Landlord selling, but won’t sell to me

[Flora73]

After 11 months in the house, my landlord has issued a section 21, my contract rather conveniently contained a break clause so he can do this earlier than the 12 month mark.

I have a mortgage in principle, I’ve been looking for somewhere to buy but he has rejected this and said I still have to leave as they want to maximise the sale price. He has even said that I move out and he will let me know which agent it is on with so I can purchase it that way. It just seems utterly bonkers.

And before anyone lays into me I am fully aware that it is his house and he can do what he likes, and I have no rights, but I can’t work out why he won’t sell to me. We’ve had a good relationship to date with no issues.

Can anyone thing of reasons why this would be?

All those advising tenant to act up ,wait on eviction etc that’s the reason LL wants tenant gone
Potential hassle. Costs. Hassle. Disruption to sale

Yes I know that is what he wants but many landlords to give tenants first refusal and are happy to accept a lesser price.

I am selling a flat I i inherited. It is currently let. I have offered it to the tenant at below market price; I'm not desperate to make a fortune out of it and I would be happy with what I got if the tenant bought it. Unfortunately he is not in a position to buy so it is on the market, he's prepared to move out if the new owner doesn't want a tenant.

I've known a couple of people who've bought a house or flat that they've rented, they were given first refusal with some knocked off the price. It's not uncommon but obviously depends on the landlord's circumstances.

You know couple of LL inc you who'll happily accept a lower property price out of misplaced sentimentality, sense of duty? Ok
That is nice for you all and makes me think you don’t need or don’t want to maximise sale price. Happy to settle for a lower price just because

Essentially he wants the highest price he can get for the property. So unfortunately yes, you will need to move out and then go through the estate agent once it comes on the market. Lots of landlords are selling up in my area. Property behind me has been put on the market recently, it needs new bathroom, cloakroom, kitchen, boiler, fascias, doors and windows! The landlord has just tarted up around the edges, and put it for sale at an asking price, which he will never achieve! Looking on Rightmove, it's probably £40K overpriced!! Pure greed.

Is your furniture okay ? It’s possible that the house is so poorly styled or decorated that he’s better off selling empty. It’s also easier with home opens & showings if it’s empty.

I would speak to some agents about its value and then offer slightly higher depending on how the market is where you are.

Has he said he would not sell to you once it's on the market?

It’s not just because though. My friend sold to her tenant because it saved her paying estate agent fees and because she needed to do nothing to smarten it up before marketing it. She got three valuations and went for the middle one.

OP is of the opinion that the house is worth £50k less than the valuation. Did you give your tenant that large of a discount?

I'm surprised that several people are talking about bidding wars, sealed bids and houses going for way over the asking price. That was common in 2021 after the Covid lockdowns, but that was an unprecedented situation. Where I live, the market has slowed considerably and the balance of power between buyers and sellers is much more equitable.

Purposefully sold at below market rate?Lesser price?Below market rate That’s what your recommending
You said you’d sell below market rate to a sitting tenant.

You’re inferring some Kind of altruism were you would have happily taken less money to accommodate tenant finances. As it happens they couldn’t afford the flat anyway

Getting EA estimates on sale price and closing the middle isn’t necessarily selling at lesser price . It’s not the same

It's still like that here. Bottom end of the market is still mad, houses flying off the market over asking within days.

Where did I say it was selling at a lesser price? Although without exposure to the open market, who knows? And it wasn’t me as my three line post makes clear - did you even bother to read it before rushing in guns blazing?

Well that's swell when you've inherited a flat, it's all a lovely bonus for you. Other people have paid for their properties so aren't so inclined to give them away.

Agree with PPs that the dickish options open to the tenant - being difficult about moving, viewings etc - are precisely what has led to landlords' wariness around this issue and why it's more sensible to serve notice and have a clean slate than trust that the OP won't be one of those kinds of flakes.

He probably wants you out so he can carry out any improvements, market the property and get the best price possible on open market. Are you sure you weren’t expecting an easy buy by offering to purchase now? As tennant no matter what the relationship is you don’t get first dibs on the purchase. Just move on and look for another property to buy if it comes on open market and you are seriously interested then purchase through the estate agent but I would be doing lots of research on property prices in the area.

I'm bemused, too. I'm having to sell a rental that I 'inherited'(long story), and I'd have been thrilled if the tenants could have bought it. Apart from anything else, it would save the hassle of insuring an empty property, preparing it for advertising, and paying for utilities and council tax etc for an indeterminate amount of time. As well as that I'd be selling to particularly motivated people who would be unlikely to drop out.

But sadly they were nowhere near financially able to do so.

I think your response is rude and unjustified. I could buy the house now but I would rather wait until I was in a stronger position to negotiate.

I don’t think the house is worth £50k less than the last valuation. I don’t know how much the house is worth, I can only look at similar properties which is tricky as is it is a unique house.

I have no evidence that the valuation was as he said it was.

It’s lovely, and in keeping with the house.

I wasn’t expecting an easy buy, I wasn’t expecting any of this and feel blindsided by it. When I looked around it he confirmed that it was a long term rental with no intention of selling. I wasn’t thinking of buying yet but I could if I found the right house. Ideally I would wait 3-4 months.

And I wasn’t planning on buying yet, this has forced my hand to a degree.

Surely not, Digdongdoo - after all didn't OP say that "I’m not trying to rinse him or get a bargain"?

As PPs have also noted she said too that she's not currently in a position to buy, and yet still we're told he's "not playing fair", that she should be awkward about leaving, aim to put off prospective buyers and all the rest
Edited to add blackmail to that, as in "pay me to go without a fuss"

And then it's wondered why some tenants get themselves a bad name ...

You can get a ballpark figure of its current value from Zoopla, just enter the postcode and find the property. It will also tell you what he paid for it.

He's told you that he wants to take his chances on the open market.

It's probably as simple as that.

It's not greedy to want to sell at the highest price possible. It's common sense and it's what the vast majority of people do. Without putting it on the open market they won't know what's possible. Most people would do the same.

I have not said any of that!! I don’t think it is worth 350k based on what other houses have gone for.

i am not one of those tenants that you are suggesting I am! I have paid all rent when it is due and I have maintained the house at my own expense. I would pay whatever the value was determined to be.

it’s people like you with all your assumptions who put me off posting initially. Must be the evening crowd settling in.

If you weren’t planning on buying yet take emotion out of this a purchase is a big decision. Yes I agree it it has blindsided you by him saying it was a long term rental but you don’t know his financial details. You have not said where the property is I assume he thinks he can get more than you can offer and is willing to take the risk on open market, house purchases can and do fall through so think carefully about what you can realistically afford.