Ruth Bloomfield

Confessions of a ‘gazunderer’

That's a home-buyer who slashes their offer at the 11th hour – and gets away with it

  • From Spectator Life
[Alamy]

‘John’ has a dirty little secret – one so shameful that he has insisted on anonymity in order to tell his story. Last year, while in the process of buying a three-bedroom family house in Whitchurch, Hampshire, the 42-year-old office worker committed an act which, while perfectly legal, could kindly be described as ruthless.

‘We made an offer for the house, a bit below the asking price, and it was accepted,’ explains John. ‘But over the weeks that followed we started to have second thoughts. A few friends and family members were surprised at how much we were paying for the property.

‘It got to the point where I was hoping the survey would show something bad, so we could renegotiate, but it didn’t.

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