Think we're about to be gazumped.

[sammisatt]

We've been looking for a property in London for two years. It's been a long stressful experience as very little was coming on the market and when something suitable came on it would go within days. Plus prices have been rising and our budget shrinking as our savings have been used up on rent.

So we were v v relieved to finally find somewhere. The vendor was asking for way too much and had v little interest. We put in several offers, each time getting rejected. We then gave up especially as we realised we were lower on funds than we thought we were and couldn't actually afford the offer we'd made.

Then we got a call from the estate agent saying the vendor had an emergency situation and would accept the offer. We replied that we couldn't afford our previous offer and were looking at cheaper places. He got back to us saying he would accept the offer we could afford.

We have just had the survey done and i was idly checking zoopla to see it was still being marketed by the other estate agents. I got a friend to call and dig for info and she found out that the vendor had accepted our offer 'very reluctantly' and that he was continuing to market it in case he gets a higher offer.

This has made me feel totally sick. We've just forked out on solicitors fees and a survey and the vendor is likely to drop us at the first opportunity! He wasn't forced to accept our offer 'reluctantly' grrrrrr!!! Just a rant really. Dh will speak to our estate agents today and hopefully he can insist its taken off the market.

I feel utterly devastated already.

The English system is crap isn't it. You must make sure the house is taken off the market. Tell them your offer is conditional upon that.

Unforunately, even if it is taken off the market officially, it can still be marketed unofficially, especially when there are rival agencies involved. In your position, I would just get the offer pushed throughh to exchange as quickly as possible. The fact that the vendor had very little interest at higher asking prices could well mean that you are paying the right price and no one will want to up your offer.

Good luck.

Thank you. There's no point in threatening to withdraw as we've already spent all the money and will be shooting ourselves in the foot if he says no. I think we just need to gently persuade him to take it off the website and remind him how quick we intend to be about everything. We aren't in a chain which is an advantage.

I think you need to be firm. Perhaps suggest that there is another house that you were interested in that has just come on the market however you are committed to this one...but you need to move fast.

Remember the EA is not working for you. She/he wants to get the most money for their client therefore the largest commission.

Be careful what you tell them and don't trust them.

Just tell your solicitor to exchange by the end of the week - if you've spent your money you must have had survey back and mortgage approved. Searches rarely reveal anything worth knowing, who cares about the fixtures and fittings list. Get him to sign on dotted line.

We've paid for the survey which was last week but not had feed back yet. Mortgage approval should be next week which is pretty much in the bag as we are paying 80% cash. I'm wondering when the earliest we can exchange can be in that case. I've calmed down a bit now. He's had two offers including our in just over 6 months. We'd be extremely unlucky for someone to bid higher at the last minute although who knows. I get the feeling the vendor can't stand us due to us changing reducing our offer and he might suddenly demand a higher price just before exchange. I hate this house buying business so much. I can't imagine how stressful it must be to be in a chain and have this sort of thing happen!

Keep in mind there's a time issue for your seller. That's why he's wiling to "lose" money by accepting your "low" offer. Be quick and if he tries to up the offer at last minute, hold your ground. Frankly, if I was him I would think you were using my desperation to sell quickly by telling me your previous offer was no longer valid and going even lower! Surely you can see his perspective and talked through this possibility when you made an even lower (and in his eyes "cheeky" offer?)

I agree, with others, you need to push this through as quickly as possible.

It may seem unfair if the vendor does pull out as you have spent money, but such is the system. It's his prerogative.

Good luck with it, such a stressful procedure.

Yes Wodger i can see his perspective. Although he wasnt forced to accept the offer, we weren't pushing it either ( we were about to put an offer in on a property we could afford) he was the one chasing us in the end. I can totally see why he's pissed off though. i can see that anything that causes bad feeling to make either side feel resentful can jeopardize a sale and make the buyer/vendor far less inclined to act ethically. So we definitely have to act quickly and show him we mean business.

Just push for exchange of contracts as quickly as you can. However, if you are paying 80% cash doesn't that mean that if a higher offer was made you could match it and just get a slightly bigger mortgage?

Couldn't get a bigger mortgage unfortunately as dont earn enough. We were lucky to make a lot of money from previous house sale but don't actually earn enough to get a mortgage any bigger than we've got.