House seller lied on PIQ - what can we do?

[mardyblardy]

We put in an offer on a house, which was accepted. The seller then said that the extension they built should actually have had planning permission (their HIP had said it wasn't required).

They say they only just realised it, that they've called the council and put in an application now, and it'll all be sorted out in 4 weeks. They've said they're happy for us to wait to pay out on surveyors etc til it's sorted.

Is there any penalty for having a wrong HIP? And what would you do?

Do not touch.

Please do not go anywhere near this house.

We had a similar situation, but it was pre-HIPs and the council did not answer the questions on our searches properly.

Ext by previous owner not built to plans
Retrospective denied
Planning appeal ensued

We found out the day we moved in that an enforcement order requiring demolition had been ordered and we were facing losing half our house.

IT took 18 months and nearly £40,000 to put right.

I had to give up work becasue of the stress.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not buy that house.

Thanks, and sorry for delay in coming back online.

The thing is we really like the house, and if it's not all sorted in 4 weeks then we've not lost anything (we've not paid anything yet). Your experience sounds terrible, but at least our sellers have owned up now, rather than string us along or not tell us at all (I'm really trying to be positive here!!).

I'm really torn on this one.

Also, does anyone know (curiosity really) what the penalty is for a wrong HIP? I assume there must be one, otherwise what is the point of them?

I don't have any info, but good luck mardy.

bigbadmummy how AWFUL! What a horrid experience. Poor you lot!

Don't know about penalties for lying on the HIP but it is very rare for planning permission to be granted within 4 weeks. The planning authority have an 8 week time period to make a decision and just notifying neighbours & the local parish/town council takes 3-4 weeks on average. If I were you I'd look online at the Council's website to make sure they have submitted an application and that it is valid and being considered. They may have submitted it but it doesn't mean that the application is valid.

Thanks, I'll check online.

There is no penalty for lying on a HIP.

We queried how our sellers could have answered the questions on the owners informtion pack that related to neighbourly relations so blatantly wrongly.

There had been a huge dispute with the neighbours because our sellers were complete arseholes and the neighbours demanded the removal of the scaffolding from their land after two months (told it would only be two weeks).

A whole folder of paperwork between lawyers for both houses and still the people selling ours said "NO" when asked "Have there ever been or are there currently any disputes with neighbours, resolved our outstanding".

I know you like the house, we loved ours, but we would never have bought it had we known any of what we know now.

We are now experts on planning processes and I am not exaggerating when I say it nearly destroyed us.

We did sue the sellers, and the council but it consumed us for nearly two years.

Ring the council and ask them how long it will take. Better to get the details directly from them then you can make a decision on whether to wait maybe 4 or 8 weeks.

You haven't paid anything out, you have just verbally agreed to buy a house subject to survey.

At least they are telling you all this now and not 4 weeks down the line when you have paid out for surveyor, local searches etc etc.

I agree it would be madness to buy a property with no planning permission for the extension.

I rang the council yesterday - they said probably about 6 weeks but no guarantees.

I've spoken to DH and we're going to wait a few weeks and see what happens. Property round here is moving scarily fast at the moment, so to have a seller who will take it off the market while waiting a while (we have a property to sell before we can move) is good for us. If their permission is declined we've not lost anything, we can walk away. And if they're right and it does get sorted then we get the house we love.

Thanks everyone for your help. Especially BigBadMummy for sharing your experience; it has certainly made me more wary than I was.

We purchased a house 10 years ago pre all HIP but with the property disclosure form. The vendors lied on it (long story and several bottles of wine needed) and we ended up suing them. It took 3 years and @40k in legal fees - we could not sell the house or do any work on it while this was going on so our lives were on hold. We won a six figure sum (allowing us to carry out the works needed) but the stress was unbelievable and we then had to move out for 6 months while the work wsa done.
Basically - do not touch it with your barge pole or anyone elses. If they have lied about this - what else are they hiding?
Good luck finding the place of your dreams.