House Selling - Missing Building Completion Certificate

Wdfourty

Hi All

My Partner and I are trying to sell our house, we have a cash buyer and were due to exchange contracts yesterday. Unfortunately, it looks like the sale may fall through due to the Buyer's insistance that the Building Completion Certificate be provided. The house is 18 years old and has had 2 previous owners. We've contacted the house builders to see if they had copies of the BCC, which unfortuantely they don't as their records only go back 15 years. We've tried the local council aswell and haven't heard back from them. Is there anything else we can do?

davidmcn

Your solicitors should know how to sort this out rather than leave you to ask weirdos on the internet, but here are my suggestions:

(a) wait for council to reply (how long have you given them so far)
(b) go round to council and stand at counter until you get answer
(c) ask previous solicitors - did they see it (if not why not), do they have copy on file

(getting an indemnity policy would have been a solution if you hadn't already contacted the council)

AdrianC

Find a less paranoid buyer?

After nearly two decades, the absence of the building control paperwork is irrelevant. If the place was never signed-off, there's nothing can be done about it now. If the place was badly built, it'd be blindingly obvious by now. Since you've been in contact with the council, an indemnity policy (worthless though it would be) is not an option.

steeeb

No doubt cash buyer will be using this fact to offer you a lot less in a few weeks time or threaten to walk away?

3mph

Since you have already contacted the Council, telephone them, find out exactly which department, get put through and explain the problem. As with all places, the vast majority of people there are helpful once they understand the problem and the urgency.

Before phoning get together as much information as you can to reduce their workload if possible.

I had a similar problem the council Bldg Control sorted it out in a day, brilliant. I then dropped off a box of really good (and expensive) chocolates for them, their help saved me no end of problems.

steeeb

My local building control are also very helpful. I'd do as 3mph suggests.

Wdfourty

Thanks for the help everyone.

G_M

Some councils have online search facilities. Have you checked their website?

As others have said, it's a meaningless piece of paper after 18 years. Buyer is either paranoid, or planning to use this to pressure you into a price drop.

foxy-stoat

I didn't ask to see the Building Control sign off for the 1960's place I bought 5 years ago...who do I sue?!

3mph

foxy-stoat wrote: »

I didn't ask to see the Building Control sign off for the 1960's place I bought 5 years ago...who do I sue?!

The problem is that if you treat a buyers requests with the contempt they deserve and tell them to stop bothering me it may well escalate. You really need to respond clearly demonstrating that what is being asked is impossible or show you have done what you can to achieve it. Where possible you are trying to get both parties working together instead of against each other.

With my ongoing flat purchase the vendor claims its a 125yr lease, I thought 250 since other flats in the block are so my solicitor had to try and find out from the Management Company. We proved the Vendors wrong, they had "not received" the Deed of Variation a few years ago. The end product is that I would not trust them to tell me the date let alone anything else. All they had to do when we raised the question was to have contacted the Management Company themselves to show good faith.

davidmcn

foxy-stoat wrote: »

I didn't ask to see the Building Control sign off for the 1960's place I bought 5 years ago...who do I sue?!

To be fair, it's pretty standard to be seeking statutory consents for work done in the previous 20 years, especially something as significant as the sign-off for a whole house. Even if you don't think the council will be knocking on the door, you'll want it because some future buyer or lender will be demanding it.

Also the conundrum that if you don't have the paperwork, how do you know the house really is 18 years old?!