House buying. Are we wrong?

[Prisonbreak]

I'm a first time buyer due to sign missives and exchange within 10 days. In Scotland.
When our offer was accepted months ago we asked if we could access the property again and we were refused. We were told we could only go back after we sign the missives. We accepted this but friends and family are saying that's a red flag.
Just yesterday we heard that the garden fence has been damaged and needs fully replaced (£2,500) This is at current owners cost but the work will not come with a guarantee and should it be sub par then it's our expense to resolve. We have asked for access again as the house/ garden will be different. The replacement fence quote is very vague and doesn't mention height, colour etc.
we were again told we can see it after we sign the missives. Are we being naïve or is this normal?

who told you this? why not just ask your solicitor for clarity?

It’s pretty normal in Scotland. We viewed, offered and didn’t see the house again till we got the keys. Crazy really.

did you ask though?

@spearthatbroc this information is from our solicitor

If you have so little trust in your solicitor that you have to ask on here id suggest getting a new one asap. You could have no end of problems if they get what appears to be a basic question wrong

I'm in England so don't know the answer but it sounds a pretty simple question

well there we go. that’s what you’re paying for. legal advice. and he’s given you the legal situation

Can you not ask them to leave the fence as it is and give you the £2.5k or the equivalent amount off the sale? That's what I'd be asking my solicitor to communicate to them.

it is still unreasonable to request access knowing that the property has been damaged?

Ok, so that's a different question, of course it's not unreasonable to ask but that isnt going to change whether you're allowed to see the house again

At this point you're going to have to decide if it's a deal breaker

Instruct your lawyer that it is replaced like for like or deduct the money and you will replace it.

Totally normal in Scotland.

OK.. I live in England and have only purchased property here and have no idea how different things are in Scotland

but I was advised in no uncertain terms by my solicitor to go and see the property again before completion (is that the same as signing missives?) to make sure nothing has changed and everything is working.

if someone prevented me from seeing the property again, that would be a red flag for me. and personally I would tell them to leave the damaged as they can fudge the numbers on that potentially.

Thank everyone. Seems it’s the norm. We are just a bit uncomfortable about the lack of information. I think we need to decide make or break on this house

There is no lack of information. Just get your solicitor to ask more questions. This isn’t that big a deal

That sounds like the best solution. Just replace the fence when you move in and put in whatever style/colour you want.

When we bought in 2016 (also Scotland) we were legally entitled to 2 visits after offer was accepted. Just checked back my emails before coming to say this!

In the grand scheme of buying a house £2,500 is nothing so I think you are worrying needlessly. The fact that you know about the fence is a good thing.

on the basis of a damaged fence?

No, we’ve bought and sold 6 houses over the years and never asked or been asked.

You get seven days to notify of any changes/issues in Scotland. That's why the first thing you should do when you move is run a bath and put the heating on, even if you are moving in July.

OP it is normal, we always asked the sellers rather than going through the solicitors so that may be worth a try if you have their info. Otherwise, you need to get onto your solicitor with any specific questions. I agree by the way that telling them not to replace but to deduct the money off the purchase price is the best way forward, then you can do what you want to do about the fence.

When I lived in Ireland and bought and sold it was normal to do a walk through with the estate agent just before signing contracts. It was a very good way of doing a final check. The selling fees were higher than in England but the estate agent services were excellent and we were impressed by how they managed the price negotiations.

Could you just go and knock on the door and ask/arrange a second viewing? They can only tell you to bugger off, no one is going to arrest you.

@neilyoungismyhero we tried that weeks ago. They told us to bugger off 😂

It’s an option to ask for the price to be reduced and we do our own yeah. This isn’t the only concern about the house, just the most recent concern

The Scottish system is different to the English.
No it’s not normal and once the missives are done you have no negotiation options or ability to pull out without being liable for significant costs.

we have a similar situation with damage this week, our solicitor is categorically saying no missives until damage is repaired and I have inspected it to be satisfactory.

10 days from sale and if they have an onward purchase they won’t want it to fall apart.