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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To hope their chain collapses

138 replies

Berimbolo · 02/02/2019 07:36

I know I'm being childish, but so furious and I guess sad that we've been gazumped. I know whilst not fair, it is perfectly legal and naff all I can do about it apart from keep trying to outbid the others - but it is just so frustrating.

We're FTB, 15% deposit, solicitors and broker in place after a previous purchase fell through. House has been on for 3 months, reducing to OIEO as having to move asap as relocating.
We offered 5k over the base asking price, had to prove we were good for the money by sending bank statements and paying a £200 commitment fee to the estate agent before they'd even put our offer through. We get a call re people that had seen it twice but not offered until now, have stumped up 5k more than us but have nothing in place and are in a chain. Our vendors wanted us to match it, we told them no. Even the estate agent were saying they were mad for the sake of 5k.

So yes I'm petty and BU but part of me does hope their chain collapses or takes them an age to complete

OP posts:

Bringbackthestripes · 02/02/2019 17:20

We turned down an offer of more for our first house, they didn’t even go through the estate agents. Actually knocked on the door and offered us cash in our hands to sell to them instead! We declined, our buyers had already paid for the surveys. No way would I do that to someone.

I hope you find an even better house Berimbolo and you are DNBU to hope their chain collapses.

CallMeVito · 02/02/2019 17:43

Danglingmod don't get me wrong, I think you did a nice thing.

Puzzledandpissedoff · 02/02/2019 20:27

they reduced the price as it wasn't selling ... so it may be a way to get some of the money back they thought the house was worth?

Stupidly, I missed that they'd already dropped the price; as I said, I'm a cynical old gimmer, but frankly that would make me even more suspicious about the "better offer"

CallMe's quite right that they probably wouldn't bother re-showing a SSTC house, but they could quite easily have ... err ... "imagined" a later and better offer

And yes, I realise a truly ethical agent wouldn't lie - but how many of those are there about?

turncloak · 02/02/2019 21:26

Ugh, what a shit thing to happen OP. But as you know, the vendor is well within their rights to go with the higher offer. They'be technically done nothing wrong. To all of the posters hoping that unspeakable things happen to the vendors...maybe they saw that extra money as a new kitchen or bathroom for their new home? Or some money towards their moving fees? Buying a house is bloody expensive.

I would like to speak up on behalf of all Estate Agents though (yes yes, boo hiss, I know) and can 99.9% confirm that the agents will have (rightly) tried to convince the vendor to stick with your original offer. First time buyers with no chain are every agents dream. We want an easy sale. We certainly wouldn't be encouraging the vendor to get involved in a potentially messy chain over the sake of £5000 (of which we may see a couple of £100, if that).

You're in a great position, as first time buyers with a mortgage and solicitors in place already. You'll find the right one soon. This one obviously wasn't meant to be

winewolfhowls · 02/02/2019 21:46

Nice to read of all the lovely sellers on here who treated their buyers fairly.

Kolo · 02/02/2019 22:02

We had a similar situation a few years ago. We’d had an offer accepted on a house that had been on the market for many months, lots of the legal work had been done, sold our own house, when a mysterious new buyer turned up and offered the seller more money. We were invited to match that or lose the house. We told them no because we doubted a higher offer existed and, if it didn’t, we didn’t want anything to do with the seller anymore. We were pretty upset, but found the house we ended up buying on rightmove that evening, viewed it the next day and eventually bought it had happy years there.

The seller of the house we’d had fall through did call us back after a week or so to tell us that, even though he’d been offered more money, he’d do us a favour and stick with us. We loved telling him we’d ‘lost interest’ and actually bought a different house.

Jaxhog · 03/02/2019 17:42

They'll get their comeuppance when the new people drop out. Hopefully, by then, you'll have found an even better house and can give them the 2 fingers.

Our system in England is really lousy. No commitment until both vendor and buyer have signed and excahnged contracts.

Flashinggreen · 03/02/2019 17:48

You did the right thing by not playing their game. Hopefully something better will come along.

Imabadmummy · 03/02/2019 17:55

I feel for you.
Its do frustrating.
We tried to buy a house & got outbid.

I could have offered more, but that would have meant less to do the works the houses needed. We were a cash buyer. For the sake of £2k the house could have sold quickly - we wanted it asap as i was pregnant with 2nd and planned on doing as much work as we could ourselves on it.

They wanted more - went with the other buyer.
In the mean time we got a buyer for our house as well, so now we really needed to move!

I moved on and found a better house on the street i wanted and got the process going.
A month later i got a call asking if i was still interested in the origonal house - took great pleasure in saying no, already commited to another.

The house was still on the market when we moved - and turned out it had a major damp prob that would have eventually come up in the survey but feel glad i didnt offer more as would have had to then spend even less on renovation.

LosingMoreThanNicotine · 03/02/2019 17:59

I do really feel for you.

We had buyers once who waited until the day of exchange to lower their offer by about 10%.

Fortunately we were in a position to be able I tell them to shove it.

They tried to come back again afterwards and we told them to forget it.

We had another buyer soon after and all went without a hitch.

BlueJava · 03/02/2019 18:00

YANBU especially over 5k! We moved house last year, the sellers of the first place we made an offer one (last March) really messed about. Offer was accepted, pushed back, they weren't sure they were ready, they were divorcing one accepted, one didn't... we withdrew the offer. Found a better place that we love and moved in August. They just sold this month, it was petty and I shouldn't have felt it, but I was quietly feeling they deserved it.

Megan2018 · 03/02/2019 18:06

Of course I would never do this (cough, cough), but you could get someone you know to guzzump them by offering more and then mysteriously vanish.....

Original poster

Berimbolo · 03/02/2019 18:21

DH and I have been through a range of emotions about it this weekend but I still feel pretty crap about it.
We genuinely loved the house, thought we were good buyers with us being in rented, everything in place and us prepared to wait for them to find somewhere etc. We just were happy to have that as our home and had plans. Foolish I know.
There's nothing else suitable around here at the moment, market is a little peculiar too. Have no choice to wait and see what else comes on but hoping we'll find something soon

OP posts:

Pashal2 · 03/02/2019 18:23

What is gazumped? FTB and oisuabc?

newnameforthis7 · 03/02/2019 18:40

YANBU. Hope things go your way soon.

autumnboys · 03/02/2019 18:45

As first time sellers, we were offered another £5k after we'd accepted an offer. We turned it down. It wouldn’t have been right. 15 years ago, it was a reasonable amount. The estate agents thought we were mad. Never regretted it. We had amazingly good luck in our next house move; not that I believe in karma.....

flowergrrl77 · 03/02/2019 18:53

FTB: first time buyer
Gazumped: pipped at the post.. someone offered higher than an already agreed purchase price so seller decides not to sell to you but to new ppl.

Sorry to hear this OP 🙁 good luck!

I have had a vendor change their minds several (seven!!) times in one day as to whether he was selling to me or not!

We didn’t buy that house in the end :( I drive by it sometimes (not on purpose - just it’s really near where we did buy and pass it en route) muttering grmbl grmbl that House should be mine... LOL!

Tistheseason17 · 03/02/2019 18:53

I hope their chain falls through for you, too. There are some proper greedy sellers out there.

Or.... the new buyers get a survey and knock the sellers right down and they have to accept or they lose the house of THEIR dreams!

PowerToTheMeeple · 03/02/2019 18:54

YANBU. I disklike people who mess others about.

We had a FTB in June last year who fannied about with a cheap solicitor who got nothing done, our estate agents helped them get another one who made the process run much quicker. They then decided in the October they weren’t going to proceed, meaning we’d spent 4 months off the market and we had no come back. We’re pretty much at the stage for agreeing a completion date and we’ve been waiting for around a week for them to give us a date. I really don’t like it when people drag their feet. We’re at the stage now where if this falls through we will have to move back (moved out into parents in the interim) and it would involve a lot of upheaval and upset.

Bowerbird5 · 03/02/2019 18:57

Yes if they come back offer less. This happened to me and I upped price once but they gave it to other. It fell through so they came back to me and I said I had seen something else ( which I had) and I took my time then offered my first price( lower by £2,500) they wanted to sell it to me at the higher price but I stuck out and said take it or leave it as I had found something wrong and priced it up. They didn’t want to so I told estate agent it was fine I would buy the other property( different agent) they came back and agreed price. My sons have lived in it for fifteen years.😀

Hold your nerve. If you don’t get it you are not meant to have that house and something else will come your way.

tillytrotter1 · 03/02/2019 19:36

When our friends were gazumped on a house we offered more and the gazumpers bought something else, we then withdrew our offer and they got back to our friends who offered a bit less than their original offer and the sellers were so desperate that they took it! Served them right too.

Yabbers · 03/02/2019 19:40

In Scotland, once you’ve accepted an offer you’re bound to it, even if something better comes along
Not true.

You are only bound once missives are concluded. If you are with an estate agent (not a solicitor) they have to follow your instruction and if that means accepting a higher offer, they have to do it. Until fairly recently there weren’t any non solicitor estate agents so this tended not to happen a lot, but it did happen. And is happening more and more now.

The Law Society guidelines say a solicitor can’t do this (and yet also says they have to work in their clients’ best interest ) so they can’t accept a second offer, but you can fire them and appoint another. In reality this can cost so it’s only worth doing if the difference in offers is substantial. The other thing that happens here is the closing date system which means gazumping is far less common.

As a seller there is nothing in Scots Law which prevents you accepting a second offer.

Crap situation OP. I hope their chain fails too, AND that you find a far better home.

Tiredand · 03/02/2019 20:23

It sounds like they are desperate for the money. For £5K I'd take someone in rented rather than risk a chain collapsing (if I was relocating).

If it was me, then I'd skip the agent (some good, some bad, but to avoid chinese whispers), and go round and knock on the door and clarify my situation.

"We love your house, we offered £5K over the base. We're in rented, ready to go and can be in your house within 4 weeks (do able, we always have). BUT......we are now looking at other houses. If you change your mind in the next fortnight then give me a call, here's our number. We just wanted to make sure you were fully aware of our situation and the agent had told you how easy it was if you went with our offer.

Wrongintherightway · 03/02/2019 20:34

I hope their chain falls apart too and they come crawling back so you can tell them your offer is now reduced by 5k.....karma

Frazzledmum123 · 03/02/2019 21:05

It's crap, I totally get how you feel and it's unfair if they had accepted your offer. BUT, people saying it's only 5k, that's a lot of money! We are selling at the mo and things are so tight between what we are selling for and what we need for the next step, 5k is a new kitchen or new carpets, we have discounted houses because we couldn't afford these and couldn't live with it how it was. YANBU to feel cheated and pissed off, I would too but I can't totally blame the others either

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