Acceptable defects when selling

gmd06

Hi,

In the process of selling the house at the moment. We're at the concluding missives stage and the sale will go through in a month.

I believe, although I could be wrong, that the buyer has 48 hours to claim for any faults/defects with the property. I was wondering what kind of defects could be claimed for. We've just had the central heating checked and the boiler serviced. The roof and guttering is all sound and has a guarantee. The property is 100 years old so defects will occur.

My concern is things like the lighting inside. Our living room dimmer is a bit temperamental. It works but it dims on it's own. The down lighters in the kitchen need the bulbs changing regularly. Probably more often than normal. The house could probably do with rewiring. The shed door needs adjusted as it doesn't shut properly. The bath plug mechanism is broken and doesn't pop up when you turn the release.

The guy buying the house is a lawyer who specialises in conveyancing. Is he likely to ask us to fix these defects or are these things acceptable when selling property?

Structurally the property is sound. What's the law here? I'm in Scotland btw. Not sure if it's different.

PasturesNew

gmd06 wrote: »

lighting .... dims on it's own.
need the bulbs changing regularly. Probably more often than normal.
could probably do with rewiring.
shed door needs adjusted as it doesn't shut properly.
bath plug mechanism is broken and doesn't pop up when you turn the release.

I'd look at hiring an electrician to have a quick look at the dimmer. I'd not worry about the bulbs.
Rewiring is probably something to be expected from most older houses
Shed door - I'd get a local handyman to quickly fix that and the plug mechanism.

For about £50-100 you can sleep easier..... which is priceless.

gmd06

PasturesNew wrote: »

I'd look at hiring an electrician to have a quick look at the dimmer. I'd not worry about the bulbs.
Rewiring is probably something to be expected from most older houses
Shed door - I'd get a local handyman to quickly fix that and the plug mechanism.

For about £50-100 you can sleep easier..... which is priceless.

Thanks for reply. These are just some of the little niggly defects that the house has. I suppose I notice them as I live here. Do you think the buyer could insist I fix these? I know with new houses you get a "snagging list" and the builder needs to rectify.

StevenMarks

Caveat emptor.


They bought the house on the condition it was in.

davidmcn

gmd06 wrote: »

In the process of selling the house at the moment. We're at the concluding missives stage and the sale will go through in a month.

I believe, although I could be wrong, that the buyer has 48 hours to claim for any faults/defects with the property. I was wondering what kind of defects could be claimed for. We've just had the central heating checked and the boiler serviced. The roof and guttering is all sound and has a guarantee. The property is 100 years old so defects will occur.

My concern is things like the lighting inside. Our living room dimmer is a bit temperamental. It works but it dims on it's own. The down lighters in the kitchen need the bulbs changing regularly. Probably more often than normal. The house could probably do with rewiring. The shed door needs adjusted as it doesn't shut properly. The bath plug mechanism is broken and doesn't pop up when you turn the release.

The guy buying the house is a lawyer who specialises in conveyancing. Is he likely to ask us to fix these defects or are these things acceptable when selling property?

Structurally the property is sound. What's the law here?

It's all contained in the missives, which you should have a copy of. If the offer was based on the Combined Standard Clauses (and there haven't been any relevant qualifications to it) then the only warranty is that:

any systems or appliances of a working nature (including central heating, water, drainage, electric and gas) forming part of the Property will be in working order commensurate with age as at the Date of Settlement.

So from the things you've listed, the only item which is (maybe) relevant is the dimmer switch. But the standard offer also says the purchasers' claims need to amount to over £250 before they're entitled to claim against you. So if the dimmer switch is the only problem, it's not worth bothering about - and in practice I doubt anybody would.

googler

gmd06 wrote: »

I believe, although I could be wrong, that the buyer has 48 hours to claim for any faults/defects with the property. I was wondering what kind of defects could be claimed for.

Don't be fazed by the fact that your buyer is a lawyer. He's still governed by the same contract terms as you.

Review, with YOUR solicitor, the contract clauses used in the initial offer and acceptance. These are usually in standard form, and you can find examples here.

https://www.lawscot.org.uk/rules-and-guidance/section-f/division-c-conveyancing/advice-and-information/standard-missives---examples

Pick the one that's appropriate to your area (for instance, see para 3 in the Edinburgh version for that version), and review with your solicitor.

A previous poster has quoted sections of relevance, but these may vary in your region. Check with solicitor

jjlandlord

Let's keep in mind that a dimmer switch costs between £10 and £30 and takes 5 minutes to replace... So either way it is trivial.

Atomix

Buyer beware - if things don't work it's up to the buyer to bring it up.... This is the main reason, I believe, why it's inevitable for some form of reduction or other to cover the 'niggly stuff'.

Also true story, I know of someone who viewed a house with a plenty full supply of double plugs, which were blanks screwed to the wall, so make sure you checkout as much as you can folks...:cool:

Also don't offer any guarantees whatsoever, they might be tied to you the buyer rather than the house, if something goes wrong, do you really want the hassle?