Exchanged. Wake up crying most days. Advice pls.

Ivana_Tinkle

harrup wrote: »

I somewhat disagree with posters suggesting to offer a really low compensation such as 2.5K. To me, that is NOT an adequate compensation for losing a house and reneging on a promise. And this is not an appropriate time for haggling and negotiation. IMO, if you do that you are likely to upset, insult and really infuriate the thwarted buyers.

I agree with this. Obviously it depends to some extent on the value of the house (and how unique it is) but, putting myself in your buyers' shoes, if the vendor of our current place had wanted to pull out after exchange, no matter how sympathetic I might have been, I certainly wouldn't have agreed for 10% of the purchase price. At 20%+fees I'd have thought about it.

I really, really feel for you, but I don't think your buyers are going to agree to pull out unless you offer them a LOT of money. As far as they're concerned, everything's done and dusted, the stress is over, and they've bought their first home. It's going to take a life-changing sum of money to make them give it all up and go back to square one.

I'm concerned that in even going down this road you'll put yourself through a lot of stress. Perhaps it might be better to accept what's more-or-less inevitable and start preparing yourself to leave. I know that isn't what you'll want to hear but I'm not sure people are helping you by telling you this might be resolved for a couple of grand.

cwcw

I would just go through with the sale and rent nearby for a bit, and buy again as soon as possible. Otherwise, you may end up being tens of thousands of pounds worse off. Six months of inconvenience has got to be better than that.

Looking at it from your buyers' point of view, I'd think I'd have won the lottery if you pulled out now. They're living with parents so the only real inconvenience, unless it is a genuinely unique house at a great price, is a few more months with mum and dad, with the reward of £10,000+ to find a bigger house or have a smaller mortgage at a better rate.

poet123

cwcw wrote: »

I would just go through with the sale and rent nearby for a bit, and buy again as soon as possible. Otherwise, you may end up being tens of thousands of pounds worse off. Six months of inconvenience has got to be better than that.

Looking at it from your buyers' point of view, I'd think I'd have won the lottery if you pulled out now. They're living with parents so the only real inconvenience, unless it is a genuinely unique house at a great price, is a few more months with mum and dad, with the reward of £10,000+ to find a bigger house or have a smaller mortgage at a better rate.

It depends on how much you have emotionally invested in the house. Looking back to when we first bought I would have been devastated and then very angry. Now, I can see it more dispassionately, but I certainly wouldn't view it in the way you do.

cwcw

poet123 wrote: »

It depends on how much you have emotionally invested in the house. Looking back to when we first bought I would have been devastated and then very angry. Now, I can see it more dispassionately, but I certainly wouldn't view it in the way you do.

Like I said, unless it was genuinely unique. If I was living with parents, got all my fees and deposit back, and £10,000+ for my troubles, I'd happily accept and put up with my parents for a few more months. Maybe I'm a mercinary, or maybe others would feel the same but just wouldn't like to admit it. It's bricks and mortar at the end if the day. Plenty more fish in the sea, and bigger fish too with another £10k.

FireWyrm

From the buyers point of view, I would be absolutely livid. I doubt I'd let you out of the contract. It's not just money, it's a huge amount of time and effort on their part, not to mention the stress and anxiety. They have got to be thinking that if they accept, they would have to go through the whole thing all over again. I like to think I'm a tough, practical cookie, but after all the effort I out in to buy my current house and three failures along the way...Im damned sure Im not doing that again for many years. I felt so rung out.....

princeofpounds

Yes negotiating a settlement is clearly the first thing to try. Costs plus 2.5k is likely to be too low, but given they are FTBs I think you have a decent chance with a more reasonable offer.

They are likely to have a limited deposit. If they have 10pc and you offer another 10pc it could easily swing their thinking. It would allow them to get a far cheaper mortgage elsewhere or upgrade their search (if they have good salaries but little savings) and so be worth far more to them than the cash value of the settlement itself. Whatever the situation, a settlement is far more likely to be cheaper than waiting to get sued; penalties for failure to complete are nasty.

If they love the house and it is unique, or they are flush with cash, maybe it would take more money than can afford. So you must prepare a plan b to move. It might seem like it, but it is not the end of the world. You can likely preserve much of what you like about your current place and probably add one or two new positive aspects, even if it's not what your original plan was.

Ivana_Tinkle

I think cwcw and I are sort of saying the same thing: the ONLY reason the buyers will agree to let this go is if you offer them a lottery-winning amount of money, and even then it's a long way from guaranteed! They will, of course, be massively emotionally invested and absolutely furious, and it's going to take a lot of money for them to let this go.

FATBALLZ

I agree with some of the others, £2.5k is an insultingly small level of compensation, if this happened on the house I live in (I was a FTB also) I would have expected at least £20k.

flashnazia

If this had happened to me when I was a FTB I would have been chuffed with five grand, even.

(and I was living with the in laws!)

HB58

Whilst I have sympathy with the OP's situation, I don't think it would be helpful to give unfounded reassurance. I always prefer to work on the worst case scenario - anything less is then a bonus!

I would expect the buyers to be furious and in no mind to be sympathetic. It is entirely possible that 'harrup' could be compelled, by the courts, to go ahead with the sale and pay the buyers' costs (court costs and other out-of-pocket expenses). Don't even start to go down this route if you do not have spare cash in the region of at least £10-20,000

I would suggest asking the buyers whether they would be prepared to withdraw and offer a substantial amount of money as a sweetener (all costs - current and future- plus at least another £5000). If they refuse, you need to resign yourself to moving out and renting for a while.