Buying a repossession - weird clause in contract

neilmk

Hi, things finally got sorted out and we exchanged contracts today.
Basically the seller solicitor has to put this in on the off chance that the people who were repossessed challenge the price that the house was sold for. So by adding this clause they can send a surveyor back to do a valuation at any point over the next couple of years, however they said the chance of this needing to happen is pretty small.

Also with the way the market is changing house prices will be quite different in 2 years so not sure what it will prove anyway.

So we had to accept it or walk away, but at the end of the day all they will need to do is come in and have a quick look round so we can live with that if it happens.

So a big thank you guys for all your help and advice, roll on the 19th january when we take ownership of some shiny keys... :j

Geenie

Glad it got sorted for you Neilmk and all is good.

What I think your thread, along with many others on here throw up, is the unintelligable so called English that legal documents still produce in the 21st century?!!

I can only assume that the continued use of this language is of benefit to lawyers and solicitors, as most of the population don't understand it, and become so scared when reading it, we continue to pay the large fees of the legal profession to tell us something which could have been explained in one sentence.

I think there should be a law that all documents produced now should be stripped of their 19th century way with words, and set out in plain English and with bullit points.

If I was a migraint, I would have a tidy sum spent on providing translators so I understood what was happening in a legal situation......and nothing against migraints, as my mother was one to these shores in the 1940's. Yet the modern English speakers are expected to understand wording produced in Dickensian times, and makes no sense! It all needs a overhaul.

poppysarah

I think there's a problem with any post sale inspection. What if they decide the property was worth more than you paid for it?
If someone's been made bankrupt and has sold their house for less than it's worth there's a risk the transaction can be reversed. If the house is repossessed and sold for less what rules/laws apply.
It's a very cheeky thing to ask for an inspection at any time after you start making improvements, which for most people will be the day they get the keys.

I'd discuss it further with the solicitor about what are the consequences of any visit and whether it's a new thing that's being done by repo companies.

Worst case you do up a house and then it is taken away from you?

I would want a lot more reassurance than "Oh it's a very minor thing and probably won't happen"

neilmk

Surely once the deeds are in our name, mortgage has gone through and we are in possession of the keys there is no come back on us? The seller would be in breach of contract if they tried to reverse things?

I can't see how they could take the house from us even if they do decide it was undersold, surely that would just be a legal case then between the person repossessed and the people who sold his house, not really anything to do with us by that point.

poppysarah

You've got to ask who benefits from a 2 year on viewing and what exactly can they benefit from, and who.

It's so insane imo. They should visit immediately prior to you owning it. Once you own it (as you point out) it's yours, so why should they be allowed to view it.

Can you check with your solicitor - just ask them a few questions - you could allow the clause to be in if the visit is within the first week - but otherwise I would want to know the exact things that can happen to prompt a visit and the consequences.

TighterThanTwoCoatsOfPain

really dont see the beef to be fair... on a normal sale they can go f*ck themselves.. on a repo (where i presume you are saving 10's of thousands??) its not a huge price to pay..

Whats it take? 5-10 mins tops to have a guy wander through the hall and around the garden at a time convienient to you.

Just to put your mind at rest i dont see an issue. (Besides you exchanged so squat all you could do now anyway!)