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Original poster

Would you gazump another buyer?

48 replies

MeMeMeow85 · 11/06/2018 16:05

A few weeks ago, we missed out on a house. With hindsight (and 3 more weeks of depressing viewings elsewhere), I really regret not making a higher offer!!

The EA was playing games and used our offer to get the other buyer to offer asking price. Part of our reluctance to go over the asking price then was that it wasn’t our prime area (ticks all other boxes) and it didn’t seems appropriate to pay more than asking price in the current weak market...

Our house search has been going on for a while and I’m really fed up of viewing houses (it is ruining every weekend and I’m bored of speaking with EAs and looking at online listings). I’m thinking that we should go back now with a higher offer.

We’re chain free, cash buyers so could move quickly. We’d have to go in with an extra £25k I think to sway the vendor. I’m thinking that part of our higher offer could be to compensate the other buyer for their survey cost, mortgage fee etc.

Is it really bad to put a higher offer in now? Concerned about karma, but on the other hand, the house buying process isn’t binding until exchange, so I’m wondering if it is worth missing out on a particular house because I feel that gazumping someone isn’t a nice thing to do.

So miserable looking for a house to buy!!! 🙈 Hardly any new stock coming on to the market.

OP posts:
Tit4TatandAllThat · 11/06/2018 20:29

Sure you would Kamma. You wouldn't get to exchange with out putting in some effort and £ and you'd just walk away? You sound like a classic keyboard warrior, all talk.

That thread was days away from exchange after months of pissing around.

Kamma89 · 11/06/2018 22:40

@Tit not much effort needed getting to that stage for us recently. Buyers market round us so much more chilled.

Spin however you like. Gazumping is as bad as gazundering. You sound like a hypocrite...

DontThinkTwice1 · 11/06/2018 22:47

Ooo kamma I wish I could have done that!!

Kintan · 11/06/2018 22:56

If as you say you are concerned about karma then you very definitely should not do this. Yes you may try to convince yourself that it is ok as you would compensate for money the other party had already spent, but what if it’s causing their chain to collapse and all the repercussions of that. As a pp said you had your chance with the house and you didn’t take it. Good luck for finding somewhere else :)

AnnieAnoniMouser · 11/06/2018 23:08

it wasn’t our prime area (ticks all other boxes) and it didn’t seems appropriate to pay more than asking price in the current weak market...

Leave well alone.

Your instincts were right, you just need to be patient.

Gazumping is horrible, the only time I could just about understand doing it would be if they LOVED the house and had offered their very best price at the time, but later on had accessed more money, then I’d just about understand, but I’d still think it was pretty shitty.

In your situation it’s full on shitty. You don’t love the house, it’s not in an ideal location...you’re just settling because you’re fed up of looking. That’s NOT a good reason to fuck other people around. It’s really, really not.

Lilmisskittykat · 12/06/2018 16:14

I'm just posting to agree with the majority here...

You didn't even love the house. The person buying it now probably loves it and planning their lives in it. 25k over what you believed it was worth for a house you don't even like makes no sense to me whatsoever...

I'm a big believer in karma - plus how could you trust a vendor that would do that?

You'll do what you want in the end, but think you should reflect on why you didn't fight for this house in the beginning when it came to offers

LillyBugg · 12/06/2018 16:20

What did you decide to do OP?

really hoping you aren't the other buyer that we offered over approximately 3 weeks ago as our chain is currently on the verge of collapse

BadCarrot · 12/06/2018 16:55

Dreadfully bad behaviour to gazump. The UK house buying laws are ridiculous to even allow it.

hendricksy · 12/06/2018 16:58

I would do it if I could afford to, buying houses is a ruthless business . I got totally screwed over by my buyers gazundering at the last minute but I'd still do it . I'm not a c word in real life but houses are just different .

Tit4TatandAllThat · 12/06/2018 17:05

Kamma hypocrite? Did I actually condone what the OP was suggesting? No. I'm selling at the moment and the system in England is fucking horrendous and no way would I ever buy another house here.

However 3 weeks in is very different to nearly 5 months as the other OP was.

And yes I know you've bought recently, 20% below asking price blah blah. I am under offer, first viewing at asking price, London also, so yours was probably just over priced to start with.

Jaxhog · 12/06/2018 17:09

If you really want the house, and it still isn't overpriced - do it. They've just done it to you, afterall.

user1484830599 · 12/06/2018 17:11

Not a chance. If the sale to other buyers is progressing it just smacks of entitled behaviour.

It also shows you to be untrustworthy (as you won't accept that the sale has been agreed, and is progressing), and in the same way that the vendors also are if they were to entertain it.

What is to stop someone else coming along with more and gazundering you and the vendors accepting it. Bad behaviour all around in my book.

Kamma89 · 12/06/2018 17:49

@Tit fair enough you didn't actually condone OP actions but you sound a little bitter. Like a lot of the commenters on the other thread. No owners want to hear market is down, buyers might have slight upper hand or that they've missed peak.

Maybe you priced yours too low...

BuildingThings · 12/06/2018 18:16

I agree with the majority and would like to add that overpaying for a house that you didn't think was worth the asking price to begin with - is a really bad idea and will most likely make you a candidate for a serious case of buyers remorse.

Meanwhile, the market is getting easier each week and flats/areas that we thought were out of our price range are coming within our reach. I would be patient and wait a few more months for the perfect home rather than regret buying now and living somewhere I didn't love for years. Hope this helps and good luck with the house hunting! Smile

Tit4TatandAllThat · 12/06/2018 18:43

Kamma i got more than I did last year for a sale we had to pull out of so I'm comfortable I didn't price too low or too high. The market isn't crashing, yet Smile

Eppia · 12/06/2018 18:56

Please don’t. It’s a really awful thing to do. We are currently in a chain at the moment (our offer was accepted several weeks ago and surveys and searches are all nearly complete) and I am terrified this will happen to us. We were already gazumped by cash buyers earlier this year, but at least that happened earlier in the process.

We have a time limit to move because of my son’s school and we all love this house so much.

If somebody offered us £25k or more to gazump our buyer (we’re s I wouldn’t even consider it. I don’t care that it’s legal; it’s morally wrong. I know I couldn’t sleep at night if I had a part in it.

Jaxhog · 12/06/2018 21:20

You are not morally wrong to offer. You have no obligation to either parties. The buyer would be morally wrong if they accepted. They have an obligation to their buyer.

mangocoveredlamb · 13/06/2018 07:45

I hope you don’t.
We’re 5 1/2 weeks into the process, but at 3 weeks we’d spent approx £2k in surveys, solicitors etc etc

If we get gazumped, we would be screwed, but so would our buyer and potentially their buyer. It’s a lot of people to put in jeopardy.

Blueisland · 13/06/2018 07:53

Personally I think it’s immoral, but I’m probably in the minority. We were gazumped on a purchase last year. I was pregnant (seller knew this) and we were quite some way through the purchase. It was very distressing as we had to move to interim rental accommodation. The sellers were greedy and did not offer to compensate us for the legal fees we had incurred. We even tried to match the gazumpers but the sellers refused to go with us because the gazumpers were cash rich.

Thankfully the gazumpers later changed their minds and we were able to proceed at the original price. It worked out in the emd, although we had to get out of our rental contract, so it was not without hassle. Thankfully we completed about two weeks before my baby was born.

The conveyancing system in this country really is broken and I did lose faith in the goodness of people.

Loopytiles · 13/06/2018 10:04

The mortgage company may not even approve overpayingz

Mildura · 13/06/2018 10:34

The mortgage company may not even approve overpayingz

The OP says they are cash buyers.

Loopytiles · 13/06/2018 12:10

Ah OK, lucky OP! Envy

Original poster
MeMeMeow85 · 18/06/2018 08:21

Thanks all. Appreciate the advice. We didn’t go back to the EA to gazump. DH reminded me that it happened to us back in 2007 and was really upsetting, so I agree with him that it isn’t a nice thing to do. Also, I realise now that it was just a nice house, but not our forever home etc, so no point getting emotional about it.

Continued doing more viewings last week and we found somewhere that we both love on Saturday!! Excited about this one :)

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