Uncertain Building Works-Price Negotiation

Kate0_0

Hello,
We are about to exchange the contracts after 3 months from the accepted offer date.
We are very strict on our finance as a first-time buyer living in a rented house, losing a day on the road is very expensive.

During our surveys, we learned that we may be billed for major works to the building in the near future. We did our parts with my solicitor to be able to have at least an approximate cost and the type of works but unfortunately, we are not informed with that. I have concerns about how it will affect our finance when the numbers get clearer.
We are told about these planned works during our searches and not whilst!the offer process.

And now the agency wants to exchange the contracts giving a completion dates 5 weeks after.
I also believe completion dates are 1 to 2 weeks after exchanging contracts. A compilation date after 5 weeks sounds too much. What do you think?

Would we be able to re-negotiate the price considering the uncertainty of the major works along with the time and money we're spending in a rented house?
Many thanks.

HampshireH

Do not exchange

You need to know what work, how much and when.

You need to know at what stage of the S20 process it is at.

You can then decide to lower your offer to take into consideration the expense you will incur.

Exchanging without the costs would be foolish and a likely expensive mistake.

That said I cannot understand how you don't have the above information by now. Presumably this is leasehold and you have been issued all this now it's come up.

G_M

The gapbetween Exchnge and Completion is entirely a matter for negotiation and agreement. Tell your solicitor what you want.

The agency has no relevance so far as the date of Exchange is concerned. That's up to you, your solicitor, the seller, and their solicitor.

As for the building works, I assume this is a flat in a block? What did the freeholder's pack reveal about planned works?

If that or your survey reveals future expensive works, yes you can try to renegotiate the price. The seller might agree,or not. If they do,there is likely to be a delay while contracts are altered, especially if you are getting a mortgage since this too will need changing.

We are very strict on our finance as a first-time buyer living in a rented house, losing a day on the road is very expensive.

sounds like you are stretching yourself too thin. Home-owning is not like renting - additional costs always arise

Slithery

Kate0_0 wrote: »

Hello,
We are about to exchange the contracts after 3 months from the accepted offer date.
We are very strict on our finance as a first-time buyer living in a rented house, losing a day on the road is very expensive.

If you don't already have an extra £5k-£10k in savings then you are in no position to be buying your own property.

During our surveys, we learned that we may be billed for major works to the building in the near future. We did our parts with my solicitor to be able to have at least an approximate cost and the type of works but unfortunately, we are not informed with that. I have concerns about how it will affect our finance when the numbers get clearer.
We are told about these planned works during our searches and not whilst!the offer process.

It would be a terrible idea to exchange before you know how much the future works are expected to cost - you may end up with an unexpected bill for £100k.

And now the agency wants to exchange the contracts giving a completion dates 5 weeks after.
I also believe completion dates are 1 to 2 weeks after exchanging contracts. A compilation date after 5 weeks sounds too much. What do you think?

I think that the amount of time between exchange and completion is whatever you agree it is. Anywhere between 0-60 days wouldn't be unusual.

Would we be able to re-negotiate the price considering the uncertainty of the major works along with the time and money we're spending in a rented house?
Many thanks.

You can attempt to renegotiate the price at any point up until exchange. Whether or not the vendors entertain your new offer or just pull out altogether is up to them.

Spriggan

As the others have said - do not exchange until you have absolutely all the information you can get on these works. I can’t stress this enough.

Can you give us more information on them? Who is the freeholder? I was recently in a situation involving S20s on a council property, and discovered that it was just the start of a longer programme of works. This had not come up in the paperwork, but with some investigation I was able to get more info. Some time now could save you a lot of money and drama down the road. Don’t feel pressured to rush to exchange before you have all the facts.

Also, yes. It’s definitely something you can go back to the sellers on and renegotiate. You can ask them to drop the price, or pay for some/all of the works (which they’d likely do via a retainer). No guarantees, but definitely something you should be considering.

Bossypants

Spriggan wrote: »

As the others have said - do not exchange until you have absolutely all the information you can get on these works. I can’t stress this enough.

And if you can't get detailed, confirmed information, walk away. Seriously. People's lives have been ruined over this type of bill.

Spriggan

Bossypants wrote: »

And if you can't get detailed, confirmed information, walk away. Seriously. People's lives have been ruined over this type of bill.

Agreed. I think it's one of those situations where you're much better off assuming the worst.

Kate0_0

Thank you very much for all your replies.

We now feel more confident to do what's right. We really loved the flat but It's more clear now going blindfolded will cause more damage and stress.
If we don't get the info we need, we'll walk away. I'll update when I hear from them.
Thanks!

G_M

Read the thread below. This is what can happen when you rush in blindly. This buyer did not have a survey done.........


https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6063129

csgohan4

G_M wrote: »

Read the thread below. This is what can happen when you rush in blindly. This buyer did not have a survey done.........


https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6063129

sadly the OP for that thread got it removed