Gazumped - what to do

Section62

Ath_Wat said:

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

...Commissioning builders for quotes this early on is also unusual...

Why did you need builders in so soon?  Were you planning to remodel the house before moving into it?

Absolutely normal in my experience.

Either with a view to getting work done when the property is empty and more convenient for both the trader and buyer, or to get an idea of cost of planned work to make sure the overall package is affordable and/or will provide sufficient uplift in value.

Some people also get a builder to have a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys.

Well, yes, exactly.  Getting builders in for quotes this early could well be saying  to the vendor "I am not actually sure yet if I want to pay what I said I would", so if a better offer comes along, it's one more reason for them  to accept it.

if it's " a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys." then that wouldn't be "for quotes" - quotes implies they have some specific work in mind.

You are making quite a few assumptions there though, or reading things into what the OP said rather than reading what they said.

There's no reason why a builder can't give a property a once over at the same time as looking at it for the purposes of quoting.  The two aren't mutually exclusive.

TheJP

MaryNB said:

YoungBlueEyes said:

When I bought this house, the estate agent refused to mark it as SSTC until they were happy with my proof of funds and ID etc.  Standard procedure they assured me.

The EA I was dealing with wouldn't mark it SSTC until I had my mortgage offer. A very stressful few weeks. 

SSTC doesn't offer any protection at all. It merely states the house for sale has an offer pending. You can still be gazumped right up to the final hour before exchange of contracts.

Ath_Wat

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

...Commissioning builders for quotes this early on is also unusual...

Why did you need builders in so soon?  Were you planning to remodel the house before moving into it?

Absolutely normal in my experience.

Either with a view to getting work done when the property is empty and more convenient for both the trader and buyer, or to get an idea of cost of planned work to make sure the overall package is affordable and/or will provide sufficient uplift in value.

Some people also get a builder to have a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys.

Well, yes, exactly.  Getting builders in for quotes this early could well be saying  to the vendor "I am not actually sure yet if I want to pay what I said I would", so if a better offer comes along, it's one more reason for them  to accept it.

if it's " a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys." then that wouldn't be "for quotes" - quotes implies they have some specific work in mind.

You are making quite a few assumptions there though, or reading things into what the OP said rather than reading what they said.

There's no reason why a builder can't give a property a once over at the same time as looking at it for the purposes of quoting.  The two aren't mutually exclusive.

No, they could have been giving it a once over as well as quoting, but the fact remains, they are quoting.  Whatever they might be doing as well is irrelevant.

And if I am selling a house and someone in the week after making an offer wants to get quotes for specific work, I am definitely going to think that those quotes are going to have a big effect on whether their offer stands.  That's what a lot of people will read in to such behaviour.  They won't stand on a treestump and declare that must be what is happening, but it will factor into their decision making when they have a decision to make.

Exodi

I'm in disbelief about how petty so many forumites seem to be.

Those advising the OP to 'make a high offer then pull out in a couple of weeks to spite him', do you lot have nothing better to do, I mean really?

His offer was accepted last week and I reckon it's only because the OP has used the word 'gazumped' in the title that people are getting so riled up. Normally in these circumstances people would say 'getting outbid is part of buying a house', but for some reason in this thread it's all 'burn the house down and murder his children, he must pay'.

Bizarre.

Section62

Ath_Wat said:

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

...Commissioning builders for quotes this early on is also unusual...

Why did you need builders in so soon?  Were you planning to remodel the house before moving into it?

Absolutely normal in my experience.

Either with a view to getting work done when the property is empty and more convenient for both the trader and buyer, or to get an idea of cost of planned work to make sure the overall package is affordable and/or will provide sufficient uplift in value.

Some people also get a builder to have a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys.

Well, yes, exactly.  Getting builders in for quotes this early could well be saying  to the vendor "I am not actually sure yet if I want to pay what I said I would", so if a better offer comes along, it's one more reason for them  to accept it.

if it's " a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys." then that wouldn't be "for quotes" - quotes implies they have some specific work in mind.

You are making quite a few assumptions there though, or reading things into what the OP said rather than reading what they said.

There's no reason why a builder can't give a property a once over at the same time as looking at it for the purposes of quoting.  The two aren't mutually exclusive.

No, they could have been giving it a once over as well as quoting, but the fact remains, they are quoting.  Whatever they might be doing as well is irrelevant.

I'm really not sure what you are trying to argue now. 

You said "then that wouldn't be 'for quotes'" - as if the two are mutually exclusive. They aren't, which your "as well as" now appears to confirm.

Ath_Wat said:

And if I am selling a house and someone in the week after making an offer wants to get quotes for specific work, I am definitely going to think that those quotes are going to have a big effect on whether their offer stands.  That's what a lot of people will read in to such behaviour.  They won't stand on a treestump and declare that must be what is happening, but it will factor into their decision making when they have a decision to make.

That's you though.  Is there evidence the OP's potential vendor thinks the same way?  Do we know what the 'quotes' are for?  Maybe it is work the vendor knows needs doing anyway?

What you said previously was "Commissioning builders for quotes this early on is also unusual".

I'm just saying my experience is different.  I think a lot of other people would have similar experience.

Woolsery

We've had a builder in to view all the houses we've bought....

....but then both our parents were builders, so it would be odd if we didn't!

snowqueen555

I'd leave it to be honest but that is just me, it's one of those things where there isn't a set right answer.

It's all well and good saying nothing is binding until exchange of contracts, but the buyer has to invest a lot of time of £ to get any anywhere. I think the system they have in Scotland should be the same here. Once an offer is accepted it should be binding to some degree, and if either party pulls out they must pay a nominal fee or whatever it's called.

Ath_Wat

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

Section62 said:

Ath_Wat said:

...Commissioning builders for quotes this early on is also unusual...

Why did you need builders in so soon?  Were you planning to remodel the house before moving into it?

Absolutely normal in my experience.

Either with a view to getting work done when the property is empty and more convenient for both the trader and buyer, or to get an idea of cost of planned work to make sure the overall package is affordable and/or will provide sufficient uplift in value.

Some people also get a builder to have a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys.

Well, yes, exactly.  Getting builders in for quotes this early could well be saying  to the vendor "I am not actually sure yet if I want to pay what I said I would", so if a better offer comes along, it's one more reason for them  to accept it.

if it's " a look round in lieu of getting more detailed surveys." then that wouldn't be "for quotes" - quotes implies they have some specific work in mind.

You are making quite a few assumptions there though, or reading things into what the OP said rather than reading what they said.

There's no reason why a builder can't give a property a once over at the same time as looking at it for the purposes of quoting.  The two aren't mutually exclusive.

No, they could have been giving it a once over as well as quoting, but the fact remains, they are quoting.  Whatever they might be doing as well is irrelevant.

I'm really not sure what you are trying to argue now. 

You said "then that wouldn't be 'for quotes'" - as if the two are mutually exclusive. They aren't, which your "as well as" now appears to confirm.

Ath_Wat said:

And if I am selling a house and someone in the week after making an offer wants to get quotes for specific work, I am definitely going to think that those quotes are going to have a big effect on whether their offer stands.  That's what a lot of people will read in to such behaviour.  They won't stand on a treestump and declare that must be what is happening, but it will factor into their decision making when they have a decision to make.

That's you though.  Is there evidence the OP's potential vendor thinks the same way?  Do we know what the 'quotes' are for?  Maybe it is work the vendor knows needs doing anyway?

What you said previously was "Commissioning builders for quotes this early on is also unusual".

I'm just saying my experience is different.  I think a lot of other people would have similar experience.

I am not sure why you think I've said they are exclusive - the point is if they come round for quotes they are coming round for quotes, whether they do other things at the same time is irrelevant.  If you say "for quotes" they are not coming round just to do other things and not quote.

It's not just me, it's me and many other people.  Of course I don't know if the vendor is one such person.  But they might be and therefore the fact a builder came round for quotes might have been part of the reason they went with the other offer, which maybe wasn't based on having work done at a cost that hadn't been established.

And I do think getting a builder round for quotes in the first week is unusual unless you are unsure about something and want to check it before you go too far down the line - which is the whole point.  If you are going to buy the house and just want to find out how much an extension might cost in  the future, there is no mad rush.  If you want a builder in in the first week, your offer looks less firm to me and lots of other people and a firmer, let alone higher one, not dependent on getting work done at unknown cost might seem more attractive.  It might not look that way to you, but that doesn't matter - as long as there are people who it does look like that to, it's as well to be aware of it.

I don't think I can be any more clear.

Ath_Wat

Woolsery said:

We've had a builder in to view all the houses we've bought....

....but then both our parents were builders, so it would be odd if we didn't!

There's a difference between getting someone in to check it over, not expecting anything to be wrong, and getting a builder in to give you quotes on specific work. If you do the latter within a week it can appear  to the vendor like your offer is based on being able to do that work for a certain price, and if you can't, you are likely to pull out.  In the former case, everyone hopes the builder in question will just say everything is fine.

Zerforax

Exodi said:

I'm in disbelief about how petty so many forumites seem to be.

Those advising the OP to 'make a high offer then pull out in a couple of weeks to spite him', do you lot have nothing better to do, I mean really?

His offer was accepted last week and I reckon it's only because the OP has used the word 'gazumped' in the title that people are getting so riled up. Normally in these circumstances people would say 'getting outbid is part of buying a house', but for some reason in this thread it's all 'burn the house down and murder his children, he must pay'.

Bizarre.

Buying a house is very emotional for most people. I think if the OP had been outbid during the negotiation process, they wouldn't have batted an eyelid about it but it's when it happens after an offer has been accepted that it's a bit galling. 

Agree that it's been done relatively early in the process (a week after) and the house had been on the market for a long time so perhaps should be less of a surprise.