To throw my toys out the pram, and refuse to pay this. ( house sale issue)

[HalloweenDuck]

Ok long back story.
House put on market in the early summer. 8 weeks on with one agent, couple of viewings, no offers reduced price by 10 grand in this time. 1st day with other agents and 2 offers. Both around the same price, but ALOT lower than we hoped/ needed. However, because we had not had much interest or offers before we decided to accept one. ( we need to move financially)
All started plodding along, looked like exchanging end of august/ start September. Find a perfect rental property for us.
We offered to leave the fridge, freezer, dishwasher, playhouse and shed free of charge, along with most of the curtains/ blinds/ lights etc etc FREE trying to be nice and helpful to new couple buying first house together.
While away at end of August we realise they has been a mess up with forms. ( solicitors fault)
So we are looking like end of September for exchange, managed to keep new land lady happy by paying September rent ( Not allowed to move in as havn't paid deposit and rent in advance, just happy to keep it off the market for us)

Our solicitor gets a date for end of Sep to exchange, as time draws closer we find out that the buyers have increased their deposit ( army related) so had to have whole new set of paperwork. This delayed us even further!

We explained the urgency and how we needed to exchange asap.
Thankfully land lord has allowed us to pay October rent ( took money from my business but need it back) to try and allow us to keep new house saved for us. ( again cant move in/ have keys just keeping it for us)

So last Tuesday ( after being told the Friday before it was definitely happening) we got a phone call from solicitors, buyers have issues over a boundary line.

We have a large drive at the front of the house. We sold a stretch of it to our neighbours who have no drive and no parking. All done officially through solicitors etc. The new boundary has left us a small gate ( just under 1 metre) from edge of kitchen attached to their new fence on new boundary line.

However the paperwork from land registry shows a very very small gap on the paperwork. Having spent the last week talking to all solicitors involved in the land sale and the land registry we are reliably informed that the scale on the map means that 1.25 metres shows as 1mm on the map.

So therefore on the map of our land from the new boundary edge line to our kitchen wall, the gate would show up as less than 1mm. They have used a thick line on the map, but we have evidence of the measurements of the sale, and landregistry confirms verbally that there is a gap there.

However buyers are not happy with this still.
So our solicitors drew up a letter stating all the measurements, date of sale, map of everything and got us and our neighbours to sign it.

Just got call today to say buyers still not happy with that and they want a surveyor to come round and measure it and deal with the land registry etc. However they want us to pay for this! our solicitors bill has all ready increased because of dealing with all of this.

If we do not exchange and complete soon my dh will be summoned to court to pay the mortgage debt, and council tax. ( they have given us to end of October to sell and pay, starting to not believe us that they keep delaying things)

I have had a hissy fit after this phone call and demanded that they pay for survayor and it happens this week and we exchange this week or we pull. The stress of it all has made me so ill. My poor kids ( 3 under 9) don't know if they are coming or going. Land lady getting arsy. Living in boxes.

SO please please tell me AIBU at saying "NO they Pay"
mum had operation last week, youngest daughter battling bad asthma this week, I broke my hand in the car door last week after getting a parking ticket and just feeling life is shit right now.

[PlantsAndFlowers]

I can totally see why they want this to be water tight.

Your costs on your new rented property aren't really any of their concern. House sales always take longer than you think so renting a place before you were really to move = a bit daft.

[hiccupgirl]

Can you offer to pay for an indemnity policy to cover any possible future legal issues with this gate - we had to do this with a number of issues when we sold the flat and didn't want the landlord involved because he kept being difficult and scuppering sales for us. It wasn't a lot of money and our buyer was happy that they would be able to cover any potential legal costs in the future. They were silly issues like having no paperwork to prove the previous owner had got the previous landlord's permission to change the windows etc.

I perfectly understand why you have had enough and don't want to pay for a surveyor but there needs to be someway forward if your buyers dig their heels in too.

[HalloweenDuck]

Thanks. Obviously wasn't clear, we have not signed contract or renting new property yet until we exchange. We are just paying for them to keep it for us. Not the issue here, I want to know whether we should pay for their peace of mind. ( please note THEIR solicitor feels what we have done/ provided is enough) They don't though.

[DonkeysDontRideBicycles]

It never rains but it pours does it - sorry you're having a tough time.

I know money is tight. It has been a prolonged exercise. Try and think in terms of, this move will happen and once you are sitting in the next property all this will start to fade and you can get on with the rest of your life.

I might have asked for the buyers to go halves since it's in both parties' interests for this to move forward.

Fwiw my DH and I found we had a land registry issue when we were looking to sell our first home. Our plans ttc were effectively put back a year. It still grates on some level but it all worked out.

[Calloh]

I disagree with Plants, I think it's bloody impossible to fit everything together flawlessly with a house sale and you have to take risks that you might not be ready to move and it isn't daft to do so.

We had a bloody nightmare sale last time and I totally feel your pain Duck. On the other hand I think they are right to make sure it is flawless other wise they will be left with the shit at the other end.

I have no idea about this kind of thing but would indemnity insurance work?

If it didn't I think I would like to say to them politely that you are sat signed that the boundary is watertight. If they want further investigations then they need to fund it themselves but it is you carrying the biggest risk as they might withdraw.

Oh I don't know - sorry, I am not helping at all but I totally sympathise! Maybe pay it if you will be screwed if they withdraw

[Calloh]

Sorry cross-posted! If you haven't signed contract on the new place then I would be firmer with them (if indemnity insurance wouldn't work)

Also hadn't properly noted that their solicitor is satisfied - that is really bloody annoying of them.

Also I mean satisfied and not sat signed

[chipsandpeas]

well if you tell them no and they pull out you might come up against this with another set of buyers

[HalloweenDuck]

Thanks guys. I think we will compromise on half n half. Just so pissed off that it took until now for it to be such an issue.

[maninawomansworld]

Boundary disputes (even over ridiculously small, seemingly worthless strips of land) can be very bitter and costly.
As a buyer I would refuse to exchange if boundaries weren't airtight, watertight, signed, sealed and delivered!

It's unfortunate that this issue has arisen but essentially, YABU. Your paperwork / deeds / plans need to be in order before exchange, I would never exchange on a property if there was the merest hint of any possibility of ambiguity around a legal / boundary issue. Never!

[maninawomansworld]

And I'm very experienced in property - I own 2k acres of farmland, over a dozen houses and several business properties.

[NancyJones]

But why has it taken until now to come up? Have they just found out about it? We had a boundary issue with one property but our solicitor said right at the start it was best to get all that sorted ASAP so it didn't hold anything up and so we knew it was all covered. Why is is just happening now? And why increase their deposit further in? It just sounds like a faff to me.

House buying and selling in this country drives me nuts. DH is a lawyer and says everyone knows it should be reformed to be piss easy but an enormous part of solicitors work is based around property movement and the industry would cave in and apparently that's in no-ones best interest. sorry you are going through this. I'd want to know why it has taken so long. Do they real lye ant the house? Can you call their bluff or just tell the EA that due to the low offer you literally have no more money in the pot to pay for a survey. Not to mention that taking another 3wks.

[NancyJones]

Just seen you have until the end of October. You won't complete by then now if you go to another surveyor who comes out then writes to LR then waits for reply. You'll be looking at 6wks from now. Ring EA and demand house goes back on market. Take a bit less for cash buyer 5wk (we've done it) out. Maybe it will scare buyers.
Did you not think about getting the boundary thing all clear before? In one house we sold a section of the garden to next door. When we came to put on market we made sure it was all clear and told all prospective buyers about it and gave EAs a copy of the LR amendment to show people. It's all so bloody archaic.