an offer or after an offer is accepted: - Appointing a planning consultant to advise on permitted development for change of use. - Appointing an architect and having them advise on the potential reconfiguration. - Engaging with contractors/builders for quotes or full tender process. I may be 90% sure that permitted development would be granted, have a good idea of what configuration might work and have a reasonable idea of what the development costs would be, but still not quite be willing to committing to buy it without being more sure about the project's viability. If I did all of the above before offering, that could cost thousands of pounds only to have my offer rejected. If I did all the above after an offer is accepted and it emerges that permitted development is less likely that I thought or the development cost is going to be a lot more than I thought, is it normal for a developer simply to pull out of the deal at that point? Not having done the whole process before, I'm keen to know how people de-risk this process. Looking forward to hearing what you have to say. Thanks in advance!

Hello Hubbers, Exciting times, finally done the research got a property shortlist (always expanding though), booked the viewings and expect to start making offers next week. Does anyone have any advice on the actual offer process? My line of thought is make it official and submit a letter rather than only verbal or a simple email. I have written up a template but some further tips/advice would be much appreciated. Stay safe Regards Chris

Hi All,I'm just after a bit of advice really. My partner and I had reserved a new build prior to COVID using the HTB scheme and had a mortgage offer ready to go for exchange but the pandemic struck. The build was then stopped and completion window moved from initially Aug-Sep 20 to Jan-Feb 21. Unfortunately my partner has been furloughed and this mortgage offer has since expired. We therefore haven't exchanged and will be unable to do so without a mortgage offer. We are trying to arrange for another mortgage offer but despite being way under the possible affordability threshold of our mortgage (even taking into account my partner's furlough salary) our lender is insisting on a letter from their company to explicitly state that they will be returning to work after the furlough scheme ends in October. Apparently they are viewing the furlough scheme as a 'temporary employment' and therefore need evidence of that they will be bringing people back to work when the scheme finishes. The company is in events which has been very badly hit by the virus and have given very little indication as to whether they will bring back staff in October or start making redundancies. Apparently even if we were to reapply with another lender, they would also require this letter of confirmation. This is despite one salary able to cover the mortgage payments and even the possibility of putting down more than a 5% deposit. I am doubtful that my partner will be able to get this letter because the company doesn't appear to have made many decisions r.e. their staff and the furlough scheme as of yet and therefore without this we are currently unable to get a mortgage offer. Without this we are unable to exchange contracts. So the new build we have been waiting for over a year to be ready and which was delayed because of the virus, is now apparently in danger of falling through completely? Are there any lenders who are offering mortgages without requirement for this return to work letter?I wondered if anyone might be in a similar position and had any advice on how to proceed? Thanks for your help!

Hi all! I've just finished listening to the recent podcast on how to put an offer forward when a question hit me that I guess I've been subconsciously curious about for a while. What are the correct things to do before or after putting in an offer. For example here is my way of thinking about it: Step 1 - Find a mortgage provider, figure out how much I would be able to borrow compared to how much I'd like to spend Step 2 - Find potential investments Step 3 - Crunch the estimated number Step 4 - Set up viewings for these properties (let's say I have found 5 potential investments) Step 5 - After viewing these properties I decide only 3 of them are what I'm looking for. This is where I'm curious what everyone else does. Do I then: Step 6 - Put an offer in for all 3 (let's say for this example 2 of them are excepted) Step 7 - Have both properties then surveyed and take the one that the survey come back better on and back out of the other offer I put in. My confusion comes from the fact that I believe the other way to do it would be to have the survey done first and the builder and such give me a quote first before putting in my offer. This would let me know more specifically how much everything would cost me and would not waste the other sellers time. I hope I made my thoughts clear enough. Thanks in advance for the advice!

Hi all, Looking for advice from people with experience in making BMV offers for flipping as this will be the purpose of my first project. What I'm really trying to determine here is a realistic conservative value for the below property example. Until I come to a clue I can't begin coming up with an offer price and sourcing potential finance options. Any opinions or just general advice to make the determining value process easier will all be welcome and greatly appreciated. About the property: Located in the town I grew up, on a street within two minute walk to town center so searching for 3 bed detached comparible properties even within 1 mile doesn't return many results due to its location. Most Streets close to town centre consist of terraced houses. The street consists of a mixture of mainly terraced and semi detached properties and 2-3 detached. Most of the semis are 3 bed though roughly a similar size to the property I'm intested in. A brand new primary school has been built on the street and a couple older properties have had full refurbs but not currently finished so hopefully it may bring the general value of the street up, also two new build semis mid street that have also not yet gone to market. The house istself self is located at the quiet end of the street, has been empty for years and deteriorated considerably. Windows have been smashed for years and they have now boarded up the windows and front door too. Full renovation will be required, completely stripped back to brick. I was planning on contacting the owner via writing however I happened to park outside the other week and someone was raking back the over grown weeds, the owners son, after a quick chat it turns out they are looking to sell and want a quick sale! So area stats: Potential flip: 3 bed detached, long garden, off-road parking for one car (rare on this street) 2 reception rooms, kitchen, downstairs WC, 3 bedrooms upstairs bathroom. Last sale: 2003 Price paid: £85k Identical property (mirror image) next door, this is as close a comparable house you will get as they looks the same so assuming built together: Sales: 1997: £53k 2011: £100k 2015: £130k Highest amount paid in the street: Similar sized 3 bed semi however it had potential building plot with side garden: 2014: £155k The floowing are all different properties sold prices: Street sales before 2008 crash: 2005 - £115k - 3 bed semi 2005 - £95k - ? semi (no property info) 2006 - £121k - 3 bed semi 2006 - £125k - 3 bed semi 2007 - £123k - 3 bed end terrace Street sales after 2008 crash: 2011 - £80k - 3 bed semi 2014 - £110k - 3 bed semi 2014 - £155k - 3 bed semi (Ceiling?) 2015 - £130k - 3 bed detached (identical) 2016 - £60k - ? Semi (no property info) Postcode stats: As previously mentioned searching the surrounding 1/4, 1/2, 1 mile area doesn't return many comparable due to its location so here are some postcode stats in general: Average sold prices: General average - £150k (09/17) Average detached - £184k Average Semi - £130k Obviously there is more research I can do into the area which I have and continue to do and I have not spoken to any EA's yet to get their thoughts on the area and price. At this initial stage I'm apprehensive about getting the estimated potential value as close as I can. If you managed to get through all of that thanks for reading!!! Hopefully someone can lend some advice and look forward to hearing from any of you. Dan

Hi, Im guessing this is going to be a difficult one for people to answer, given the variables involved, but I thought I'd givebina go. I'm looking to secure my first BTL property and have found one that seems to stack up. The property is listed for £125k, and has been on the market since August. It had an offer accepted but fell through due to lack of funds in October, and by all accounts has been quiet with regards interest over the Xmas / new year period. The vendor is an owner occupier that moved out just over a year ago, becoming an accidental landlord. All factors considered I think the vendor will be a reasonably motivated seller. A similar property in the same block sold for £113k in July, and according to Zoopla prices in the area have generally fallen slightly in the last 6-months. As a result I think we have a good chance of knocking a fair bit off the asking price. My question is, what is the likelihood of risking the deal by going in with an offer that the vendor considers far too low? Does anybody have experience where they've aggravated the vendor by doing so such that further offers won't be discussed? I want to chance my arm, but don't want to jeopardise it unduly. I fully appreciate this is almost impossible to answer, as all deals and vendors vary, but if anyone has any experience, positive or negative, in this topic I'd love to hear about it. thanks Tom

Hi All I put in an offer in a terraced house in Plaistow, London for £346K. This was accepted by the seller. The survey has been done by the mortgage company who estimate the cost of the property to be only £330K. What can I do about this lower value? I would obviously prefer to pay the lower value. Can the seller insist that I pay what I offered? thanks in advance