Throw in the microwave?

QTPie

Ok...

Please give me some perpesctive and advice (I am currently going through a personal loss - the past couple of days - in addition to hopefully exchanging our house on Friday... so be VERY gentle with me ).

We are selling to an investment buyer. When he was making his offer, he made a no quibble (yet reasonable) offer which must include all carpets, curtain poles and curtains. Fine: the offer was reasonable and we wouldn't take the curtains anyway... They were made to measure and I doubt we would get any use of them elsewhere.

Heard from the buyer (via both the EA and Solicitor) that he should be able to exchange contracts by the end of the week and wanted to complete by March 31st. I have always said that I want "two to three weeks" between exchange and completion: we got gazundered last time and, therefore, I am not prepared to take the sale seriously (and therefore cannot confirm somewhere to live) until those contracts are exchanged. Exchanging on the 20th March and Completing on 31st March doesn't give much "wriggle room".

To complicate matters, we are hoping to rent this place back from the buyer (he is an investment buyer and intends to rent it out right away - he has previously expressed an interest in renting it back to us). However, we can't count on this happening... since (especially now) he could take advantage of that and we could be in trouble.

Ok, our Solicitor counter suggested that either the 9th or the 14th (basically either side of the Easter Weekend) would be better for use. The 9th would give us just under 3 weeks from exchange to completion.

I was out for a walk when our Solicitor phoned back. The buyer would be "happer with the 9th" and will go ahead with that providing we leave the lightbulbs (fine, I actually - perhaps stupidly - included about £600 of light fittings in the "fixtures and fittings" anyway), the dustbins (fine - who wants to take a stinky plastic dustbin and a recycling box...) and the microwave (?!?).

The microwave is not built in and was specifically excluded from the "fixtures and fittings list". It wasn't a cheap on (about £150) and is 5 years old. I like it and had no plans to get rid of it ("it does very nicely"). Is this normal for buyer to make a last minute demand?

I am guessing that the buyer sees the microwave as a sort of "payment" for a later completion date, BUT all along he has been saying that they would pace the exchange and completion to our schedule... :rolleyes: (although it will still have taken them 5 weeks - as a cash buyer not having a survey - to get to exchange). It feels as though they were tardy getting to exchange, but they still want to complete by the end of the month regardless... and want "payment"/compensation for us to have a more reasonable "just less than 3 weeks" from exchange to completion...

Our solicitor has finished for the day (probably a good thing, I am not in a fit mind at the moment) and I think that I will get husband to phone her tomorrow... but what do you say? I don't particularly want to throw my microwave in for free... I know that I also don't want to "threaten the sale over a microwave" and I know that we will quite possibly end up renting this place back (although I have suddenly felt a shadow of dread across my expectations...).

Remember be gentle with me (why trying to exchange/complete on selling a house at a time of physical and emotional loss is VERY bad timing).

QT

pawpurrs

He sounds unreasonable, and very odd!!!!
However if it came to it I wouldnt lose a sale over a microwave, however why not ask at your local freecycle for one, and leave that instead, how will he remeber what microwave you have?

~craig~_2

I would say let them have it. The cost of a replacement microwave is not a lot compared to the costs of losing the deal.

Besides, microwaves are a lot cheaper now than they were 5 years ago.

poppysarah

How bizarre. Do you have a tenancy ready to sign when you sell to him? I'd be very wary of promising the earth (or a microwave) in expectation of a rental agreement.

GDB2222

Hi. The microwave is really neither here nor there - either for you or your buyer. I wonder if he's just testing you in some way?

You could exchange contracts for the sale and for the new tenancy agreement at the same time. That way, you and your buyer have certainty, and you can also then go with the completion date of 31 March.

Sorry to hear about your loss.

sooz

very odd. But I wouldn't lose a sale because of it. If you do include it, remember to sign that it (along with any other appliances) is 'as seen', & at 5 years old may choose to stop working any minute.

I'm suprised that someone buying a property as an investment would want old appliances. Do you still have the manual? He'll need to provide one for new tenants, & should ideally have it pat tested. It's much easier not to provide one, or buy a new cheap one if new tenants want one.

Don't bother losing a sale over this, or thinking about other 'freebie' you gave him like lights & curtain poles. He is paying you for the property, including these things - & if you had previously agreed to take them out, you'd probably only end up storing them in your new loft for 5 years before throwing them out

silvercar

Sorry for your loss.

You really can't think of jeopardising the sale for a 5 year old microwave.

Argos' most expensive microwave is 87.99!

QTPie

Thanks guys (and for not biting my head off too - I was feeling very strong, but this made me feel very angry: think it proves that I am a lot more fragile than I had thought.... ).

I think I needed a rant and a sympathetic ear and you all gave me that.

I completely agree that it isn't worth loosing a sale over a £150 microwave... but I am really glad that I am the only one he finds his request unreasonable/bizarre (if he had asked for it to be included at the offer stage, I probably would have agreed without too much fuss, but suddenly "demanding" it now just feels very wrong...). It just feels as though "there I have you over a barrel, so i will take your microwave too...!" "...oh and your TV looks nice, maybe that mirror in the living room" (ok, I said I was emotionally a bit loopy )

The appliances are all in good condition and I do have all of the manuals. I had already sorted them all out and filed them in a a nice clear packet folder book for him (explains why the house is immaculate, I always try to do things properly). Would it be awful if I, errrr, mislaid a few? He could probably get them downloaded from somewhere...

I had been advised to wait until immediately after exchange to negotiate a tenancy: to keep the sale and the rental completely seperate... Is that perhaps the wrong way to think about it? Would it be good to get into contact with him now, via the solicitors, and start talking now? I would be happy to complete on the 31st April IF we had a signed tenancy agreement at the same time as exchange of contracts: would it be worth talking about that now?

QT

QTPie

silvercar wrote: »

Sorry for your loss.

You really can't think of jeopardising the sale for a 5 year old microwave.

Argos' most expensive microwave is 87.99!

I know, read my post below yours... it just feels wrong. (probably a lot to do with me feeling very vulnerable at the moment :rolleyes: ).

Which is why my husband will phone the solicitor back tomorrow (and I probably need to be locked at home for a few days... )

QT

sooz

QTPie wrote: »

The appliances are all in good condition and I do have all of the manuals. I had already sorted them all out and filed them in a a nice clear packet folder book for him (explains why the house is immaculate, I always try to do things properly). Would it be awful if I, errrr, mislaid a few? He could probably get them downloaded from somewhere...

unless you have signed anything to say that you have them & will provide them, I'm sure they will get lost in your move. I've never been left appliance instructions in any place I've bought, even when they tried to charge a fortune for the items in the first place. It's a small petty thing to do, but it will make you feel a lot better
You might want to leave blown lightbulbs too

Catblue

Strange.

If you really like your own microwave, can't you just trip down to the charity shop/local Cash Converters and buy a second hand one for a few quid? Then you can leave that one for him.

He still gets a microwave and you get to keep yours.