Offer accepted 6 months ago and vendors show no signs of moving - ultimatum offered and no response.

HannahRakey · 12 April 2018 at 3:56PM

Hi there,

I'm just after a bit of advice or to hear is anyone has ever been through something similar.

We had an offer accepted on a house that we absolutely loved in October and were told at the time that the vendors hadn't found a property yet (despite the fact the house went up for sale in the June). We didn't really mind because some people don't start looking until once they've got a buyer so we left them to it and were told in November that they had 7 viewings lined up so we thought something would come about. We didn't hear anything over Christmas and contacted the estate agent in January where we were told that they still hadn't found anywhere and were still looking.

4 months later we said we were going to put the mortgage offer in and get the surveys done but we we're advised not to do this by the EA and vendor! After this we left them to it for 5 weeks hoping that the EA might contact us with an update rather then us having to chase them every other week but we heard nothing so we contacted them again to be told that the estate agent hadn't heard from them for a while and if we want to move soon we should look elsewhere. Please bear in mind that we have a buyer who we need to keep happy who has luckily been so patient, but our vendors and their estate agent don't seem to care.

So 6 months since our offer was accepted and 0 signs of moving forward anytime soon - we offered them an ultimatum. We would increase our offer by 10k to the asking price on the grounds that we get a completion date set within the next 2 months or we will be withdrawing our offer. This was put to them on Monday. It's now Thursday and we have heard nothing!

I'm getting increasingly fed up, especially because this is the first hurdle and we haven't even got to the hard part yet!

Does anyone have any advise/ similar experience they could share?

Thank you!!

Red-Squirrel_2 · 12 April 2018 at 4:03PM

You won't be moving to this house I wouldn't have thought, time to start looking elsewhere. Well, that time was a few months ago tbh but better late than never!

Doozergirl · 12 April 2018 at 4:04PM

Have you seen anything else you've liked?!

I think that's your answer

Lolly88 · 12 April 2018 at 4:05PM

You shouldn't give ultimatums unless you plan to follow through on them, you said you would withdraw so you should do that or accept that you will be waiting a long time and that might never sell. You can't force someone to sell if they don't want to. There are numerous threads on here on this very same issue so it might be worth a search but the basic precis is that if you want to buy a house you need to continue you search. If you like this house then don't withdraw your offer until you have had one accepted on another property in the unlikely event the vendors of the current house do start getting the wheels in motion. However the current vendors have shown their position there isn't really much else you can do.

Good luck with it.

hazyjo · 12 April 2018 at 4:08PM

Agreed, you should have kept looking either from the start, or certainly from a couple of months down the line.

They may well want to move - but they may also be totally deluded as to what they can afford which means wanting to and actually doing it may be poles apart. I've been in similar boats before - all have which have eventually sunk!

Your buyer is not their problem, they owe them nothing. Should they move out so as not to upset your buyer? Chains collapse all the time - especially when they've never actually been formed in the first place. Alternatively, you could sell to them and either go into rented or try to play catch-up when you do eventually find somewhere.

Good luck!

westernpromise · 12 April 2018 at 4:27PM

They're timewasters. They waited for a bid on their house to see what they could afford to buy, they can't afford what they want, and therefore they aren't going to sell.

Walk away.

nicmyles · 12 April 2018 at 4:34PM

Yes, I had a very similar problem. It took us eight months from offer accepted to completion. In our case, there were significant problems further up the chain, but the vendor didn't accept they were potentially not resolvable quickly (there was a tenanted house further up the chain and the tenants wouldn't leave) and he needed to find somewhere else if he wanted to keep us.

We were as stroppy as it was possible to be without actually issuing an ultimatum. We also started looking again as soon as the issues became clear and actually put an offer in on another property which was rejected.

In the end we decided to have one last stab at it and told him it was exchange or withdraw by the end of the day. He exchanged and went into rented. But we would have withdrawn, because we were so angry by that point. And crucially, the EA believed us and probably helped pressure him into it.

kirtondm · 12 April 2018 at 4:52PM

agreed only issue an ulitmatium if you mean it. To be honest dosen't look as though they have any intention to sell which is why the EA is trying to steer you elsewhere.

moneyistooshorttomention · 12 April 2018 at 5:05PM

westernpromise wrote: »

They're timewasters. They waited for a bid on their house to see what they could afford to buy, they can't afford what they want, and therefore they aren't going to sell.

Walk away.

Sounds like the case to me.

Your comment of you absolutely love the house could be the clue here - ie they absolutely love it too and arent going to move unless/until they find another house they absolutely love AND it's got more "plus factors" than their current one.

They may well have been unrealistic about how much it costs for that "better house" they want. Probably along the lines of telling themselves "We can get it for 150% of the value of our current one" based purely on the fact that precisely one house came up at that price, but by and large it would cost 200% more for the "better one" they want. Well - those are example figures - but I'm guessing that's what is going on here.

Much better to try and find another house where the vendor is being more realistic and appreciates what the "average" differential is between "what they've got" and "what they want" and, hopefully, just regards it as "A House - so offer me enough and you can have it tomorrow".

It needs both those factors together. Eg I've got a "A House - so offer me enough" and no feelings involved about it/it's not a "love it" one and am realistic enough to know I'd need to be offered 200% of what it's worth to get "House that would be loved". Hence saying you need to take both those factors into account....

Good luck with finding another one. In your position - I'd keep my offer in on this one "just in case" and have my fingers crossed - but I'd be on RightMove today checking out what other houses there are for sale.

ReadingTim · 12 April 2018 at 5:29PM

You don't offer ultimatums - you give them. And you don't give them unless you're willing to follow through on them, even if the outcome isn't the one you want.

So it's now time to grow a pair and decide if you are going to walk away, or roll over like a lapdog and have them tickle your belly for months and months whilst they may or may not find somewhere else to live. Your choice.

Suggest you get on the phone to the EA tomorrow (Friday morning) and tell them to tell the vendor that you'd be grateful for an answer by Monday morning (ie give them the weekend to think it over). In the meantime, ie over this same weekend, view some other properties with that EA. If you don't hear anything on Monday, never speak to that EA about that property again.

Doodles · 12 April 2018 at 5:30PM

Agree, these people are timewasters. How disappointing for you :-(

They've kept you waiting for 6 months, and even with another £10K potentially in their hands, they are just ignoring you.

Restart your house search tomorrow.

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Offer accepted 6 months ago and vendors show no signs of moving - ultimatum offered and no response.

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