Barratt homes. We may miss completion deadline

hreed

Hi

looking for some advice on dealing with Barratts please. 

We originally reserved a plot on the site we currently live on back in November. Unfortunately our buyer lost his buyer just after Christmas so Barratts remarketed the house and sold it. We went back on the market and our original buyer went back under offer, our chain was complete again. 

Anyway, there have been various hiccups along the way with delays due to our buyers agent giving out incorrect solicitors details, so everyone was chasing the wrong solicitor for about 3 weeks!!
Our deadline to exchange and complete is by the 26th March. The house is stock and has been ready and built since December so we have been offered a fair few incentives. However, yesterday we find out that our buyer does not actually own the back garden he is selling. This could potentially add a massive delay! Our buyer has offered to reduce his asking price if his purchaser continues with the purchase as is and sorts out the title deeds after completion. (He has used the garden for 17 years and the owner before that too). I’m not holding my breath that his buyer will accept that as I’m not sure I would in her situation. 

So, does anyone have any experience of Barratts accepting this potentially huge delay in the chain and allowing the purchase to continue? 

Sachs

So the house you originally reserved was sold to someone else and you reserved another one? This second one is now looking like you are not proceedable?
Its a question of how long is a piece of string really. New Build developers hate having completed houses standing empty, they appear to have precedence of finding new buyers after failed purchases, and potentially you're starting to look quite unreliable. On the flip side Brexit still rumbles on and now coronavirus and cleary youre keen.

I would recommend that you only tell them whats going on when you have a solution i.e. 'Hello Barratts, my buyer has issue x. The solutions is y. This will take z number of weeks to resolve and then we will be ready to complete on such and such a date".

If you go to them with 'Theres a problem with the chain, we don't really know what it is, how long it will take to resolve or when we will be ready to buy but is there any chance you will keep hold of that house you're insuring and paying council tax on for an indeterminate amount of time until we're ready?" It will probably be a no.

hreed

Thankyou for your reply. 

I think we will struggle to give them a definite timeline as we will be waiting on land registry. But I’ll definitely take your advice on board when trying to find out information from along the chain.