AIBU - Pulling out of house sale

[Backtoreality1]

My property has been on the market for over a year, and I now have a buyer and we are looking to complete early June. However, I have never wanted to sell but forced to due to redundancy.

On Wednesday I have the third interview for a work from home role that would allow me to stay put which would be my dream. We have not yet exchanged contracts (the paperwork came through today but I will not be signing until the end of the week).

I will feel so guilty for the buyer, but aibu to pull the house off the market if i get this job? I know there is still a risk of probationary periods and staying this long has eaten up all my savings so there is no financial cushion to fall back on if things go wrong again.

I have looked at the legalities and although I'll need to pay the solicitor and estate agent, there won't be any other financial impact.

What are your thoughts? Move back in with my mum and sell the house or stay put and work my butt off to ensure I can stay here.

Has your plan always been to sell and move back to your mum? Or was this a stopgap and you’re planning to buy again chain-free?

I think regardless of what happens you should probably go ahead with that plan; you’ve no guarantee you’ll get the job, nor any guarantee you would keep it if you did (sorry if that sounds a bit harsh). From your post, I am imagining that you are made redundant last year but haven’t found a job since? The job market is really not good at the moment.

I am sorry that you’re in this position though because it does sound difficult and it must be really hard to have to give up a home you don’t want to lose.

Thanks - I am not signing anything until I know if I have the job....I certainly wouldn't pull out until I know that for sure - sorry if that was unclear. Moving to mum is a stop gap/emergency case as there is no way I can stay there long term so I would then plan to buy again.

My common sense head says to sell, but my heart and soul plead for me to stay put.

How long since you got made redundant?
Also if your house was on the market for a year before selling I'd be a bit worried about finding another buyer in the future if you needed to (as it sounds like things would be tight if it did work out with this job, catastrophic if it didn't). Is your property unusual/having an obvious issue that makes it hard to sell? Or was it just a slow market/bad luck.

Generally I'm not keen on the idea of getting off the property ladder, but you've certainly got things to think about.

When you say "we" are looking to complete do you mean you and the buyer? Is it just you living there?

I think I'd pull out. If you want to buy again when you get a new job the stamp duty and fees won't be cheap.

@ConverselyAttired that is what i was thinking. I also have a really good 5 year mortgage deal which I would lose if I move. Only me in the house. @OrigamiOwls slow market - nothing moved for ages but now it would be a hot property - things are really starting to shift.

Delay signing till you know you've definitely got the job, received your contract of employment etc. It sounds like you've been through a rough time financially and why should you lose your beloved house if there's a way you can keep it at the 11th hour and stay on the property ladder? I know this seems harsh on the buyer but I've bought and sold many times and there's always been ups and downs on both sides, I've been let down by buyers and sellers in the past but it's just the way the system works. At the end of the day you have to put yourself first, people's circumstances change, that's just life. Also, I can understand you having to pay the solicitor for any works done but why are you paying the estate agent if the sale hasn't gone through, is that in your contract with them?

If your heart says to stay, I would stay. Just see what happens in a few days and then you can make a decision.

We had sellers pull out on us just before exchange after 5 months of conveyancing. The job market changed and they decided not to take a job and move away. It was devastating at the time. But it made us change our search area slightly. It took some time, but we found our current house and it was absolutely the house meant for us. I have zero sadness about it all now and really grateful it didn’t work out.

Finance wise though it makes no sense to sell and buy again if you can and want to stay. Legal fees etc why would you?

Based on that update, staying put if you can seems sensible

I’m pretty risk averse and would probably continue with my plan to sell: it’s taken a long time to get to this point and you have no savings if the new job doesn’t work out so would be starting the process over again. But from an emotional perspective, if you get the job and that makes it genuinely feasible for you to stay put then do that. It would be an absolute bummer for the buyers, but it’s a business transaction and both parties need to put themselves first: the reality is they’d put themselves first if their own circumstances changed.

You have to do what is best for you. Ignore the buyers, sad as it might be for them to lose your house.

From a purely finance point of view, staying in the house even after paying solicitors and estate agents fees is more cost effective.

Selling then buying later means paying solicitors and estate agents fees now plus another set of solicitors and estates agents fees plus stamp duty. Plus you lost out on a good mortgage deal.

All this may mean you never get back into another house.
I would definitely do everything possible to stay.

Whatever you do will be a risk.
If you go ahead with the sale then make a great success of the job but can't find anywhere else affordable to buy and end up in rented accommodation long term or if you buy some where you don't like as much as your present house you will regret it. Alternatively if you don't sell but end up failing your probation and having to sell anyway you will regret that. So you have to be honest with yourself about which scenario is most likely, which has the most risks and which worse case scenario you think you would be most able to live with.
If you do pull out it will be for a genuine reason because your circumstances have changed it's not because you have been offered more money so I don't think you would be being unreasonable

If I was the buyer I would be fuming, but that's not your problem. Do what you have to do for the best for you.

Fingers crossed you get the job!

Buyers did this to us within 3 days of exchange. They couldn't help it, their personal circumstances changed. It was a real shock and far from great for us, but we all survived in the end.
If your heart says stay, I'd stay. Moving in with your mum will be hard, and moving on again from that even harder.

Wait until you see if you get the job
If you get the job (good luck!) check the T&C and gauge how easy it will be to pass your probation period (i.e is the job well within your capabilities etc, are they a straightforward well-run co, not about to need to let people go again)
If all looks good - take the risk and stay.
Could you do things like get a lodger if things go South again?

It's frustrating for the buyer but it's a genuine change of circumstances and it's within the rules. They'd be a casualty of our very clunky system. It's just too much money and it's your home, you don't owe all that to a stranger.

If you have a spare bedroom.you could consider a lodger for a while, just until you are feeling a bit more secure.

Unfortunately this demonstrates what is wrong about the English property market, I truly believe that once costs are being incurred then the seller should pay these if they pull out, at the moment there is no penalty. I would caution though that if you don’t pass probation you would be in a really bad situation, wouldn’t living with your mum and building up your savings be sensible?

I think if I got the job, I'd stay. I'd feel SO bad for my buyers, but you can't sell/not sell a house through guilt.

Of course it's a risk starting a new job, but personally I'd take that risk, work my arse off & 🤞🏼.

I don't think they would be fair or workable eg someone might pull out after a structural survey it wouldn't be fair for them to also pay the costs incurred by the seller.

Seconding this! Also people pull out of House sales all their time for much much less sympathetic reasons than you’ve given.

Best of luck with the job and I hope you can keep your home.

People pull out all the time. It’s a shame but sounds like staying put would be the right thing to do if you’re able to and they’ll find something else.