Fixing broken boiler before moving house

patricia..xx

What an earth are you going to do without a boiler until you move?

Also, has a survey been done yet? If not, it will be spotted, especially if the house is freezing.

I see you have 2 options:

1. Get it fixed as best you can as you need it to work while you still live there.

2. Get it replaced.

You then chose whether to be nice and let your buyer know or not. If you do not have the upfront money to pay for it to be replaced, expect it to be knocked off the sale price. At least that way you never see the money going out to pay for something you won't use.

Waldorf_Statler

the long and the short of it is that you should get it fixed or replaced.

if the fault occurred after you have already exchanged contracts then it would be the liability of your buyer and they would / should have insurance in place to cover it. if you are moving in 8-12 weeks it sounds like you have not exchanged. therefore it is absolutely your liability.

regardless, if i were your buyer and i moved into your property mid-winter with a broken boiler i would seek redress. however this would be extremely difficult to do post-completion and would involve legal expenses probably in excess of the repair costs.

irrespective of whether you have exchanged contracts or not, morals dictate that you should fix it before completion.

i was in exactly this situation on my last sale. i wasn't technically liable for the faulty as it was post-exchange, however I fixed it as it is the right thing to do. i'd like to think that the excellent condition left by the vendors of the property i moved into was karma.

good things happen to good people... and vice versa.

scottishblondie

Waldorf_Statler wrote: »

if the fault occurred after you have already exchanged contracts then it would be the liability of your buyer and they would / should have insurance in place to cover it. if you are moving in 8-12 weeks it sounds like you have not exchanged. therefore it is absolutely your liability.

I've always been under the impression that after exchange you are bound to provide the property to the buyer at completion in the same condition as it was at exchange, i.e. with a working boiler in this case. I thought the point of buildings insurance at the point of exchange is just to ensure that in the event the worst happens, the property isn't a total loss, as the vendor may not have insurance. I'm sure someone will correct me if this is not the case?

OP as a buyer I would reduce my offer accordingly if I found out before exchange that a new boiler was required immediately, as I would have offered based on a working one, especially in a newer property. If it happened post exchange, I would pursue the vendor to reimburse the cost. One way or another, I think you're going to take a financial hit on this.

Waldorf_Statler

I thought that too but in a similar situation I 'fessed up to my solicitor who said that had the issue occurred post exchange then the liability was the buyer's. My solicitor could have been wrong but they seemed like they knew were they were doing. It's the old "sold as seen" principle with the requirement being that the buyer investigates physical defects. Of course, if the vendor states on a legal document that something is working when it is not then post completion the buyer could seek redress. But how many people would actually bother given the legal costs of doing so?

Either way, I would never dream of leaving something broken. My conscience couldn't live with it.

dancingfairy

It depends on whether you have exchange or not. If you have exchanged then you have to provide the house as described and as in the condition when you exchanged.
If you haven't exchanged then you don't have to get it fixed but should make it clear to the buyer it is broken so they can negotiate money off the asking price to get it fixed.
df

MrSnuggly

I thought I would finish off this thread by telling you the positive outcome.

No one wanted to help me, from solicitors to housing agents, even UK Property Law couldn't protect my rights. So as a last gasp, I got the details of the new buyers, emailed them direct and explained our predicament.

Unbelievably, they've agreed on a contract outside of the purchase of the property whereby they'll pay the total costs of replacing/installing the boiler upon exchange. Absolute heroes, totally made my day.

It just goes to show that sometimes it's better to put your faith in people than it is in companies. People are fundamentally honest and decent but companies don't have a conscience.

brett84n

MrSnuggly wrote: »

I thought I would finish off this thread by telling you the positive outcome.

No one wanted to help me, from solicitors to housing agents, even UK Property Law couldn't protect my rights. So as a last gasp, I got the details of the new buyers, emailed them direct and explained our predicament.

Unbelievably, they've agreed on a contract outside of the purchase of the property whereby they'll pay the total costs of replacing/installing the boiler upon exchange. Absolute heroes, totally made my day.

It just goes to show that sometimes it's better to put your faith in people than it is in companies. People are fundamentally honest and decent but companies don't have a conscience.

Says he who was going to leave the property with a non working boiler for the new owners to discover...

silvercar

MrSnuggly wrote: »

I thought I would finish off this thread by telling you the positive outcome.

No one wanted to help me, from solicitors to housing agents, even UK Property Law couldn't protect my rights. So as a last gasp, I got the details of the new buyers, emailed them direct and explained our predicament.

Unbelievably, they've agreed on a contract outside of the purchase of the property whereby they'll pay the total costs of replacing/installing the boiler upon exchange. Absolute heroes, totally made my day.

It just goes to show that sometimes it's better to put your faith in people than it is in companies. People are fundamentally honest and decent but companies don't have a conscience.

In your shoes I would hold my breathe until exchange has actually happened. What will you do if the demand a £2k reduction on exchange day?

jbainbridge

MrSnuggly wrote: »

No one wanted to help me, from solicitors to housing agents, even UK Property Law couldn't protect my rights.

I don't see heating engineer / plumber in your list???

TBagpuss

MrSnuggly wrote: »

No one wanted to help me, from solicitors to housing agents, even UK Property Law couldn't protect my rights. So as a last gasp, I got the details of the new buyers, emailed them direct and explained our predicament.

What rights? You don't have a right not to pay for stuff that breaks at inconvenient times.