Suing someone with no assets

[Blancko]

This is on behalf of my parents really.

My parents have been wanting to sell a part of their farm for a while to help their kids/grandkids out. After researching it was agreed it would be be best to use an auction house.

Last week the property went to auction and was “sold”. But the “purchasers” are now backing out due to a number of reasons. Think they only found out after the auction the plot is greenbelt.

it has come out the person who made the bid has no job and no assets.

Parents wanting to pursue a claim as it is all a major inconvenience. Its a bit pointless for them imo.

Any thoughts?

Even if PP was in place how were they planning on funding it?

Perhaps there may be a case to claim from the auction house, as they were derelict in collecting the deposit funds.

@Bookworm1111 So they deliberately withheld the information?

They were not selling development land. They did not suggest this land was for developing on. There was no withholding of information. It is normal for bidders to do due diligence. I doubt there is gold on the land. Should they have disclosed 'no gold' too?

Really I think your parents should be thinking they should go through a proper auctioneer who does there own proof of funds and AML checks. Suing is a ridiculous idea. They need to get over it.

How would the fact that the buyer has said they recently quit their job due to poor mental health go down in court?

Is that even a defence?

Don’t want my parents to look like monsters if they do put in a claim

It will likely make little difference.
They will get a judgment for whatever their losses are (what are their losses?) and they will never be able to enforce it.

I believe it would be a material omission to not state that the land is greenbelt in the description. Chances of the land being developed are slim to none so what you have stated seems deliberately misleading to me.

For a start it would seriously affect what someone would be willing to pay for it.

I'd laugh your parents out of court if I was the judge in any claim!

@Blancko - are you even reading any of these responses?!

Why wasn’t a deposit collected immediately after the conclusion of the auction? I’d be annoyed with the auction house tbh. They’ve failed. Sue them.

Im in Australia but it’s made clear at any property auction that you must transfer 5-10% of the purchase price at the conclusion of the auction. It’s non refundable. When I bought my place, I had the papers signed and money transferred 10 mins after I placed the winning bid.

Can you share a copy of the brochure / advertisement with the auction house showing how the property was described by your parents ? Let’s see what the prospective purchaser might have seen ?

You are being obtuse.

The only thing we know was in the description is what OP posted above, "it’s made clear that if the land is to be developed independent checks need to be conducted". That implies the possibility for development and is clearly misleading.

The price someone would be willing to pay for land which can be developed is obviously more than land which could only ever be pasture for example.

That the other interested parties have since withdrawn interest also says a lot...it suggests they may also have been mislead by the description.

Yes, but if they have no money it doesn’t really matter, does it? You can’t get blood out of a stone.

@Winederlust - those were my thoughts. One idiot buyer who didn’t do their due diligence I’ll believe but unlikely to be several.

I agree it’s pointless. But dad has made it a “principle” thing. He’s hoping for a decent figure to settle.

Because he knows the land isn’t worth that much?

The Local Authority Search would have revealed in the Planning Section that the land was green belt.

Many people do buy green belt land as a speculative purchase because it is cheaper as to get planning you’ve got to apply to the Secretary of State.

When you buy from an auction house it is the equivalent of an exchange of contracts. So yes, it is legally binding.

I’ve never attended an auction where a full pack of info wasn’t available beforehand - and that would certainly include the Local Search!

The biggest question is - did this purchaser attend the auction with their Solicitor?

The legal system isn't a way of apeasing feelings of anger or pissed off ness. It isn't a moral adjudicator either, which is a strange concept to get our heads around sometimes. It often feels like it should be - but the cost to you both emotionally and financially makes that a very bad idea. I have friends who are lawyers and they're always saying only sue if you have suffered a real material loss, and are confident that material loss can be recouped as a result of legal action. It JUST IS NOT WORTH IT otherwise.

Your parents need to find other ways of getting their anger out and letting it go. A punching bag, screaming into the sky, whatever works...but not suing.

This is my question too.

You're talking nonsense. The land IS being sold for possible development. When discussing due diligence, OP said herself:

…It's made clear that if the land is to be developed independent checks need to be conducted

I suspect OP's parents are thinking a settlement is easy money and if they successfully sue they won't have to sell the land at all.

How were they going to pay for it?

Our question exactly.

Honestly, I think your Dad needs to go at the auction house.

Perhaps post this in legal?

What financial loss have they suffered?

So your parents chose to withdraw the fact that this was green belt land (I assume because they knew that would limit the pool of buyers and were hoping some mug would buy it without double checking anything) and now they want to sue?

Frankly they got what they deserved. Next time they should be honest about what they are selling.

I guess it is karma that they just ended up with a fellow chancer...

If you win a £1000 settlement but they don't have £1000 you will get £0

If you win a £50,000 settlement but they don't have £50k you will get £0

How does your Dad think they will get money to pay???