Pulling out of buying a property - do I owe legal fees to my solicitor?

thesaver79

Hi All,

I'm in the process of buying a property. Conveyancing is well under way, but contracts haven't been exchanged yet.

If I decided to pull out now (the main reason is that some appliances have been replaced with cheaper ones after the offer was accepted), I understand that I would definitely need to pay for the survey that has been already carried out, but what about the legal fees due to my solicitor? I would imagined I would still owe something to them, even if I'm pulling out for a "valid" reason. How would that be quantified?

Yorkie1

Yes, you would be required to pay for any disbursements (searches etc) and for the work which your conveyancer has already done - unless you had a no transaction, no fee deal.

The solicitor will probably have a charge-out rate which may be applied, unless other basis for charging was set out in the initial instructions letter which you would have received from the solicitor.

more_money_for_me

The solicitor will be able to tell you what you owe. We had a chain collapse which meant pulling out of a purchase and sale. As we were nearly to exchange, the money owed was quite significant, something like £1000, we talked to them about it and did get a reduction on the basis that we would likely use them again.

societys_child

You're pulling out of a house purchase because some appliances have been replaced with cheaper ones?

Gonzo33

You need to speak to your solicitor and ask. I expect you will be charged for all work completed up until now.

On a separate note is it worth pulling out because appliances have been changed, or would it be better in the long run to negotiate the price down?

thesaver79

Gonzo33 wrote: »

You need to speak to your solicitor and ask. I expect you will be charged for all work completed up until now.

On a separate note is it worth pulling out because appliances have been changed, or would it be better in the long run to negotiate the price down?

Thank you all for your answers.

Obviously the decision to pull out or not would depend on the difference in cost of having to pay for all the fees owed and the value lost because of the appliances being replaced. We've already attempted to negotiate the price down, but with no luck so far.

thesaver79

I would like to add that the problem is not just in the cost of the appliances only.

The main problem is that one of the heaters used to be a gas heater and has now been replaced with a (much cheaper) electric one. Consequently, this is going to have a major impact on my bills. At the end of the day the flat has different characteristics from the one I made an offer on.

If I were able to prove the above, would there be any ground to make the vendor pay for (at least part of) the expenses?

Tiddlywinks

Why would you think that your solicitor will have worked for free?

jbainbridge

I still don't understand what has happened. Is it a new build where there had been a change from the original spec?

G_M

Fittings etc are negotiable. If you agreed a price based on xyz fittings and now it is abc, then re-negotiate.

But unfortunately if the seller refuses to negotiate you have a choice:
pull out or buy as being sold.

I don't really see how "the flat has different characteristics from the one I made an offer on." It has a different heater and different washing machine (or whatever).

The flat is the same.

In the scale of things, the cost of putting in a better washing machine, or changing the fire back, is minimal.

If you are stretching your finances so much that you can't afford these, are you sure you should be buying?

DVardysShadow

Of course the solicitor needs to be paid. My biggest concern for your situation is that when you do pull out, the vendors are very likely to cave in and accede to your demands - but then attempt to take the appliances anyway.