Just got gazumped :(

UnderOffer

We haven't yet incurred any conveyancing fees, that's fair, but we had to pull our bids on a couple of other properties (after the offer got accepted) and also handed in a notice on the rental we're currently in. All-in-all, we're not even back to square one, we're much worse off than we were (not accounting for all the time spent and the emotional rollercoaster)

That seems way too early, it could have taken months to get to exchange. Have you now revoked your notice? 

Slithery

14sprocket said:
We haven't yet incurred any conveyancing fees, that's fair, but we had to pull our bids on a couple of other properties (after the offer got accepted) and also handed in a notice on the rental we're currently in. All-in-all, we're not even back to square one, we're much worse off than we were (not accounting for all the time spent and the emotional rollercoaster)

It's always a terrible idea to hand in notice on your rental before exchange, let alone before any of the conveyancing work has started. How do you have any idea how long the purchase will take?

14sprocket

Slithery said:

14sprocket said:
We haven't yet incurred any conveyancing fees, that's fair, but we had to pull our bids on a couple of other properties (after the offer got accepted) and also handed in a notice on the rental we're currently in. All-in-all, we're not even back to square one, we're much worse off than we were (not accounting for all the time spent and the emotional rollercoaster)

It's always a terrible idea to hand in notice on your rental before exchange, let alone before any of the conveyancing work has started. How do you have any idea how long the purchase will take?

I managed to cancel the notice and the rental landlord was understanding, but I was just making the point that you can't say "no harm is done" by gazumping simply because we haven't yet paid conveyancing/survey fees... You mess with people really big time, and it's not all just about money

SaintJudy

One thing I've noticed in replies to threads like this where people state their very similar experiences, is that they never say 'so we lost the house and never found anything we liked as much, so consequently stayed put in a house we no longer loved / bought something we didn't like as much and have thought about the house we lost ever since', they always, always say 'and then something much better came along and we've ended up in a house that we much prefer because it / is in a better area / is bigger / has a better garden / layout etc etc' 

ZappyBoy

FTB here, a house is only worth as much as you are willing to pay for it. We set a maximum limit and stuck to it for our purchase, regardless of how much we liked the house.  It's horrible gazumping and England should follow the Scottish model, but take it as a sign that the house for you is still out there and this one isn't it. Best of luck in your continued search

MalMonroe

I'm also sorry this happened. It happened to us once but we weren't gazumped, just as we were about to exchange the seller wrote (didn't even have the courtesy to come and see us in person) a letter to say she had changed her mind and wasn't moving after all, sorry.

We DID find a better home in a better area three months later but we had set our hearts on that little home. The new one needed a lot of work doing to it. But it turned out to be a better bargain in the end as when we sold it we made more than we would have done with the other property. 

It's devastating when it happens but look on it as a learning curve and try to be comforted by the fact that many others have been in a very similar position. Most of us went on to live in considerably better properties. Just give yourselves some time to recover before you start trying again. 

I agree with what SaintJudy above has said. Something better WILL come along, we all know it!  It just doesn't seem like that right now.   

Davesnave

SaintJudy said:

One thing I've noticed in replies to threads like this where people state their very similar experiences, is that they never say 'so we lost the house and never found anything we liked as much, so consequently stayed put in a house we no longer loved / bought something we didn't like as much and have thought about the house we lost ever since', they always, always say 'and then something much better came along and we've ended up in a house that we much prefer because it / is in a better area / is bigger / has a better garden / layout etc etc' 

 Maybe they keep quiet if things didn't go the way they wished?

Yes, people lose money and have their emotions severely tested in property transactions, but that's something most of us accept may happen, knowing around 30% of them fall through.

When we lost 3 sales in a row in the last recession it was emotionally draining, but we took it as a sign to alter our expectations and behaviour, so when the 4th sale went through, we rented rather than be pressured into choosing something we might regret.

Did it work? I wish I could say 'Yes' but we missed offering on a property I'd have preferred to the one we bought, thanks to assisting with a family crisis elsewhere. That's life. We may not have secured it anyway. At least the one we have has proved a great investment and people constantly say how lucky we are to live here, though I'm not sure how their luck assessment is carried out!

In the final analysis no one here has the first idea which outcome in any attempted transaction would be 'best.' We have friends who were probably delighted when they secured their large house in a private position with fabulous open views, but if they hadn't, it's very likely their daughter would still be alive today.

It certainly isn't all about the money, but none of us knows the future, fortunately.

14sprocket

SaintJudy said:

One thing I've noticed in replies to threads like this where people state their very similar experiences, is that they never say 'so we lost the house and never found anything we liked as much, so consequently stayed put in a house we no longer loved / bought something we didn't like as much and have thought about the house we lost ever since', they always, always say 'and then something much better came along and we've ended up in a house that we much prefer because it / is in a better area / is bigger / has a better garden / layout etc etc' 

I think it also talks a lot about human nature and psyche - most people usually appreciate what they have and don't carry a chip on their shoulder... Live in the present, enjoy it and don't worry about how things could have panned out otherwise from some events in the past

sheramber

14sprocket said:

dimbo61 said:

Far too many house purchases are falling through and costing thousands in fees, surveys etc

Maybe something the government, legal system needs to look at.

Don't need to look far - in Scotland home sales are binding at the offer stage, so no room to gazump

Not so. Sale is not final until missive is signed. Until then either party can back out.
But offers in Scotland have an entry date stated- all be it it may be 'by mutual agreement'.
Enrtry  can be  in 4-6 weeks time and solicitors have to meet that deadline. 
 it does mean  coordinating sale and  purchase in a restricted time scale.
I moved last year. My buyer was in rented so asked for entry to coincide with his rental finishing in 6 weeks. The   seller  of the house I bought had an offer to buy accepted with entry in 4 weeks and I won the bidding because I was able to meet that entry date. 

GixerKate

It sucks when this happens but this resides with the vendor rather than the EA.  We were on the other side of this.  When we were selling our house last year we had 3 viewings within 1 weekend and had two offers.  We thought long and hard and went with the offer that was slightly lower but came from a couple who seemed more reliable and wanting to move quickly (very important for us as our first two buyers dropped out leaving us hanging).  When we accepted the offer the other buyer immediately upped their offer and then we got a third offer from the other viewing that was higher again!!  We did discuss taking one of the other others but at the end of the day we didn't as we had already accepted the original offer.  All the way through the EA left the decision to us to make.