House buying/ selling dilemma

desthemoaner

 Morning folks

We sold our bungalow in August last year. Since then we've had two failed purchases, the first one because of doubts about possessory title, the second because the survey threw up a shedload of horrors. Because they waited five months for us to find a purchase, our original buyers eventually pulled out in mid January. We decided to relist the property right away, and two days later found another buyer. However, if anything the dearth of suitable property has proven to be worse than it was late last year, and so far we've failed to come up trumps on about six properties where we've lost out to buyers with deeper pockets. We're waiting to hear about another offer on Monday, and if that one isn't successful it really does leave the pot totally empty.

To be frank, we've both had just about enough. The properties we want to buy are selling for about 15 grand more than we can afford, and we're too old to take on an affordable mortgage. So I see us as having two options. 

1)We tell our buyer that we can't afford to move, so she should look somewhere else. We don't have pressing reasons for moving which couldn't be resolved by purchasing my wife a mobility scooter and employing a gardener to deal with our large lawned and landscaped garden. The downside is that we'd be letting her down, and it would leave her in a difficult position because she has two people below her in the chain, both very keen to move quickly. So she'd have to find something else in a hurry, although her property requirements are different to ours so she may be able to cast her net more widely. 

2) We tell our buyer that the only way we can find something in order to complete is if she's willing to increase the price she pays for our bungalow. Not keen to do that because we've agreed a price, and we'd be breaking a promise and eroding the buyer's trust. However, I'm pretty sure she's in a good financial position and could probably afford a significant increase. 

Neither option is an attractive one, but I don't really know what else we can do. 

We're now out of contract with our agent. If we took option 1), could the agent insist on us paying their full fee, with their having introduced a realistic buyer? 

Flugelhorn

this sounds like the other half of some tales that we have seen on the forum with people desperate for their vendor to find somewhere so they can move on with the chain and in one case the vendors now wanting more money than was originally agreed. 
the market is ghastly and I suspect many hastily put together chains will ultimately fail/

re the agent - depends on the contract - usually it is if you actually exchange that you have to pay 

MovingForwards

Just pull out the sale, buy a mobility scooter and get the gardener; providing you can afford it.

Otherwise you'll have to look at even cheaper properties where your pockets are deeper than the competition.

dimbo61

You can't find a suitable place so stay where you are and keep looking.
Explain this clearly to the people wanting to buy your home.I
You won't be selling/moving till you can find the right place for your needs

Flugelhorn

Pull out of the sale - better now than in several months, just say you need a specific type of property and there are none available, Every chance the market will quieten down in the fullness of time and hopefully a bungalow will sell easily still and you will be able to find what you want 

theoretica

Why not give your buyer a say and sense of control.  Apologise, say you have been outbid and it looks like you can't afford the properties you are interested in and will understand if they need to pull out as you have lost hope in finding somewhere in a reasonable timescale.

pinkshoes

When you sold your bungalow for the second time, did you sell it for a higher price or the same as before?

Just be honest with your buyer and say that prices have risen so much you have now been priced out of the market for the type of house you need, so unless they increase their price to £X, then unfortunately you can no longer afford to move. 

desthemoaner

 Many thanks, folks, plenty of helpful food for thought there. We sold the bungalow the second time for just a few grand more than was agreed with our first buyers, but in the meantime prices for the kind of fairly humble detached bungalow we want to move to has inflated still further. 

I think that as suggested and if our pending offer isn't successful, we'll probably opt to give our buyer that "sense of control" and tell her that we need more money for our next property or will have to pull the sale. 

hazyjo

You're hoping your buyer will give you 15 grand or so to enable you to buy what you want? I suppose some might pay...

I definitely wouldn't ask. If you think she has money in the bank, maybe say something like it's with massive regret you'll have to pull out as everything is unfortunately 15 grand or so over the top of your budget. Let her come up with an offer if she's that desperate for yours.

Thrugelmir

Pull out. Take a break. Relist the property once the dust settles.