Buyer trying to negotiate after exchange

eddddy

iammumtoone wrote: »

I think what grannyk is asking is can they pass the claim/cost on from the house(s) above them in the chain and add these onto their claim to their buyer?

I don't think that is what grannyk is asking - because he/she said:

Grannyk wrote: »

we could stay and use the lovely sum that he's going to have to give us to help pay off the mortgage.

i.e. GrannyK was hoping to make a profit.

But in reality, it's likely that GrannyK will only recover their losses - with no profit. So no funds to pay off the mortgage with.


However, GrannyK's losses will include whatever costs they have to pay to their seller. (So costs will get passed down the chain.)

pphillips

I think you have two routes for a legal remedy, either specific performance or damages.

Specific performance is the more complex of the two as you would be effectively seeking to obtain a High Court injunction to force him to complete (otherwise he would be found guilty of contempt of court).

The more straightforward option is to sue for damages (including consequential loss) caused by breach of contract. This will include the 10% deposit as well as any wasted expenses related to the sale and the failed move.

As stated above, damages will be all reasonably foreseeable losses naturally flowing from the failure to complete so as to put the "innocent" party in the position as far as possible that they would have been in had the breach not occured. The assessment of damages can sometime involve an exercise of quantitative speculation.

Grannyk

Sorry to give the impression we're trying to make a profit, I was just asking if we can pass all costs onto our buyer and trying to make lemonade out of lemons!

What I want is for completion to happen in the next 5 days and to get on with life. I just don't understand why our buyer thinks it's only going to cost him the £32.5 K that he's already paid (i.e. the 5% deposit), Financial penalty is the contracts remedy for breach and seems to be our only leverage in this situation

pinkshoes

Grannyk wrote: »

Sorry to give the impression we're trying to make a profit, I was just asking if we can pass all costs onto our buyer and trying to make lemonade out of lemons!

What I want is for completion to happen in the next 5 days and to get on with life. I just don't understand why our buyer thinks it's only going to cost him the £32.5 K that he's already paid (i.e. the 5% deposit), Financial penalty is the contracts remedy for breach and seems to be our only leverage in this situation

Normally costs are passed down the chain to whoever failed to complete.

So not only does he forfeit his 5%, I think he then becomes responsible for your loss of deposit on he newbuild.

Also, if you then sell for £50k less to a new buyer, he can be taken to court for this loss.

middleclassbutpoor

anselld wrote: »

Not quite the same. That was vendor pulling out, this is buyer.
Legal action could potentially force a vendor to sell but if the buyer does not in fact have the means to complete then no amount of legal action is going to make it happen.

Yes it is a slightly different situation but I also linked it but more for the understanding of how difficult it can get if one party decides not to proceed with the transaction. Its not something that can get sorted out in a week or two... It takes time, expense etc.

It is a horrible situation to be in regardless and I hope that it gets sorted in next few days through the buyer realising his games are not going to work.

diggingdude

Does your buyer already own the home that makes him your neighbour? That will be a useful piggy bank to target to get the costs

Grannyk

Yes indeed a charge on his property and other assets would be possible. If he claims inability to pay he's got the next goodness knows how long of us watching his purchases and holidays etc while the property prices go down and we add devaluation onto his bill.

eddddy

Grannyk wrote: »

Yes indeed a charge on his property and other assets would be possible. If he claims inability to pay he's got the next goodness knows how long of us watching his purchases and holidays etc while the property prices go down and we add devaluation onto his bill.

Take advice from a litigation solicitor before assuming this.

You have a duty to mitigate losses.

If property prices are falling, that mitigation would probably involve putting your house back on the market now, and selling for the best price that you can reasonably achieve. (And claiming any shortfall from the buyer.)

Or at least limiting your claim to what that shortfall would be if you did put your house back on the market now.

If prices fall further in future months and years, I doubt you'd succeed in claiming back the additional drop in price.

csgohan4

can the courts force him to sell the house? if he can't pay it up immediately?

buglawton

Tsk. Just like the UK seeking to change the Deal before Completion date of 31st March when the EU thought we'd already exchanged contracts.