Selling flat but stuck as buyer's lawyer insisting on completion certificate which i do not have

flyingcat_2

I am selling my flat which is in an apartment building built by a major developer in 2004. I have original NHBC certificate. But buyer side said it is not adequate enough for the lender and asks me to provide building completion certificate from local authority. 

I have since been going around around fruitlessly as council says prior to 2013 it was not a statutory requirement for local authorities to issue completion certificate and developer says their only keep documents on file for 12 years and does not have file on my development any more. My lawyer has suggested indemnity insurance but buyer side refuses so far.

I manged get developer issued a letter in which stating that all of their developments were properly inspected at the time of completion. I also understand that there is a 10 years rule for council's enforcement if council is not happy with the construction. In this case it is well pass 10 years. The development has full planning approval from council and S106 legal agreement in place, but just lack of completion certificate which was not a statutory requirement at the time.

Is buyer's lawyer ask for impossible? Is this none existing old paper a deal breaker? What else I can do? Advise please.

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Mstty

It's solicitor by the way for conveyancing.

The simple answer to this is that you cannot make the lender feel comfortable with this. The buyer could try another lender.

You could ask neighbours if they have such a document stashed away that may appease the lender.

saajan_12

Ultimately the options are 
1) keep looking / asking council / asking developer for any documents they have
2) put ball back in the buyer's court, saying you don't have it to provide, so they need to decide whether to
   a) accept the risk given enforcement unlikely after 10 years, and they can view / survey the construction. Then solicitor can recommend to the lender that its not necessary
   b) find another lender who will accept without the certificate
   c) pull out and start again

user1977

I would ask the buyer's solicitor exactly what they expect you to do, given what you've told us. In practice I would expect any reasonable buyer to take a view on it given the passage of time, or at most want an indemnity policy.

(and I doubt it's the lender which has such a firm view on it - they'll just be following the advice given to them by the solicitor)

flyingcat_2

Thank you everyone. My patient is running thin. And said I am going to put property back on market. Agent also said to buyer they need to take a view on this (it was built by a well known household name  developer and over 20 years there are plenty resell in the development). This particular paper just not existes for our development. I have also asked fellow owners and none of them had CC and either had problem with purchase or remortgage. Anyway, now buyer' conveyancing lawyer agrees to put indemnity insurance solution forward to lender, I shall see what outcome will be.