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Original poster

Honest opinions please

25 replies

Ladyof · 29/01/2022 17:41

So basically we put our house up for sale in Sept 2020, it sold in Dec. It sold for 325k (valued at 330k) we went for several houses but got outbid etc and finally had an offer accepted on 1 in July 2021 for 445k (up for that price) it was top end valuation buy our street has increased so much since we accepted our offer.

Our buyer has been so patient waiting all this time, partly they know they are getting a bargain and in the last month 2 houses have sold on my St for 365 and 370k so 40 and 45k more than ours and we have a family room extension which the others don't.

So in short we sold ours undervalue and bought top end of value. We want to extend the new one so the extra money would really help but I feel so bad on the buyer.

Any ideas, would you just suck it up and try not to give it any thought. I am gutted as we have sent so much on our house, it is literally done to a high spec from top to bottom.

Just interested to know your thoughts as I keep thinking about it and feeling I've really made a bad decision.

Thanks

OP posts:

Londongent · 29/01/2022 18:08

Not sure there is much you can do. You can ask your buyers for more money given the increases in price on your road, but they will likely say no. You could re-market your house, but will your vendors wait for your house to sell again? I think you have to suck this up if the house you are buying is the one you want.
Has that not also gone up in value since you agreed a price? Can you get similar for the same price now?

Bing42 · 29/01/2022 18:14

Honestly, as someone who is in your buyer’s position and has been waiting patiently for the seller to find somewhere for what feels like an eternity, I would be absolutely gutted if you did that to me. Especially if they’ve been waiting since December 2020.

YellowLemonz · 29/01/2022 18:16

@Bing42

I'd feel the same. Your very lucky your buyer has stuck around this long tbh. Not many would. I wouldn't rock the boat and just move on.

RedBonnet · 29/01/2022 18:21

It wasn't undervalued when you sold it! Hardly your buyers fault that prices have gone up since then.

Morally it would wrong to dump them for more money 😒

LakeShoreD · 29/01/2022 18:21

If the offer was too low you didn’t have to accept it and you’ve been lucky not to lose your buyer whilst you took your time finding a new house. I would hope that they’d tell you where to shove it if you tried this, because it’s really greedy and horrible. But if you really think you could get another buyer willing to pay more and ready to proceed quickly that easily, and not lose the new house in the process then crack on. Big big risk though.

Original poster

Ladyof · 29/01/2022 18:22

This is what I am thinking, i just have to forget about it as I don't want to be unfair to buyer. I am just totally gutted as that money would help with getting the new house to what we need.

We are buying a smaller house than we are selling but better as in its detached and a better garden.

OP posts:

Idontgiveagriffindamn · 29/01/2022 18:26

I think you have to be pragmatic about it.
You could put it back on the market for more and everything is ok. Or it could go back on the market and sell for me then the sale could break down and you lose your purchase.

Mizydoscape · 29/01/2022 18:36

It depends on a few things really. Whether you think you'd lose your onward purchase if you lost your buyers and how much that would matter to you.

You can always try asking your buyers for more, however if they say no then your options are to suck it up or go back on the market.

Do you/your agent think you could resell quickly?

While it would be a shitty thing to do morally, 45k is a lot of money and could make a big difference to you in your onward purchase. Could it give you more purchasing power if you lost your current onward?

Yes your buyers have been very patient but you don't know them and it's a business transaction at the end of the day.

FindmeuptheFarawaytree · 29/01/2022 18:47

I would ask myself how much I loved the house I was buying and whether I was willing to risk losing it for the sake of the difference. Only you know how much you want the house you've offered on.

Original poster

Ladyof · 29/01/2022 22:22

I think that is what is making it so hard, although we really like the house and it has potential it isn't what we set out to buy. We wanted a 4 bed with utility and loo, but it doesn't have that.

The worse thing we did was accept the offer as we felt under pressure to find something then and we offered on so many houses as I wanted to find something quick for the sellers and we couldn't go into rented.

OP posts:

CorsicaDreaming · 30/01/2022 00:19

You've got to be sure the house you are buying is the right house. You don't seem sure on that and I wonder if this is actually the most important factor here. Don't feel pressured into continuing the purchase if the new house isn't right for you.

Eastie77Returns · 30/01/2022 10:51

To give some input from a buyers perspective, I had an offer accepted on a house last year. The vendor then decided the house was worth substantially more (based on another house sale on the street) and withdrew in order to list with another Estate Agent for £xxxk more. I was devastated (not guilt tripping you, just my honest experience). Anyway, the vendor was unsuccessful and ended up coming back to me and accepting my original offer. Fortunately for her I hadn’t found anywhere else in the interim. It did leave a very sour taste I have to say.

If you are confident you can sell at the higher price and you need the money for the new house then I guess it’s a risk you can take. Awful for your buyer but that’s life. The house buying process in this country is awful. I’m shocked they have waited since Dec 2020. However as a PP mentioned, you don’t sound convinced about the new house?

NotNowAlan · 30/01/2022 10:58

Going against the grain here, but the house you're buying isn't what you want, so you're already a bit meh about it. I would remove your house from the market and reassess. There's really zero point in selling, particularly under current market value, just so you don't upset your buyer. Selling low and buying high for a house you're not excited about is daft.

LemonSwan · 30/01/2022 11:00

This is another reason (of endless reasons) why I think the ladder should work the other way around.

10/20% move in price is always going to be more loss the higher you move up the market, and its also more difficult to find a house.

RandomMess · 30/01/2022 11:01

Don't move to a house you don't want.

Take yours off the market and start again. You would be crazy to go ahead.

Sadly it's not nice for your buyers but it's a business decision.

MrsTrumpton · 30/01/2022 11:06

@NotNowAlan

This is really good advice and what I would do. Gutted though your buyer will be, you can't just buy a house that doesn't fit what you want because you don't want to let a stranger down! Take yours off the market, give it a few months, then re-sell and look for your dream home.

LawnFever · 30/01/2022 11:07

You could ask for more money, put your house back on the market and end up with no buyer whatsoever.

You’re lucky they’ve waited this long and not found something else, why has it taken quite so long?

If you’re set on asking for more be prepared for them to say flat no, you’ve then got no buyer, and might lose the one you want to buy.

If you’re prepared to take that risk and start again from scratch, you could end up with an extra £45k in your budget that would stretch further on your new house, but you might still not have moved in another 18months - 2 years, so it’s a risk.

Starseeking · 30/01/2022 11:12

I am in your buyers position, having waited 7 months since July 2021 for my purchase to complete.

Your buyer has been waiting for you for over a year in good faith, and you should honour the agreement you made, albeit it's not binding until you exchange.

Be honest with yourself OP, you just want the extra money that your neighbours have got; you sold at the market price at the time your house was marketed.

The market price now may be different, but if your sale had already completed, there'd be nothing you could do about it.

Starseeking · 30/01/2022 11:14

P. S. If my vendor asked me for £45k more I would say no, as I haven't got it! They'd have to put the house back on the market and start the whole process again.

NovaSq · 30/01/2022 13:02

Big risk though, are you prepared for that. How much do you want your purchase?

In my thinking the danger is, you ask for more money for yours and lose your sale.
You put your house on for more and wait...and in the meantime the owners of the house you want to buy also reconsider and put their price up too.
You might not gain anything financially and might even lose out (bigger price gain on the house you are buying than the one you are selling, survey/mortgage/legal fees).

Daisydoesnt · 30/01/2022 14:07

*Don't move to a house you don't want.

Take yours off the market and start again. You would be crazy to go ahead.

Sadly it's not nice for your buyers but it's a business decision*

This!
Tell your EA that you have decided not to proceed with either your sale or purchase, and that you are going to wait for the market to refresh. That you may start looking again in the spring (when there will be more on the market). Your vendors may read between the lines and ask what they can do to keep the sale on track; I would if I was in their shoes, because they must know if they were looking for your house now they'd have to pay £45k more for it.

It's crazy to go ahead as is.

Rosebuud · 30/01/2022 14:10

The thing is you sold it for its value at the time, it’s awful to then make them wait so long, then when the market increases in this time try to take them for more money. If you’d completed at the time this wouldn’t have been an issue. Morally the increase in value isn’t yours. Legally it is. I couldn’t do this to them but we are all different.

Didiusfalco · 30/01/2022 14:15

Oh this happened to us. We sold, then our vendors pulled out at the point of sale and we had to find another house several months later when the price had risen. We didn’t renegotiate, because our purchasers hadn’t done anything wrong and were very patient, but they did get a bargain and I try not to give it too much thought 😬

ChateauMargaux · 30/01/2022 14:24

How much has the house you offered on 6 months ago, changed in valuation?

What else is around for your to buy?

You are selling a house that you clearly love and have put a lot of money into.. but your high spec might not be to other peoples taste and people do want to put their own personality into their home so while you value what you have done.. it might not be worth as much to other people.

Buying and selling is so so difficult and a huge proportion of people end up feeling that they have under sold and over paid….

Take a deep breath and long hard look at what you want, what you have and how to realistically get from one to the other.

sarahc336 · 30/01/2022 14:29

We're in the same position as sellers but our buyers have waited so long I personally wouldn't do that to them. Our house will have gone up in value but I feel it's a tad cheeky to ask for more money and I feel it might too then over the edge and they might pull out. I wouldn't rock the boat so to say as if they pull out you'll loose your home you've finally managed to get accepted on. I think we all know it's hard to have an after accepted at the moment with the level of competition . I'd sit tight and just suck it up op xx

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