Vendors contribution to rewiring.

lookstraightahead

Why are you trying to get a reduction at all? 

You can't have it both ways. Either accept the price or get a reduction on the sale value.
The alternative is that your daughter just can't afford the house (same as if the chimney needed removing / plaster needed replacing etc

Ashworks

Can you daughter not reduce the sale price but keep her mortgage the same, so she has £2k from her deposit to spend? Unless that makes her LTV too high of course..

mattyprice4004

Without causing a major pain for everyone, she'll just need to accept the reduction and then put the wiring on a 0% credit card or similar.
That's what I had to do with the boiler in my new purchase, and she'll then have a year or more to pay it back before any interest is due. 

IamWood

When I bought my first house. My surveyor pointed to the wiring stuff too as the house hadn't been maintained by the old lady for 30 years, I believe. I got a quote for the rewiring work and we split the cost through my solicitor with a cheque from the seller. The simplest solution would always be the best for this situation. I would not reduce the offer price to complicate things related to mortgage etc. It would also do your daughter a favour for future sale:)

yorkshireladdie

Thanks to everyone for your comments. However despite everyone saying there wasn't a way we have successfully agreed on an allowance of £2,000 with the vendors. This means the mortgage offer and the deposit stays the same but the vendor agrees the price is £2,000 lower and that amount is transferred to the purchaser by their solicitors on the day of completion.

It's not retention, it's an allowance and it allows my daughter and her partner to complete the work without delay.

Far too often we accept something cannot be done. My experience in life is everything is negotiable but you need to seek the right advice.

Thanks again for all your posts, I'm sharing this as feedback and to benefit others who may be in the same position.

SDLT_Geek

yorkshireladdie said:

Thanks to everyone for your comments. However despite everyone saying there wasn't a way we have successfully agreed on an allowance of £2,000 with the vendors. This means the mortgage offer and the deposit stays the same but the vendor agrees the price is £2,000 lower and that amount is transferred to the purchaser by their solicitors on the day of completion.

It's not retention, it's an allowance and it allows my daughter and her partner to complete the work without delay.

Far too often we accept something cannot be done. My experience in life is everything is negotiable but you need to seek the right advice.

Thanks again for all your posts, I'm sharing this as feedback and to benefit others who may be in the same position.

Thanks for the update.  It would be helpful to know the name of the mortgage company who approved the allowance.
Is the advice received that SDLT has to be paid on the headline price (without the deduction)?

yorkshireladdie

It's below the threshold for stamp duty. My understanding is 'the allowance' is a standard agreement between the vendors and purchasers solicitor, and the seller's solicitor confirmed they were happy with it treated as an allowance, and as such it will be included in the contract. From my perspective, as it was deemed essential works it seems a very sensible approach.

Just for information is was a solicitor on JustAnswers that gave me the steer but both the purchasers and the vendor's solicitor accepted the proposal so one can only assume it's a standard process, albeit one that isn't publicised. All parties are happy apparently there was a chain.

AnnieB2018

Have you completed? So the mortgage company actually reviewed this allowance and still released the funds?