House sale fell apart

angelasocks

Well my buyers pulled out of my house sale.  They were cash buyers and offered close to my asking price.  They had the survey done and no request for reduction which I would have obliged if it was reasonable given the good price they offered.  

They pulled out when they had to provide proof of finances to their solicitor.  Said they were offended I had asked for this information even though EA told them it was a legal requirement and not my personal request.  They said they no longer wanted to be involved in such a corrupt system and pulled out.

Also the owner of the house was asking for an extra £10k from me saying his house was worth more than he originally thought.  They did offer the property at a good price as they said it needed work.  But together with the increase in price and they work cited in the survey results it's getting to be more than I wanted to spend on a house.

I'm back on the market with no buyer and honestly can not see any houses that I like and obviously pretty gutted over everything.

Not sure if I'm better taking my house off the market and rethinking everything including whether I actually can be bothered going through all this nonsense again.


Thanks for reading

EssexHebridean

Well if it's any consolation, your buyers won't be buying anywhere else any time soon if they have an issue with a proof of funding request! 

I'm sorry that you find yourself hung out to dry like this though - and on both sides too. If the reasons you originally wanted to move are still the same, then I'd be inclined to say that you  need to brush yourself down, take a deep breath and carry on. New properties come on to the market al the time so the "right one" for you might be just around the corner - and similarly, yours might be the "right one" for someone else who is about to start looking! 

born_again

angelasocks said:

Well my buyers pulled out of my house sale.  They were cash buyers and offered close to my asking price.  They had the survey done and no request for reduction which I would have obliged if it was reasonable given the good price they offered.  

They pulled out when they had to provide proof of finances to their solicitor.  Said they were offended I had asked for this information even though EA told them it was a legal requirement and not my personal request.  They said they no longer wanted to be involved in such a corrupt system and pulled out.

Also the owner of the house was asking for an extra £10k from me saying his house was worth more than he originally thought.  They did offer the property at a good price as they said it needed work.  But together with the increase in price and they work cited in the survey results it's getting to be more than I wanted to spend on a house.

I'm back on the market with no buyer and honestly can not see any houses that I like and obviously pretty gutted over everything.

Not sure if I'm better taking my house off the market and rethinking everything including whether I actually can be bothered going through all this nonsense again.


Thanks for reading

Well they will never get on the property ladder then. 

Onwards & upwards. Your perfect home is out there waiting for you 👍

AskAsk

doesn't sound like you are having a great time.  it can be very stressful and disappointing selling and buying a property.  it is not unusual for a buyer to drop out because they can't prove legit source of funds.  sounds like the buyers were dodgy and so can not prove where they got the cash from.

you just have to be patient and wait for another buyer.

mebu60

Disappointing to lose potential purchaser. EA should have already asked for proof of funds. Their solicitor has no choice but to do this. Maybe buyers' circumstances have changed and this was something they grasped at, as bizarre as it sounds, rather than just saying sorry can no longer proceed. I would ask EA why they hadn't ascertained proof of funds up front. 

Presume paragraph three relates to your intended purchase. 

If you are 'no sale no fee' with your EA and conveyancer then you should only lose disbursements incurred if you decide to stay put. But spring is almost upon us. You could leave yours on the market for a while and see what else comes up for sale in that time. Maybe timebound it, tell EA you will review position end of March.

Good luck! 

youth_leader

Sorry to read this, but I'm a bit confused - did you have direct contact with your buyers?  I wouldn't recommend it for any future transactions. 

By mistake the viewing agent gave my 'buyer' my telephone number and he texted me at ridiculous hours with ridiculous questions.  He also was a 'cash buyer' - but when it came to prove his funds, he didn't have the money, his ex wife in Sweden had it. Everyone told me he'd want to complete quickly so I sold a lot of my furniture for peanuts - six weeks later they finally caught up with him and the coward withdrew by email overnight.

I believe it is a legal requirement that buyers prove their source of funds due to Money Laundering regulations, and it is good your EA chased so early so no more time was wasted.

Don't be downhearted but do detach yourself and remember that nothing is certain until exchange.  Spring is coming and buyers will be plentiful, I hope you are happy with your photographs and feel your house is being marketed to its best advantage.  Good luck.  

RelievedSheff

I guess you need to sit down and have a long hard think about what is the best way forward for you.

angelasocks

Thanks everyone for kind responses.

EA told the buyers they would have to provide proof of funds for any house they buy so they said they won't bother buying a house then.  Very odd but that's their problem now.

My solicitors wasn't no sale no fee so I think before I agree to buying or selling anything I need to find one that is and how it all works.  

"it is not unusual for a buyer to drop out because they can't prove legit source of funds. "  - surprised to hear this is so common.  Really going off the idea of cash buyers (apologies to the scrupulous ones)

" I guess you need to sit down and have a long hard think about what is the best way forward for you."   Yes waiting for the fog to clear before I make any big decisions. 

angelasocks

 "did you have direct contact with your buyers?  I wouldn't recommend it for any future transactions. "  No I didn't have direct contact with the buyers I only spoke to them at the viewing.  

"By mistake the viewing agent gave my 'buyer' my telephone number and he texted me at ridiculous hours with ridiculous questions. "  Sorry to hear that sounds really annoying I think I would have asked him to speak only to EA and blocked his number but understand you would have been anxious not to upset him.

Bolt1234

Its blooming annoying and frustrating.  People lie and lie on both sides.

Yes, I am a cash buyer
Yes, I will move into rented to ensure the chain doesnt break
Yes, I can afford xxx
Yes, I will move at your convienence
No, there isnt anything that will stop me from proceeding
Etc, etc etc.

I saw an article the other day as to how many sales actually go through first time.  It was just 70%.  The rest were broken down into reasons.  50% of the reason was a change of heart/finances.  I suspect these two time wasters didnt have the finances.  They wont get very far if they feel offended at being asked to prove it!  

When the market was over heating last year people were literally mortgaging themselves to the hilt and often surveyors were down valuing properties. That is fine if you have a big deposit but if you dont the sale falls through.

As others have said, dust yourself down.  More properties will come on now we are hurtling towards spring and remember - the clocks go forward next month too!

I sold a parents property at the very worst time but we got an offer after a couple of months and its going through now.  It wasnt in the best of condition but in a great location.  I hate buying and selling but somehow properties do get brought and sold.  I wish you the best of luck 

youth_leader

I had two cash buyers withdraw angelasocks, it is gutting.  The first one said he was a cash buyer in rented, he lied, he was an owner in a hard to sell £750K house. Months later the second odd texting cash buyer was so convincing that I had found somewhere my daughter and I loved.  I was especially annoyed that my car was out of action and we'd had to take a taxi, an expensive viewing considering I found out a week later I wasn't 'procedable' after all.  The worst was letting my huge Tetrad sofa go for so little, I still kick myself over that.  Probably wouldn't have got through the front door here though.

Luckily I hadn't put any offers in/had any surveys done.  Since coming on here I have learnt not to have a survey until the chain is complete.

I hope you can spring clean with the better weather coming and look forward to lots of viewers and hope 'the one' offers soon.