New build con artists?

martinsurrey

pinkteapot wrote: »

Tell them a polite but firm no. You've got your broker and solicitor lined up and will be using them. No further explanation required.

and Linden can tell them "no, you're not, and refuse the offer"

If this is a part exchange plot and Linden own it, they can say what they want, and you can walk away, its nothing to do with the person buying the Linden plot.

(and that linked page is for the party part exchanging, not the person buying the house recieved in part exchange)

pinkteapot

Did edit my post after seeing the point in the OP about T&Cs. Intrigued as to how they can be legal when estate agents can't force you to use particular companies.

Couldn't find a Linden page about PX for purchasers - the link I gave was the only one I found. OP can tell us if they'd seen a different page.

martinsurrey

pinkteapot wrote: »

Did edit my post after seeing the point in the OP about T&Cs. Intrigued as to how they can be legal when estate agents can't force you to use particular companies.

Couldn't find a Linden page about PX for purchasers - the link I gave was the only one I found. OP can tell us if they'd seen a different page.

It’s not illegal for the EA to force you (as far as I know), it’s just they just have no power to do so, as they don’t own the property, they can advise their client to not deal with you as it will hinder the sale, but at the end of the day it’s up to vendor to decide who they deal with.

In this case the vendor is Linden, and they can ask what they like, OP can say no if they like.

kingstreet

First question I'd ask is "what's in it for me?" as the developer will be chucking incentives at their buyer to use particular brokers/solicitors, so why not at the buyer's buyer's if they are so anxious to maintain control?

martinsurrey

kingstreet wrote: »

First question I'd ask is "what's in it for me?" as the developer will be chucking incentives at their buyer to use particular brokers/solicitors, so why not at the buyer's buyer's if they are so anxious to maintain control?

the buyer of the Linden plot generates a profit and a plot sale in thier accounts, the buyer of the part exchange just clears thier balance sheet, much less in it for them to bother offering incentives.

G_M

String them along a bit. Get them to send you brochures. Ask awkward questons. Put them to trouble/expense. Ask them to come and meet you somewhere to talk trhought the deal/contract then don't turn up.

Then eventually tell them to take a hike.

Newbie19719802

Thanks all for your overwhelming responses. I didn't think I would get much help to be honest.

Speaking to the estate agent today it looks like the house has been bought from the building company already. They are effectively putting money down for the couple as part of the new build they are buying.

Linden homes are then using a company called the new homes group, who are acting on their behalf.

My broker called the contact at the new homes group, and all she kept saying was "it's my clients request" he asked to speak to the client and she wouldn't give him a number as it was "the clients request" not to do so.

We've spoken to the estate agent who are now a little frustrated as they have been pushed out the way, and now all the negotiations are going through this new company. The only instructions that the estate agent had was that if an offer under the asking price was accepted, then they would recommend for us to use their solicitor and broker.

This doesn't apply to us as our offer was on the nose.

So frustrating, I suppose the next step is to get in contact with the building company direct, pull out, or bow down to their demands.

Seems very fishy

Thanks everyone

Newbie19719802

To add to this, is not clear if the new Homes group have won the contract to deal with linden homes and are now thinking "let's push our broker/solicitor to them so we can make extra commission" The "clients request" ie linden homes could be a load of rubbish

pinkteapot

Ask to see a copy of the T&Cs that they mentioned for yourself. Try and get someone to put it in writing to you that you must use the people they say.

If that fails, do you have a contact at Linden that you could speak to?

It doesn't make sense for Linden (if they own the property now?) to make it this hard for people to buy the houses. Builders usually want to offload PX houses they've taken on ASAP!

westernpromise

I don't even begin to understand this.

Are you saying that you, party A, are "buying" a house from party B who has already contracted to part-exchange it with party C?

If so, you cannot be buying the house from B. You're buying it from C (the builder). Presumably, the terms of the deal between B and C is that C must get at least £X net for the sale of B's house, otherwise B stumps up the difference? That would explain why B is still knocking himself out doing the marketing, and presumably is also funding the estate agent, even though he's not actually the vendor.

It sounds to me like the builders want to secure the sale of their new-build house by offering part exchange deals, but the nasty string attached is the one whereby their buyers do all the work selling the part-exchange for them, and incur all the usual expenses they'd incur if there were no such p/x.

It makes one wonder what the point of part-exchanging is. In essence, all it does is secure the new home buyer the new house, but at the cost of committing to paying the difference between its price and some agreed price for that of the house they are part exchanging. If the builder keeps stuffing up the process by insisting on their choice of solicitor, it exposes the part-exchange owner/vendor to the risk that they can't sell that house for X but they still owe the builder X. They are locked into the buy before they have completed the sell.

It wouldn't work for me!