Seller pulled out of house sale as the solicitor took too long

purplepixi

Long story and a bit of a rant, which I posted about making a complaint a few months back, but in short. We tried to buy a house through Connells. I'm a first time buyer but my other half has already sold his so we were using that as the deposit.

To keep things simple we went with the solicitors they recommended. We had Home Property Lawyers and the seller had Shoesmiths. They wanted a quick sale and so did we. There was no chain on either side. We're in a rental, and the son of the seller was living in the house and moved out months ago.

So..... Offer was accepted in the middle of Jan. Then we left it to the solicitors to do their thing. Well hindesight. We should have used a local solicitor. They were very bad at communicating, and we very rarely got a response from them. But the other solicitor was awfully slow as well.

We kept getting told yes we'll exchange next week - but never happened. So then the seller gave an ultimatum, that if we didn't exchange by the 11th June that they'd be pulling the sale to put it back on the market with someone else. The property has now been empty for a very long time and is in need of a bit of care as it's been unloved in that time.

We still want to buy it, and they still want to sell it, but they've decided they now don't want to sell it to us as it's taken too long - I was packed and ready to move in by Feb, just been waiting for that call.

I spoke to the estate agents who agreed this was a ridiculous amount of time for a no chain sale, and told us to keep going with it, and let our solicitors do what they need to.

I was told last night that my other half has paid the fees due of £3000, but one of the sellers has essentially put their foot down and said no, as they didn't exchange by the date we gave them then it's off.

I know there's very little I can do about it. But it just seemed rather crazy that they'd pull the sale to list it with a different estate agent when the money is sitting there waiting to go.

Big sigh..... definitely using a local solicitor next time....

hazyjo

Not much to say other than I wish people would ask questions on here before not after probs like this (sorry - not trying to rub salt in the wounds, just trying to help anyone else who might stumble on this thread!). Every single person would say 'don't use their solicitor'. Was it a 'recommended' (which is actually usually okay if just a local one they have no connection to) or an affiliated/linked one? If the latter, the EAs will take a commission, and the fees are often high. Three grand? Sounds extortionate to me.


Did you chase the solicitor throughout? When you say 'let our solicitors do what they need to', did you ask what was outstanding or what you could be doing?


When does your mortgage offer expire? (Presuming you have one.)


What on earth is still outstanding at this point? What exactly is the hold-up now?


As a seller, I would have given up on you by now too (sorry again!). Five months with no reason for the delay is a bit crazy. I took five months to buy once, but that was due to a prob with the vendors having to get a Deed of Rectification/Variation.

badger09

I would be putting in a formal complaint to both my solicitor & the estate agent. Why on earth have they not been chasing the solicitor they recommended.

As hazyjo said, the estate agent is probably in line for commission from the very high solicitors fees. We noticed our EA would get £700 if we went with their recommendation. And guess who pays that extra £700:(

G_M

Do you know (have you asked) what stage the puchase reached?

What issues were outstanding?


It may simply be that the solicitor in question has too many files and yours has been sitting in a pile waiting to be dealt with.


Or it may be there is some specific search, enquiry, or other legal issue that is being waited on - in which case the solicitor is not at fault.

csgohan4

Connels wanted to charge me 1k for a building survey, found one at half the price independently when I was buying a Connel house

Owain_Moneysaver

purplepixi wrote: »

Then we left it to the solicitors to do their thing. Well hindesight. We should have used a local solicitor.

Any solicitor can be slow in handling conveyancing matters. They don't seem to regard it as a priority and will always blame the other party.

What you should not have done is 'left it'. You need to make it clear that you expect all enquiries to the other party to go to their solicitor same day, their responses to your solicitor to be passed to you same day (by email) and that you require both solicitors to use email for all communications and to follow the Law Society's Conveyancing Protocol.

And you have to keep on top of them and the first time they delay things you complain.

Even then they still take ages and ages and ages ...

In English conveyancing there are two sides: the buyer and the seller, who both want the transaction done quickly and efficiently; and the solicitors, who are both charging per quarter hour every time they look at the file.

Thrugelmir

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

Any solicitor can be slow in handling conveyancing matters. They don't seem to regard it as a priority and will always blame the other party.

That's because it normally is.

Solicitors like to do work they know that they are going to get paid for. Not chase hares for no return.

There's a lot missing from the OP's post. One suspects we will never know.

avacapri

WOW £3K - was this a fixed fee?, for a flat, sounds like a huge amount, check your letter of engagement that your solicitors sent you re fees if you are concerned see who regulates the solicitor and take it up with them (should be the Law Society or the SRA) if you still want the property is there nothing the estate agent can do, seems mad if you are now ready to go, i know it sounds mad but perhaps offer an extra £1k for the problems, its that or end up paying the fees and having to start all over again?

BrassicWoman

I bought a Cornell!!!8217;s property but refused to let them sell mine. Total shysters, every opportunity to prise money out of you, so many schemes and incentives. I like my business to be plain simple and effective. I!!!8217;d give up my dream forever home if they were selling it.

Davesnave

BrassicWoman wrote: »

I bought a Cornell!!!8217;s property but refused to let them sell mine. Total shysters, every opportunity to prise money out of you, so many schemes and incentives. I like my business to be plain simple and effective. I!!!8217;d give up my dream forever home if they were selling it.

First EA to disappear from my city when the Crash hit in 2008.

They were that popular!


Edit: Regrettably, they returned.