Is my vendor or real estate agent lying to me

Moneysaving222

Ive made an offer on a house not knowing there was structural movement, my mistake for not seeing it. My mortgage company picked it up and later my survey. I didn’t realize that both did surveys.

Anyway, the vendor reckons she doesn’t know about the structural movement, got her to get a structural engineer to visit the property and do a report. It was agreed we would swap reports. In the meantime I spoke to the admin person for my mortgage application and she says the report would have to be in my name and that it would be best if I instructed my own structural report (I agreed).

I have spoken to the vendors representative, aka the Estate Agent (EA) and apparently she had just got a voicemail at 2pm (I called 2:05pm. I sent an sms at 7pm because I hadn’t heard. The issue with the subsidence is apparently the windows or the drains.

Ok I’m clearly been taken for a mug - but by who? Are all EA liars? Did they do the structural report. Any ideas?

anselld

Don't understand where you think the lie is, but that is irrelevant really. You should only rely on your own bought-and-paid-for experts. Anyone else is not even qualified to know if they are lying or not.

Moneysaving222

So far I’ve been told by the EA that the owner didn’t realize there were big cracks in the back of the house (owned it for 10 years), she hasn’t lived there for four years (carpets haven’t been changed in 10+ years suggesting it was a rental for the whole time), that she’s been told the windows were the cause of subsidence by the structural engineer, the owner works as an estate agent herself.....

The EA told me she had just had a voicemail from the owner, literally the minute before I call and she would call me back. Never did. Also when I had my offer accepted twenty mins later a person who viewed the property the week before made a surprise bid. The EA didn’t know that I would need a structural report in my name for the mortgage company (I wasn’t ever going to use their report, I just wasn’t prepared to spend more money).

Moneysaving222

Apparently the owner is “disappointed” she spent £450 on a structural report when she should be making her insurance company aware of the subsidence.

So I wonder if a structural report was ever carried out and who’s lying about the results.

G_M

Look.Ignore what people triyng to sell a house are telling you. They just want to sell the house.


If you are worried there may be a significant structural issue, employ someone professional, who knows what they are doing, and will report to you, and then decide what to do.

Moneysaving222

^yes that’s what I’m doing and I would like to liaise with the vendor, hence I do it through the EA.

G_M

Moneysaving222 wrote: »

^yes that’s what I’m doing and I would like to liaise with the vendor, hence I do it through the EA.

then what advice or help are you looking for here?


Give your professional the EA's contact details and he'll set up an appointment to inspect, and report back to you.

Moneysaving222

I’m just feeling a little lost with the whole negotiation part. Had I know about structural issues before making an offer I wouldn’t have started the mortgage application etc.

The whole process I feel like I’ve been doing it back to front and getting no right advice or doing the process the way I think it should be done.

Hence why I’m coming on this forum and asking for help. I thought I negotiated with the EA that the vendor would get the structural report done as she didn’t know about huge cracks in her house and I didn’t want to spend money on the engineers report to find out she wouldn’t sell etc.

Obviously the EA is working for the vendor and I also need to negotiate and clarify information.

I have been told movement is due to windows..... this is from the EA who was apparently told by vendor. It’s a lie, windows don’t cause subsidence. I was told we could exchange reports (mine was the survey) but being told that subsidence is due to windows is making me lose my faith.

elsien

Chinese whispers and third party verbal information is never going to be accurate whether someone is lying or (more likely) minunderstanding what was said.

You are overfocussing on that part of it.
And it's also the reason you carry out due diligence with your own checks. And risk being slightly out of pocket if you have to walk away - all part of the home buying process.

HampshireH

You say nobody noticed this structual problem and the cracks.

Seems hard to believe. Serious cracking will usually show on both the inside and outside of the walls.

Drainage could be a legitimate reason. However some cracking could also be historical movement. Or the slab could have dropped over time due to the make up of material settling underneath it over the years creating internal cracking (and gaps under skirting/betwern walls and ceiling)

Could be a number of things. Its in your own interest to get your own survey. You can swap it with the vendor if you wish - very nice of you.
Just make sure they are given a photocopy and you keep the original if you choose to do this.

How bad are the cracks?

Moneysaving222

Hi Hampshire, the owner said she didn’t notice and because I didn’t go outside I didn’t see the outside cracks. I saw the inside cracks which aren’t uncommon for houses that age (my house has some cracks).

Hi elisen, I’m just concerned that I’m going to spend £££ and the landlord isn’t going to sell or it’s not able to get a mortgage or insurance.