Buyer has taken the property off the market

agrinnall

jezzer_72 wrote: »

I'm not partisan here... in this opposite situation the buyer should also be responsible to pay fees incurred.

The problem lies in apportioning blame, what would happen if (for instance) the buyer pulls out because the seller has messed them about so much that they reach breaking point, whose fault is that? Much simpler legally just to make each party responsible for their own costs.

jojo9239

We lost £500 on a purchase that was withdrew 5 days before exchange it sucks but it's how it is we are now just 2 weeks away from our new purchase x

jezzer_72

agrinnall wrote: »

The problem lies in apportioning blame, what would happen if (for instance) the buyer pulls out because the seller has messed them about so much that they reach breaking point, whose fault is that? Much simpler legally just to make each party responsible for their own costs.

True but we do have principles of laws surrounding reasonableness in the UK. If the actions of the buyer were reasonable there is no reason for them to pay fees... you having said the vendor messed them about means the vendor was not being reasonable. It cannot be that difficult surely to have something more concrete for culpability.

MobileSaver

jezzer_72 wrote: »

If the actions of the buyer were reasonable there is no reason for them to pay fees... It cannot be that difficult surely to have something more concrete for culpability.

Who decides what is reasonable? For the sums involved (typically, as in your case, £1000 or less) in many cases it would cost more in legal fees than the claim amount itself.

jezzer_72 wrote: »

The reasons for taking it off the market was that something happened in their family life and possibly someone lost their job

OK, so let's say the seller lost his job and realised he could no longer afford higher mortgage payments on a new home - sounds like a perfectly reasonable reason to pull out of the sale to me. Case dismissed.

Hoploz

The EA saying they would take another offer is just normal EA talk. They assume it will be true. He didn't know the seller's was going to lose their job any more than you did. Or indeed the seller himself!

The EA is presumably as annoyed as you are that the sale is no longer progressing. He has done all his work and was soon to be paid, only to find he will now receive nothing, including none of his personal commission.

Assuming the story is true, the seller is also not to blame as he is unlikely to have got this far in the process if he knew he was going to lose his job. If he had an onward purchase then he has probably lost money just like you have, but has had to cut his losses being unable to proceed.

It's harsh on everybody but these things do happen, and yes it's unfair and it's awful. But you will move on and find a new place. When buying houses the amount you've lost is only a very small % of what you're signing up for in property ownership.