If you’re buying a home, you might be affected by something known as ‘gazanging’. Let’s take a look at what happens when a buyer is gazanged, why it happens, and the steps you can take to avoid it.
What is gazanging?
‘Gazanging’ is when someone has agreed to sell you their property, but during the conveyancing process, they decide not to sell anymore, which results in the sale falling through.
Gazanging is different to gazundering and gazumping. Gazundering is when a buyer drops their offer before exchange of contracts. Whereas gazumping is when the seller accepts a higher offer from someone else after they’ve already agreed to sell to the original buyer.
Why does gazanging happen?
There are many reasons why a sale might fall through due to gazanging. Usually, it’s to do with the seller’s circumstances changing. For example, a family bereavement, redundancy, or separation can lead to the seller pulling out of the sale. Another common reason is that the seller has lost the property they were purchasing. This could be as a result of them being gazundered.
Sometimes, there is no clear reason for a seller pulling out. Until the exchange of contracts, both parties can pull out of the sale for any reason without legal repercussions.
Related: At what stages can a house sale fall through?
How gazanging affects homebuyers
For buyers, gazanging can be disappointing, expensive, and time-consuming. Depending on how late in the process your seller decides to pull out, you might have already spent money on a survey, legal fees and other non-refundable expenses. Furthermore, you might’ve already sold your own home before being gazanged, which can lead to all kinds of chain-related issues.
Legal aspects of gazanging
Unfortunately, gazanging is not illegal. This is because the sale is not legally binding until the exchange of contracts, and therefore the seller has the right to pull out at any time before this point.
Steps to avoid gazanging
Preparation
Some sellers need to move quickly due to the nature of their chain, so you could reduce the risk of gazanging by being well-prepared for your sale. An example of this could be getting a mortgage agreement in principle. This will better position you to exchange contracts faster, as you won’t have to worry about your mortgage application being rejected.
It also helps to have a conveyancer lined up and a set target date to move before you make an offer on a property.
Related: Buying position explained
Submit your best offer
If a seller feels that you have offered a fair and realistic price for their home, they may be more inclined to proceed with the sale without second-guessing it. This is why you should go with your best offer. Doing so can mark you as a serious buyer while also ensuring that there is a good offer at stake for the seller.
Ask the seller to take the property off the market
You can ask your seller to take the property off the market once your offer is accepted. But they don’t have to agree to this.
When an offer is accepted on a property, it will then be listed online as ‘Sold Subject to Contract (SSTC)’. This means other offers can still come in at any time before exchange of contracts.
If your seller does agree to taking the property off the market, this could speed up your sale and therefore reduce your risk of being gazanged.
Related: What does SSTC mean?
Effective communication
The best way to push your sale through to completion is to be proactive and an effective communicator. Some sales fall through simply due to a breakdown in communication. So, make sure to keep your seller in the loop.
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