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Gazumping....

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....does this still go on?

it's just happened to a colleague - she was trying to buy a small house at £7 K under the asking price, then on the day before they were supposed to exchange, the vendor suddenly annonced that they'd had a better offer from someone else. She's still trying to get the house, becasue sh'es ready and the other buyer with more money obviously won't be, but I thought gazumping was something that didn't happen any more?

The vendor isn't using an EA (for which reason, we thought he was adecent chap, but evidently not) but presumably it woudlnt' have made any difference as he would have just instructed them to do it for him - or would they have advised him not to?

I know he's technically doing nothing wrong (only morally!), but as he's moving abroad.....well, I wouldnt' want his karma, would you? the property sharks in Spain probably have an even bigger bite:eek:
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Comments

  • Astaroth
    Astaroth Posts: 5,444 Forumite
    Gazumping and Gazundering both are still very alive and well in England/ Wales
    All posts made are simply my own opinions and are neither professional advice nor the opinions of my employers
    No Advertising or Links in Signatures by Site Rules - MSE Forum Team 2
  • silvercar
    silvercar Posts: 49,523 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Academoney Grad Name Dropper
    We got gazumped to the tune of £35k. They told us they felt they had a moral obligation to stick with us if we would pay the extra £35k! A week later the house they were hoping to buy got taken off the market.
    I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.
  • cattie
    cattie Posts: 8,841 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    I was guzumped by £10,000 on this house. As I'd offered full asking price straight off I felt pretty annoyed at the vendors for putting me in the position where I had to stump up this much more money or lose the house.

    For myself my principles wouldn't allow me to accept a higher offer from another party once I'd agreed a price. If I consider an offer too low then I just don't accept it in the first place.

    Gazumping is alive & kicking alas, many estate agents abhor it but until the government bring in some kind of legislation to stamp it out it will continue to rear it's ugly head.
    The bigger the bargain, the better I feel.

    I should mention that there's only one of me, don't confuse me with others of the same name.
  • dfarry
    dfarry Posts: 940 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Are there any known legal cases where someone who had been gazumped has then been sued for costs etc...

    I'd certainly want something back if someone else had snatched the house I planned to buy out of my hands.
  • silvercar
    silvercar Posts: 49,523 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Academoney Grad Name Dropper
    You can't sue, until you have exchanged contracts you have no rights to a house.
    I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.
  • Astaroth
    Astaroth Posts: 5,444 Forumite
    No more than you can sue if 5 minutes before exchanging your buyer says they want to drop their price by £5k.

    There are a lot of different mentalities in people who are house buying.... to me you arent there to win friends but to make the largest single purchase the average person ever makes. There is only one person to look out for (and yes I would complain if someone did it to me but I would understand their reasonings)
    All posts made are simply my own opinions and are neither professional advice nor the opinions of my employers
    No Advertising or Links in Signatures by Site Rules - MSE Forum Team 2
  • aloiseb
    aloiseb Posts: 701 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    Woudl that be gazundering?
  • Astaroth
    Astaroth Posts: 5,444 Forumite
    yes .
    All posts made are simply my own opinions and are neither professional advice nor the opinions of my employers
    No Advertising or Links in Signatures by Site Rules - MSE Forum Team 2
  • dfarry
    dfarry Posts: 940 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Astaroth wrote:
    No more than you can sue if 5 minutes before exchanging your buyer says they want to drop their price by £5k.

    There are a lot of different mentalities in people who are house buying.... to me you arent there to win friends but to make the largest single purchase the average person ever makes. There is only one person to look out for (and yes I would complain if someone did it to me but I would understand their reasonings)
    Understand their reasonings?How so... sure if there was a valid reason, but what about if they just intended to rip you off to the tune of thousands of pounds? The house market need so much more of a shake up than simply introducing HIPS.
  • Tassotti
    Tassotti Posts: 1,492 Forumite
    Too true..gazzumping, gazundering are a pain in the proverbial. Any suggestions to how improvements can be made?
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