Landlord selling, but won’t sell to me

I stand by what I said and there’s the very reason he wants the tenant out, @Pigeon31

He won't sell to you because he can get a lot more without a tenant.

I think a tenant should have first refusal and a landlord accept a lower price but, as you say, it's his house so there's not much you can do about it. I am sorry and do hope you find somewhere good soon.

He'll be decorating, new carpets etc, maximising the price as he's already said. He can't do this with you there, he can't maximise selling price with a tenant in situ. You can still try to buy it on the open market. He is playing fair. It's an asset he wants to maximise profit. He's not being unfair, you can still apply to buy it when it's for sale.

I don’t think it’s suspicious to want to market the property and get as much as possible? It’s common for houses to go well over the asking price. Who knows what it could go for until he starts inviting bids for it? Lots of houses go to sealed bids and go for 10s of thousands more than asking when 2 people both really want it.

Someone in my family had a similar situation (as the LL) and the tenant offered a very lowball offer, said they wanted to buy but didn’t have a MiP or anything ready to go (and said they needed a month to get a mortgage in principal and deposit?!) and kept accusing the LL of having ulterior motives and not actually wanting to sell. It was unhinged so the LL ceased contact and served a S21. House sold within months for a lot more.

⬆️ BOOM! There it is. Reason he want tenant out. Sitting tenant can potentially sabotage a sale. He needs you gone. Batshit recommendation. You literally need to leave

No. It's actually how I bought my first flat. It wasn't really planned per se, just I was talking to the estate agent about viewing and mentioned casually that I'd have made an offer if I could and they said there hadn't been much interest and encouraged me to go for it.

Your view on disgusting is a bit out there. Disgusting would be trashing the place IMO. Not just a bit of mess and putting off the competition.

Oh for goodness sake, that’s just a disgusting thing to suggest. Are you six?

Hi @Flora73 just to check, what was it that you actually offered to the landlord? I noticed that you are not yet ready to buy, so what was the actual offer to them?

I can understand why they would turn down an offer to hold the property off the market for three or four months until you are ready. Sorry if I’ve missed anything in the comments that explains this.

You never know, it might not feel like it now, but it might be one of those blessing in disguise type situations. I hope you find a dream property, and end up being glad that this one didn’t work out!

LL doesn’t want to sell to you. It’s a you thing, a tenant in situ thing.He wants to sell with no tenant, He’s told you explicitly that it’s a hard NO
Doesnt want to be in a position of expecting to sell to you, sale for whatever reason falls through. You’re still there as a sitting tenant and he needs to sell and arrange viewings
He wants a vacant home. No tenant. no hassle

Besides You aren’t in a position to buy right now anyway
crucially you’re way over invested

Stop prolonging this situation
Go find another house
Be someone else dream buyer

Make sure it looks really messy if anyone comes to view and tell them all the downsides.

When he can't sell at the price he wants, remind him of your offer.

I completely get where you’re coming from and would be just as frustrated. However, he’s not interested for whatever reason so I’d definitely stop pursuing this. If he’s refusing to even discuss it further then I wouldn’t trust him as a seller. You’ve given him the chance of getting his house sold quickly but he’s not interested.
As a first time buyer you’re in a great position and other will be keen to get you, rather than be in a long chain. It’ll work out for the best in the long run.
Hope you find your forever home.

Not really. A house is worth whatever anyone wants to pay for it.
My DS house was sold for more 30k over the asking price. If a house is in demand and goes to sealed bids it could go for anything

Are people missing that OP seems to think that the house should be worth at least £50k than it's last valuation. Don't we think that discrepancy is likely relevant?

He isn't saying he won't sell it to you just that he wants to put it on the open market to get the best price he can. He is saying when it goes on teh market you can put in an offer like everyone else.
What he isn't doing is giving you priority which is a shame but probably understandable

I think he’s bonkers! He’s got someone willing to buy the property from him and pay rent right up until the day of completion. He should be ripping your arm off. No estate agent fees to pay… no hassle. He just has to sit back and let the solicitors sort everything out.

You could suggest he gets a valuation from three estate agents. You could then offer the middle valuation. He would save agents fees and a rent void. It’s worth asking.

I’m not trying to rinse him or get a bargain. It’s just the fact that he will not engage one bit in the discussion

But again, OP, what discussion is there to be had since you're not currently in a position to buy?

And that is exactly why he wants the tenant out asap before it goes on the market.
You are the problem.
The landlord is having to behave as if OP might be someone like you.

He's bonkers. Does he know how much estate agents' fees are?

You’re under misapprehension LL should give you some kind if preference or negotiate with you. Don’t get emotional about it, he isn’t
Agree with LL rationale. Your a bit over invested and expecting to be offered a deal
He wants to sell with no tenant in situ , that is sensible
Dont get emotional about this
It is his property, his to do what he wishes. He doesn’t have to consider your preferences

In your opinion, you have no idea what he’s thinking. The bottom line is though, you need to move out. He’s following the correct procedures. If you don’t move out he’ll take further steps to evict you, and you could be liable for the costs.

You just have to accept the situation and move on.

Given that OP's said she's not yet in a position to buy but should be in a few months I'd say that's very possible

Certainly she could be awkward about moving out - and trash any chance of another LL renting to her in the process - but all that would do is underline why waiting for the place to be vacant before marketing it is the right thing to do

And incidentally that's exactly what many insist LLs should do ... only now this one's doing it that's apparently wrong too

How exactly has the LL shown that?!

He's 'playing perfectly fair' to use your own stupid parlance. He's issuing due notice on a rental contract that has a break. That is his legal right to exercise, to repossess his property that he's paid good money to own, rent & maintain over the years.

The OP has since changed her story (anyone else notice this hey!?), she can't afford to buy the house at the market price she thinks it's worth right now, but may be in 4/5 months time, maybe, possibly......

Hmmm, he got it valued over 12 months ago at 350k, so estimate house inflation at 5% in Brexit land (it was 11% in Ireland btw, go figure , so rounding it up ithe house likely to achieve ~370k on the open market in it's current state. (Unoccupied)

He may be handy at DIY & work supervision and figure a few jobs, new carpets & paint throughout and possibly a kitchen renewal & a bit of staging, and he can maybe realise £410-420k.

So, the OP wishes for him to sell to her at 350k in 4/5 months when she may be able to afford that. And any issues with the sale, section form process (she has already admitted considering outstaying her lease, & hinted at becoming a real nuisance, etc, etc). It will be his problem. Yeah right OP, you expect your LL to do without 50-60k extra on the promise of you being maybe able to afford the lower price in 4-5 months.

If I were him now reading this, I'd just want you out ASAP tbh. You're potential trouble for him now & he may well know it.

P.s. Good luck OP, but act fair & don't act the maggot I.e. if you truly want the house, offer what you think it's worth & make your best offer to him. And then respect his decision thereafter on this. It was always his house & he's entitled to do whatever he likes with it within the law. Respect that at least!

As a landlord I would bite your hand off. Selling a house isn't easy at the moment. He could have the house empty for months and months. That's a lot of lost rent, Council tax to pay and its really hard to get insurance on a vacant property. That's a big gamble. On the landlord forums I'm on, they all advise to sell to a tenant if the price is right and would even suggest a small discount. Are you paying market rent?