Is there any inherent problem with buying from divorcing couples?

Jowo_2

Nixer wrote: »

I suspect they'll be waiting a long time before the house increases in value such that it will fund two houses.

But it won't though, will it? The potential increase in the value of their jointly held property which they hope to realise will be wiped out by the fact that the 2 separate properties they wish to buy will increase to a similar degree....

Do they think that their property will zoom up in value while everyone else's remains static? They sound like idiots.

pingu2209

My friend bought her house from a divorsing couple. The husband did the selling and when they completed and moved in they found the wife had taken the fitted bathrooms, kitchen and cooker and integrated appliances, even though all the selling documents said that it would all be left.

My friends took them to court and got the ex married couple vendors to pay for a new kitchen and bathrooms as well as the pain of having to life there with no amenities. The wife apparently was furious but the husband thought it was great as she thought she had one over on him but in the end shot herself in the foot (albeit shot him in the foot also).

lellow_lorry

I have bought from a divorcing couple and sold as a divorcing couple. buying can bring in opportunities of picking up a bargain if they are keen for a quick break. Having seen both sides it can be a problem with irrational reactions from either one of the couple irrespective of cost but a pain to the buyer. simple way to try and cut this out is to set out at the start " any messing around and I walk from the Deal"
it is always a risk but can pay off.....worth paying insurance on this one for if it falls through.

[Deleted User]

Yes, we could see this as a 'bargain' to begin with, but actually we felt that they had massively overvalued the property to begin with. A few alarms bells started ringing when they didn't seem that keen to come back to us...and also the fact the property hasn't had any offers in 6 months (it's a perfectly decent property).

I'm going to go back with a final 'take it or leave it' offer but otherwise will move on. Such a shame as it's a nice house, but they're clearly nuts if they think that waiting is a sensible tactic.

Idonex

Yep. Looks like our third house in a row is now going to fall through due to an 'unresolvable matrimonial dispute'. Which they knew about when they put their house on Market. Really gets on my nerves. If you haven't sorted all these bits and pieces out, then DON'T put your house on the market. Why would you even accept offers and let people pay for surveys etc if you haven't even gone through the task of who gets what from the sale. That's another £1000 down the drain that I could have saved for baby stuff.

Julieg

As a divorced person who's trying to sell the matrimonial home I'd just like to say that surely the problem isn't with 'divorcing couples' as such but with certain individuals. If a person is an awkward bug*er then their marital status isn't going to change that! We have everything in writing through the court stating everything from who we market the house to, to who gets which proportion of the equity of the house so I think it would be hard for us to be awkward to buyers.

I can see that some people can be bitter in a divorce and cause problems but regarding taking things out of the house after putting them down on the list as staying, changing their mind about selling, hanging out for a better price, being slow to get back to you etc can be done by any seller.

DVardysShadow

If the divorcing couple are warring, then losses and damage suffered by the [potential] buyer will be viewed as collateral damage. But for an amicable settlement, I would expect the buyer to be treated properly.

[Deleted User]

They've come back and declined our £360k offer, which we think was spot-on-the money in terms of value. They've confirmed they are going to take the house off the market and sit tight until the market picks up.

For me, it's easy to wash my hands of this. They are lunatics. The property was worth £360k but definitely nothing more - and we weren't prepared to go over that. By sitting tight all they're doing is shooting themselves in the foot as they'll never be able to move. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush and all that.