Help! £8k down on auction property

Doozergirl

Fingers crossed they allow access, otherwise it may be a case of begging, borrowing and stealing to complete on the purchase and then immediately remortgage it once the work is done.

It may well not be just the £8k you are liable for - I suspect the auction fees for both this failed sale and the next one would be payable, plus any difference if they end up selling it for less.

I'd find the cash, personally.

tocs23

teneighty wrote: »

I usually hate people citing TV programmes as examples as they are usually very unreliable but this just sprung to mind.

I saw an episode of Homes Under the Hammer ages ago and buyer made same mistake on a house in Sherborne, Dorset except it had no kitchen.

The vendor allowed them to go in and fit a couple of kitchen units and a sink so they could secure a mortgage before completion. So I suppose if you cannot secure bridging finance you could throw yourself on the mercy of the vendor. You could probably get a cheap bathroom suite thrown in for well under £500.

As usual with this programme they ended up making a huge profit.

Thanks. I've asked (via solicitors) for access, and believe that is now our only hope. Initial feedback from seller's solicitor was that they wouldn't recommend granting access due to risk of damage to the property. I've stressed that we will give all and any assurances we can - but ultimately it's in their hands.

HouseBuyer77

Whilst you may not be able to get a standard residential mortgage perhaps there's another product that could help? For example build store offer finance for renovations and conversions: http://www.buildstore.co.uk/finance/renovation.html possibly they'd have something suitable?

Find a mortgage broker who specialises in self-build/renovation projects and see if they have any ideas.

pc1271

Can you speak to the vendors directly? Solicitors will probably be all about the legalities; a real person may be much more understanding.

davidmcn

tocs23 wrote: »

The home report simply says:
The property forms suitable security for mortgage purposes subject to the specific lending criteria of any mortgage provider.

If mortgage providers generally don't consider it to be suitable security (and you end up losing the £8k) then you may wish to seek advice about whether you have a claim against the surveyor who carried out the Home Report.

Doozergirl wrote: »

Fingers crossed they allow access, otherwise it may be a case of begging, borrowing and stealing to complete on the purchase and then immediately remortgage it once the work is done.

Most lenders require borrowers to have been the owner for at least six months before you can remortgage.

Persuading the owner to allow you access might be the best way forward. Or they might prefer to pocket your deposit and put it back into the next auction.

eddddy

davidmcn wrote: »

Or they might prefer to pocket your deposit and put it back into the next auction.

...but if it sells for £20k less than you offered at the next auction, you will have to make good that £20k, plus all the costs of re-auctioning etc.

Another possibility is that you Google "Auction Finance" or "Bridging Finance". Some of those companies will be used to providing finance at short notice - but at a cost - until you can get a mortgage arranged.

(TBH, I've never used one of those companies and I suspect their terms will make your eyes water, but they may be worth investigating.)

eddddy

tocs23 wrote: »

We didn't realise that the absence of a bathroom suite (ie. toilet, sink, bath/shower) would essentially deem the house unmortgageable.

I don't want to pile on too much extra grief, but are you sure that's the only thing making the house unmortgageable?

There could be structural problems or legal problems as well. Has your solicitor checked through the paperwork? It might be good to arrange a surveyor pretty quickly as well.

[Deleted User]

I'd be trying to contact the seller directly, get a surveyor in and offer a sum of money to allow you to put a bathroom in asap. What have you got to lose (as long as survey is ok)? Get a second hand sink and bath in there if needs be. Just to meet the requirements of your mortgage company.

chappers

Try all options try contacting the vendor direct, try bribing them maybe even offering a few quid more, tell them you are happy for the work to be carried out by their own tradesmen and that you don't actually need access to the property your self.
If you get lucky there I wouldn't even be looking to spend £100 on a bathroom suite it doesn't have to be new and it doesn't even have to match, in fact it probably doesn't even have to be plumbed in properly, many auction properties have the services turned off and the surveyor isn't going to turn them on for fear of causing damage.

Contact the auction house and find out what you may chase you for as it is likely they will be after you for more than your deposit, but at least it will help you make a decision ,also they will have seen this before a hundred times and may have recommendations for brokers or bridging finance providers.

See if you can sort out some bridging finance , it wont be cheap but then again pulling out of the deal probably wont be either.
Try a commercial broker as they often have access to more flexible deals , mainly aimed at developers.
If you want a recommendation for a commercial broker who can move fast then PM me. He is a master level broker(a broker that brokers have to go through to access some lenders)and as such has direct access to lenders, he is in partnership with a couple of lenders too and so can almost make decisions on their behalf. He placed a mortgage on my first development within a day when my mortgage fell through and I had been served a notice to complete and thought I had run out of options. I have since done lots of business with him. He has access to bridging finance too, but if you want a recommendation for a short term finance provider too, who will deal with you direct let me know too. The commercial broker has access to this guy too but will charge you an introduction fee.
Whatever you do act fast. But try not to panic there probably is a solution out there for you.
I do feel for you as I have been in your situation myself and I can tell you it was for a lot more than £8k and it is heart stopping when you first hear that your mortgage has fallen through.

konark

What exactly constitutes a kitchen or a bathroom (obviously a bath in the latter case).

We viewed a property and were told it was unmortgagable as it had no kitchen, yet there was a room with all the water pipes in situ, gas connection etc, just that the units had been removed. I thought it frankly crazy that a day or two's work could render the house unsellable. Surely there must be a lender that has common sense or specialises in do-em-ups.How do people get mortgages for self-builds?