The property market can be a tough one to traverse. Offers being made that turn into nothing. Appointments being made that turn into no shows. Corners being cut to save a few pounds and jargon being thrown at you that means you leave more confused than you started.

Chipping is the latest term to be bandied about in the world of property and it probably happens more often than you think. Albeit under another name.

What is chipping and why is it the new gazundering?

Put simply, chipping is the same as gazundering. It means all is good with your house sale then at the last minute, the buying party decide to lower their offer. Significantly. This puts the seller in an awkward position. Do they accept this new lower offer on the house? Or do they, instead restart the expensive sales process again.

Quite often, this makes the wriggle room for the seller, very small. With the potential buyer citing reasons that are mostly unfounded or at the least difficult to prove. The new offer, potentially thousands of pounds lower, ends up representing an unfair value of the house.

This last-minute attempt to shave thousands off the agreed price causes untold misery for house sellers and over the years it has become more prevalent in the industry.

Gazumping and gazundering

Both gazumping and gazundering have caused those involved in property transactions lots of unnecessary worry over recent years. Having the dream property snatched away at the last minute as the price is drastically increased (gazumping). Or having the bid on your house dramatically slashed last minute (gazundering). It is little wonder there are claims for it to be made illegal.

Unfortunately, this immoral action has the added impact of not only affecting the selling or buying party. It also halts the whole chain as various links come loose and fall away. With nothing to link them together anymore, the property prospects for more than just one household are disrupted. Potentially ruined.

Is gazundering illegal?

Strangely it is not. And to be honest, it should be. However, where some people gazunder for reasons of greed, others do it claiming something may have arisen that leads them to believe the house is now worth less. They claim something found in the survey for example.

Although it is commonly seen among estate agents that people do know the difference between a gazunder and renegotiation.

A renegotiation would be where something credible has been found in any survey. A gazunder is a cheeky bid to snatch a huge last-minute reduction.

A prime example would be, an old house, maybe from the late 1800’s. It is unlikely its fully damp proof. Someone looking to chip you would then offer less blaming the damp for the reason. Although when researching the house and viewing the house, a prospective buyer would have mentioned it at the time. Not immediately before a potential sale.

What can you do when a buyer tries to gazunder?

Unfortunately, this is down to you. You could take the offer, knowing it is much lower than what you wanted. Or you could stand your ground, not accepting a penny less than the asking price. This may cost you more as you start the process again. Will you be out of pocket more than the value of money lost through accepting their offer? If not, then stand firm!

 Many estate agents really dislike the culture of gazundering. A few years back, the, ThisIsMoney.co.uk site advised people to stay strong. “When the estate agent calls, informing you the client wishes to renegotiate, reply with; “Fine, I’ll renegotiate. The house is now £40,000 more.”

If they were a serious buyer trying their luck, they may realise they have met their match. “

An alternative would be to speak to cash house buyers. With no fear of gazundering and a fully transparent service, you sell your house fast and worry free. We buy any house at Gaffsy so contact us today and avoid the risk of gazundering.