Having a nightmare trying to buy

user1977

Use his money for something else and save up your own (“clean”) funds for the purchase.

AskAsk

user1977 said:

Use his money for something else and save up your own (“clean”) funds for the purchase.

the solicitor will want to know where the 25k come from if they see it on the bank account so the OP could take that as cash and spend it and save their money.  good idea.

but it does rely on the dad getting that in cash.  i tried to withdraw 7k from my natwest current account recently and i was treated like a criminal, having to attend a 30 minutes interview and produce proof that i needed the money to pay a roofer. the cashier said that they are very strict these days with cash withdrawals and the branch manager had to approve the withdrawal so getting 25k out of the bank may not be easy.

MWT

Using funds obtained from a refund for building materials is certainly plausible, but since the funds are coming from the same person who is refusing to declare his source of funds, your solicitor may still be justifiably concerned.even if it is not a gift.

I'd be inclined to talk through this alternative suggestion with the solicitor first, and see what they say, as they are the ones that need to be satisfied...

Alternatively could your Grandfather gift the entire amount (£15k+ £25k) from the same source that he has already documented? If he could do that without have to have your father send the £25k to him first then that might be a better solution...

ACG

You could force his hand but it would probably result in a fall out... 

You can write to the land registry and the agents and ask them to put that you have an interest in the property. He wont be able to release the money until the issue is resolved. Which would take legal fees and the like. 

Alternatively he gives you the money and you just hold off until it has been in your bank account for 6-12 months. 

You/he has to comply with the law. He can be as stubborn as he likes but ultimately it will end up affecting you one way or another. 

bell2020

FlorayG said:

Does he also live in the house? Are you paying rent? The answer will affect your bargaining power with him
Also have you considered the possibility that he might actually be money laundering? It seems strange to refuse to supply proof of money obtained legally.
Also beware of the Deprivation of Assets law - if he's doing this to save on paying out on care in the future that could backfire on you; please do some research on this

No he doesn’t live in the house. We pay him rent. The house was built for us, we were meant to be buying it off him for what it cost him to build 5 years ago but that went tits up so we have ended up renting it. Now he wants to sell it to free up assets. Definitely no money laundering going on, he is a builder - a business man & he has a financial advisor. He’s just a very private man and doesn’t want to send his bank statements anywhere. 

bell2020

gwynlas said:

Are you tenants of your FIL?
Is he a responsible lanlord providing gas checks etc.?
You could play hardball and tell him that you will be unable to vacate for a sale as he is making it impossible for you to proceed with your purchase

Yes we are tenants. Our rent goes into his business account and he pays tax on it. 

He has been responsible as far as that goes!

bell2020

Keep_pedalling said:

If you mange to overcome his silly attitude, the only tax issue is, unless he is living there, is that he may a CGT liability on the gain in value.  

He’s aware of CGT. 

He wants to sell this house because he wants to downscale his assets because of inheritance tax or something 🤷🏻‍♀️

bell2020

EssexHebridean said:

Ask him outright what the issue is, why he has a problem with what is a perfectly normal step in modern times. Make sure he is aware that he is currently preventing you from buying. It sounds like he could be one of those folk who is convinced that everything is an infringement of his liberties - in which case, you may have a stumbling block. 

He’s just a very private man (and a wealthy, well known local business man) who doesn’t want to send his bank statements to anyone. Which I understand to a certain extent. But it’s a legal requirement and he’s preventing us from progressing any further. 

He’s very difficult to deal with, conversations aren’t easy with him. You can’t reason with him at all.

bell2020

sheramber said:

Explain to him without his compliance you cannot get a mortgage so cannot move out.

He would have to take steps to get you out. 

Can another family member reason with him? 

Easier said that done but my husband is going to go and see him and try and have that chat. He’s a difficult person to deal/reason with. 

No other family member is able to. They all know what he’s like so it’s pointless. There’s only 1 brother and that’s it, their mum died when they were young.

bell2020

QrizB said:

OP's relative has form for being difficult:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6217273/mortgage-and-charge-on-property

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6217271/charge-on-property-and-mortgage-application

I'm assuming the property now being sold is the one the OP was hoping to buy in those previous threads.

You are correct. We were unable to purchase the property. It sat empty for 4 months and he threatened to put it on the market whilst we and our children lived in a caravan. He then decided we could rent it. So we’ve been renting it ever since. Now he wants to sell it to free up assets. He’s gifting a deposit instead but obviously that’s not straight forward either and he’s being uncooperative with this too!!