How to legally warn others NOT to Buy

Davesnave

sophiaswaight wrote: »

We have wasted 7 weeks and £750, as well as losing out on viewing other property which have gone under offer in the interim. We just wanted others to have all the information up front so they could decide what they were getting involved in.

In England & Wales, people never have "all the information up-front." A house is an unknown quantity until one examines it carefully with a trained eye, or has it surveyed.

As you lack the skills, you have paid for someone else's advice. By giving you infomation, they have enabled you to make a judgement which, in the longer term, has saved you thousands, not lost you £750.

All these things will be true for the next potential buyer who comes along, and if they act appropriately, there will be no sale either, or there will be a significant renegotiation of the price.

As a FTB, it is much more important that you make a good first purchase than save a few weeks in the process. Yes, it's annoying, but move on and consider this a learning experience, not the start of a crusade.

Missus_Hyde

OP, whereas I can understand your disappointment and frustration over the house (not to mention the financial outlay you've had) I'm afraid it really is a case of caveat emptor as with anything you buy and it is up to any future purchaser to check out and have their own surveys done on the property.

I've found that it's usually what the seller doesn't say, rather than what they do, which is most relevant when buying anything (this particularly applies to buying horses as well as houses!!);)

moneyistooshorttomention

A learning experience indeed - but it is a shame that people often have to learn by getting "knocked on the head" by "unscrupulous others".

I think its fair enough to regard it as a crusade - why not try and change the world for the better for others? Her life...her decision as to whether to try and leave things a little bit better than she found them.

Davesnave

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

I think its fair enough to regard it as a crusade - why not try and change the world for the better for others? Her life...her decision as to whether to try and leave things a little bit better than she found them.

There are millions of things one might do to make the world better and fairer, but in my book, this isn't near the top of the list.

Even if it were, there are more wide-ranging ways to address the matter, through the law, not via a personal vendetta of tiny proportions in relation to the market.

googler

Davesnave wrote: »

There are millions of things one might do to make the world better and fairer, but in my book, this isn't near the top of the list.

Even if it were, there are more wide-ranging ways to address the matter, through the law, not via a personal vendetta of tiny proportions in relation to the market.

Exactly, this one property is a drop in the ocean, and the OP's time would be better spent lobbying MPs for change which would benefit the whole marketplace, not just those expressing interest in this one property.

mark55man

I find it astonishing that in this situation where there has been a clear attempt (by a professional in this field) to pull the wool over the eyes of unsuspecting buyers there seems to be a complete lack of condemnation for the fraudster and a level of distaste for OP who wants to do something about it.

No wonder we are living in scam Britain, where no one can be bothered, or the system makes it too hard, for honest people to report and act on wrongdoing.

And when someone (ie the OP) tries to find a way of preventing the villain of the piece (ie the vendor) to get away with it they are threatened with legal action and told "to get over it".

In my mind this is the retail equivalent of assault - ie actually quite serious and not just a verbal altercation

moneyistooshorttomention

Particularly as the money lost, courtesy of this fraudster vendor, is the least of OP's concerns I would imagine.

More to the point is they have wasted weeks not pursuing other houses for sale (and probably lost one or more they would have preferred if they had been in full possession of the facts re this house) and put their lives on hold for that time for nothing. We all know that househunting tends to take over from everything else in your life until its Game Over and you've got the place.

If OP had just had one of these cheapie drive-past type surveys on the place (as a lot of people would on a house that looked, on the face of it, like it was fine) then they could have moved in first "knowing" they didn't have to do anything to the place and then finding themselves caught up with extra work and expense (which they may not even have the money to cover).

sophiaswaight

Hi Everyone,

Quick update

The house has now been sold STC on rightmove. It was only re-uploaded on Thursday.

I can only hope the vendors and agents have been honest. As said previously, they are fully aware of the problems as it was their side which instructed the additional structural and damp/timber surveys on our behalf.

I haven't contacted the agent but feel if i do now he will only think that im even more bitter.

Any thoughts on how to phase an email would be greatly appreciated

hcb42

Why do you feel the need to tell them at all - £5K is nothing - small change in house buying terms.. If they want to buy it, so be it. most people can see if a house is likely to need money spending on it by walking about...even if it has been painted and looking new on the surface.

You won't get your survey money back, and you cannot wind back the clock, so time to move on.

ess0two

mark88man wrote: »

I find it astonishing that in this situation where there has been a clear attempt (by a professional in this field) to pull the wool over the eyes of unsuspecting buyers there seems to be a complete lack of condemnation for the fraudster and a level of distaste for OP who wants to do something about it.

No wonder we are living in scam Britain, where no one can be bothered, or the system makes it too hard, for honest people to report and act on wrongdoing.

And when someone (ie the OP) tries to find a way of preventing the villain of the piece (ie the vendor) to get away with it they are threatened with legal action and told "to get over it".

In my mind this is the retail equivalent of assault - ie actually quite serious and not just a verbal altercation

Has anyone other than the OP seen the property or the survey results, or anything else to that matter, so your reply is a bit strong.


That's why a survey is completed, many FTB seem to go into orbit over survey results.


The OP is probably best buying a new build.