We have been gazumped. Would offer more?

[LipstickLou]

Husband and I were interested in buying a town house locally. We were told it had parlkng, it didn't. We offered 5% below guide to reflect this. Nothing from the seller for 2 weeks then a 'offer x and it's yours,' we did.
We heard nothing for three weeks until yesterday. The requirement was to pay the asking price as the tenant had offered the same. We agreed x and we were to instruct solicitors this morning. Today she had pulled out sighting her tenant had offered over the price. We can pay more but feel shafted. The agent says she will not consider a further offer. It is off the market.
What would you do? We are flooded with London escapees with 72% of houses going to London families in the last 18 months (we are 56 minutes from London). I am heartbroken. My DH says they can feck off but i love the house and we are in a tiny flat plus storage.

If the agent has said she won’t consider a further offer there isn’t anything to do except start looking at other properties.
Sorry, it is very frustrating for you. I hope you find a better property that makes losing this one seem like it was meant to be.

Buying a property with a tenant in situ can be a nightmare so you've probably had a lucky escape. If you'd have continued you would need the tenant to vacate before exchange, as you're exchanging on vacant possession. So the landlord would have to give currently (I think) four months notice. If the tenant didn't leave by that time the landlord would need to evict via court, with a current 12-24 month backlog at the minute. There are a lot of risks with buying a tenanted property. If I was the landlord I'd have taken the tenants offer too. A lot less stress knowing they don't have to worry about section 21, eviction, tenants' right to quiet enjoyment with allowing viewings etc.

I wouldn't bother with it. No parking will end up as a ball ache as well. Leave the tenant to it. The tenant could screw up the chain anyway by refusing to move out until a court evicts (as is there legal right).

She is a game playing arsehole, walk away, there are other houses. They will mess around the whole sale if they are like this now. Plus there is a Tennant, recipe for a headache transaction.

If there's a tenant in situ then walk away fast. It can be a complete nightmare.

Sorry, but find somewhere else

Leave it. One thing to remember when house buying is there is always another house.

I don’t think you’d be as heartbroken as the tenant that lives there and would like to stay so much they want to buy it.

Plus the no parking thing, it does t sound like it’s your ideal.

You have had a lucky escape.
Forget the house. With a tenant in situ, who wants to buy the house, they are possibly going to be awkward about moving out when required.
Dont offer more. Keep looking.

How much do you think it is worth? Don’t be dragged into a bidding war. Just offer what you think the house is worth for you. You wanted parking and you factored that into your offer.

And I am guessing you are not massively keen since you waited three weeks between having your offer accepted and ‘planning’ to instruct a solicitor? (Maybe I am misunderstanding the timeline but I think in the seller’s situation I might go for the tenant as I know they know the property and will definitely do everything they can to go through with the purchase. It’s also a unique situation, London buyers aside, you haven’t been disadvantaged by a Londoner but by a local and lots of the houses you look at won’t have a tenant who wants to stay.)

By the way I have only ever bought houses in London and IME everything is quick quick quick here. See house, make offer same day or next, supply mortgage in principle and solicitors details before offer accepted. Offer accepted within 24-48 hours and then start the legal side immediately. To be fair everything slows down after that! But if it’s not like that where you are then you might be competing with Londoners on speed not just money.

No parking and a tenant. They did you a favour

This is the best that could have happened. The Tennant gets to buy their home and you aren't lumbered with a tenant in situ who is disgruntled because you out bid them.

Never underestimate the horror of no parking.

You can’t do anything. Walk away and if they return to you don’t buy. There is a tenant that could be a nightmare to get out

I don’t think you’d be as heartbroken as the tenant that lives there and would like to stay so much they want to buy it.

I thought that too. Plus, if the owner knew that their tenant, with whom they already had a relationship, wanted to stay in and buy it, and was willing and able to pay the asking/best price, I personally don't think very highly of their moral stance (others will disagree with me, I know) to still go ahead and put it on the market - unless they were hoping somebody might come along and offer them a shed load more.

Put it another way: the resident of the house (and also their family, if they have one) were previously renting it, but now they're in a position to buy and the owner wants to sell. There's nothing at all legally wrong with wanting to sneak in there and take their home from them, but I really don't think I could bring myself to do that.

Plus, as PP have said, the hassle if the tenant doesn't leave without a fight - certainly not unlikely if they were hoping to be able to buy it themselves.

Also, the lie about the parking is quite a significant one, and suggests a less than scrupulous seller. It's quite a thing to suddenly remember that your property doesn't have parking after all; and it never happens the other way, does it - "Oh, yes, there's an extra double drive at the side as well - I'd completely forgotten to mention that one before, as we only ever park our shared hatchback on the front drive."

You've had a lucky escape from a house with a sitting tenant!
You'll get somewhere else, though it's horrible initially. You will look back and say thank god we didn't buy that house.
The seller has used you to get her tenant to up the price. Is that someone you want to buy from?

You will end up in the house that’s right for you op.

We’ve been in the position of feeling heartbroken at a ‘lost’ house twice before and both times, further down the line, have looked back and realised that actually the houses we’d lost were not as ideal as we’d thought they were at the time. Both times we have ended up buying a property that has been better for us in every way.

Walk away from this house and there will be another, better one.

Itndoesntnsoundnkikentbentihhthiuse, don't offer more, when you want parking. The righthiuse for mayor.

Off gfs something wrong with my jetboard

You have been outbidded. It happens all the time find something else.

Don't buy anything without parking.

If its for you it won't pass you. Lucky escape too many pitfalls. Your dream home awaits you. Good luck

@idontlikealdi

Off gfs something wrong with my jetboard

This made me laugh way too much 🤣

Nope. This will be your house with the stream in the garden
Me and dh fell in love with a house. A terrace house, with no parking but it had a stream in the garden. Gutted and heartbroken we were when we didn't get it.
We bough one a few streets away.
Twice a year we drove past and looked at the flooded stream and flooded house and thanked our lucky stars.
Bet you find a better one. That doesn't involve so many stairs and no parking.

Love the keyboard - hope you get it fixed soon but made me chuckle!

OP walk away and best wishes with the house hunting

Thank you for all the thoughts. I feel OK about this today. Will be looking at another house this week. We can't make someone sell us something. I just wish she hadn't accepted the offer three weeks ago. No offer from tenant until we offered so i think the tenant was hoping to stay put then buy at reduced price as unsaleable due to no parking.no previous offers. She obviously came out fighting!