A couple who shocked Location, Location, Location viewers by agreeing to pay £1million for a modest house in the London suburbs actually saw the deal fall through at the last minute, MailOnline can reveal.
Dom Fagan and Arta Obertinca, who are both City-based solicitors, had a whopping £1m budget for their dream home.
They were shown a number of properties on this week’s episode of Channel 4’s home hunting series – but rejected them all on the grounds that they were either too far to commute or required too much work.
Towards the end of the programme, they told presenters Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer that they had found their ideal home on their own in Whetstone, north London and that their offer of £950,000 had been accepted.
And viewers were left with the impression that they would be moving in soon.
Dom Fagan and Arta Obertinca shocked Location, Location, Location viewers by agreeing to pay £1million for a modest house in Whetstone, north London – but the deal fell through
The stylish home which Dom and Arta missed out on is located on a leafy cul de sac and is made up of four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a loft conversion and an 80ft long garden
Dom and Arta, both City-based solicitors, had a whopping £1m budget for their dream home
But MailOnline can reveal that ANOTHER young couple moved in two weeks ago -with the Fagans’ deal apparently having fallen through at the eleventh hour.
The new owner, who did not want to be named, said: ‘We knew that somebody else was close to buying this property, but the contracts were never exchanged, and the deal fell through.
‘We’re very lucky to have got this home, because it’s very beautiful and in a great location.’
His female partner added: ‘One million pounds is not a lot to pay for a house in London, especially in an area like this. We don’t know what happened with the other buyers and don’t know anything about them.
‘And we also didn’t know that our home had featured on Location, Location, Location. We’ll have to watch the programme now!’
The stylish home which Dom and Arta missed out on is located on a leafy cul de sac and is made up of four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a loft conversion and an 80ft long garden.
Arta beamed on the programme: ‘We found a property which we made an offer on and the offer has been accepted. It was a property that was on our shortlist.’
Dom added: ‘It’s been recently modernised and is only a five-minute walk from the tube station.’
Viewers were left aghast at how the couple’s £1 million budget had only bought them a terraced house.
The show’s presenter Phil showed them three and four bedroom semi-detached properties in areas such as St Albans, Radlett and another in Whetstone which required major renovation.
Dom revealed on the programme that they had sold their flat last year and had been renting in Highgate while searching hard for their new home, viewing more than 50 properties
They said they had ‘overpaid’ when buying their first flat four years ago and were now hoping to find a larger home after welcoming their daughter Florence seven months ago
Dom, originally from Liverpool, and Arta, who was raised in London, met at a festival six years ago in Germany
Dom and Arta (pictured with their daughter Florence) were shown a number of properties but rejected them all on the grounds they were too far to commute or required too much work
One viewer wrote: ‘For £1m quid, I would at least expect the house to be detached,’
‘Spending over £900k on a terraced house seems wild. You’d be able to get a 5-bed huge detached in the midlands and still have money to build an extension for that’.
‘Let’s all laugh at london prices.’
Another said: ‘I can’t get passed [sic] that for a £1m the house is not even detached,’ while another commented: ‘A young couple with a million-pound budget looking at semi-detached houses…makes you sick doesn’t it.
‘£1million…London is great but this is utter madness.’
Dom, originally from Liverpool, and Arta, who was raised in London, met at a festival six years ago in Germany.
They said they had ‘overpaid’ when buying their first flat four years ago and were now hoping to find a larger home after welcoming their daughter Florence seven months ago.
They sold their flat last year and had been renting in Highgate while searching hard for their new home, viewing more than 50 properties.
Dom told the programme: ‘I’m always really surprised by how little £1million gets you in this part of London. You need to be earning at least £1.5million to £2million.’
But after beginning their search in St Albans, they soon realised that moving further out into the commuter belt didn’t necessarily bring them more space.
Phil Spencer also took them to view a £1million three-bedroom property in St Albans (pictured)
Viewers were left aghast at how such a huge budget had only bought them a terraced house
The first property had only a 15-minute walk to the train station and boasted bay windows and an open-plan kitchen and dining space.
According to Phil it was a ‘really immaculate finished house’, but at £1million exactly, it was right at the top of their budget and was a similar size to properties they’d seen closer to London.
Phil moved the search more central, looking in Radlett, finding a four-bed home for £950,000, but slightly more run-down despite having more space.
He then demonstrated a house in Whetstone, which needed a ‘bit of life’, and was astonishingly described as a ‘do-er upper’ home, despite the £850,000 asking price.
Ara and Dom had fallen in love with the area however – and it was where they found they home they final opted for, but for unknown reasons they were unable to complete the purchase.
They have been contacted for comment.
