Buyer holding me hostage on house sale

Davidoffash

Hello
I have accepted an offer 6 weeks ago for £108k, asking price was £115k. He is a first time buyer and we have no chain. All perfect so far. He had a survey done wich showed a full re-wire is needed so got a quote done. This came back at £4090 and on seeing the quote he's added decking lights front and rear lights wired smoke alarms and a way higher spec than needed. He is refusing too negotiate or pay towards and has said i must pay for it. He refuses to reflect this by lowering his offer as he says this is not what he wants to do. I moved out of the house 4 weeks ago and into my new one so I assume he's taking advantage of my situation. Any feedback would be much appreciated and apologies as I have never used a forum before in my life but the stress from this is driving me mad.

Thanks 

AnotherJoe

You fold or put the house back on the market. Simple.

Easy to say what I'd do but only you can make such a decision.

Since you've been able to move out you wouldnot seem to be "held hostage" in the way, say someone who needed the sale to fund their ongoing purchase, woudl be, so its not clear to me why you seem so powerless.

princeofpounds

Hi. If you haven't exchanged contracts (and you haven't) then nothing is binding on either of you. This is all just a negotiation. Personally I would put the property back on the market and reject this buyer (at least until he stops pushing). All he is telling you by ramping up the spec is that his offer isn't 108k after all, and the way he is doing it does not suggest good faith. And yes, he may be taking advantage of the fact you have already moved, but that's not his problem.

Furthermore, it's very unlikely his survey actually suggested a full rewire, unless it was done by an electrician. Almost every survey states that electrics in a property fail to meet current standards and you may need to budget for a rewire. That's because electrical standards change so frequently that almost no house except a new build will come up to code. The vast majority of RICS surveyors do not have the qualifications to assess electrical systems and so they will include a boilerplate paragraph along those lines and suggest further examination by an qualified electrician. So ask yourself - have you seen what the surveyor actually said and what was their qualifications? And do you think the house was appropriately priced or not anyway?

Vestraun

How’s the market where you are? Could you relist and find a new buyer?

AnotherJoe

Great point by PoP, did occur to me that your house must be very ancient if the survey actually said it needed a rewire.Then it woudl likely be on the verge of being declared unsafe and electrics switched off. Did an electrician actually inspect the house?

Have you actually seen that part of the survey?

Does sound as if you are being taken for a mug TBH.

hazyjo

What did the survey value the house at? If the same as buying price, I'd say thanks but no thanks and remarket. Or agree to meet in the middle.

As above though, it's highly unlikely it said it needed a rewire. Prob just that it didn't meet current regs.

NameUnavailable

So the buyer wants you to pay and get the work done before they buy?

I see your options as being a) refuse and remarket b) do what the buyer has demaded c) get your own checks done and a quote for any works and then get that work done or d) offer a reduction towards the work. 

What you decide is absolutely down to you. Personally I think the buyer sounds like they are being unreasonable but then as a FTB maybe they don't have funds to do any work (if indeed a full rewire is necessary).

Falafels

You haven't exchanged contracts, your sale may fall through for unrelated reasons... and you could be left with a £4090 bill for works you hadn't sought out in the first place. If it was purely a safety issue with the current wiring, then he would have a point - but decking lights, wired smoke alarms etc? No, he's taking the pee pee. Do you know what type of survey he had? If you really want to be sure, then order your own EICR anyway - which might be a useful thing to have in any future negotiations.

Meanwhile... I'd gently, firmly and politely decline his demands, and remarket. Within my experience, very demanding buyers will keep on demanding, too.

comeandgo

No no no, tell him you are putting house back on the market.  He may relent as he has already spent money on your house but if he gets his way with this what else will he try.

Jeepers_Creepers

David, probably worth getting a couple of quotes yourself - see how they compare with his. Part of this will effectively be a 'survey' by the sparkies - an assessment of your wiring's condition, and whether a 'full' rewire is genuinely needed. 

Depending on the outcome, your choice is to perhaps meet him part-way - ie accept maybe £1k or possibly a bit more (depending on what the quotes are like) off the selling price if this will get things moving and completes the deal painlessly, or you could simply report back that your survey said only X was required and that's something he should expect to have to do himself over time - you've already knocked £7k off the price. 

I don't think that I would accept that I'd need to sort all this before the sale continues - that could be a significant delaying factor. It is more usual for a compromise to be found in a revised offer and the buyer then gets the work done after they've bought the house (then he can add as many bludy lights as he wants...) 

It is unreasonable for him to 'demand' this - he simply cannot. He does, of course, have the same options as you - he can walk away if he isn't happy with your response. 

As asked above, what is the market like where you are? Would you even consider renting it out instead of selling? If you feel reasonable secure you have alternatives, that obviously puts you in a better position to tell him to take it or leave it. 

theoretica

Just a point, but if this is in Scotland interlinked smoke alarms will be a legal requirement next year, so if I were buying a house now I would expect it to have them, or for this to be reflected in the price.