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Original poster

Price agreed but facts not disclosed by vendor, can I ask for money off now?

46 replies

OhWesternWind · 02/02/2012 15:01

I got a good price on a house which needs quite a lot of work doing, and the vendors accepted this on the understanding that they would not take any more off if there were problems arising from the survey etc. This is two brothers selling the property that was their parents'. They probably grew up in this property and live in the same town so would be well aware of the problems below.

There are three main issues that have come up today from my solicitor.

a The vendors have now disclosed that the brook at the bottom of the garden has flooded into the garden whereas previously they said there was no history of flooding

b My solicitor has found out that the property is leasehold whereas the vendors declared it to be freehold and

c There is an extension on the rear which is clearly an extension and was identified as such by the survey which they are denying is an extension, saying it is original to the house, and are therefore saying that there is no leaseholder consent for it.

I really feel that they are trying to pull the wool over my eyes on this one and feel quite upset. Would I be justified in asking for a price reduction on any/all of these issues? The leasehold is potentially a big issue if there are any restrictions on development or if I have to pay large fees to gain consent for development as there is quite a lot of work needs doing to bring thisi property up to scratch, and also I have some pet hens and I am worried I will not be able to keep them.

Any advice please?

OP posts:
bibbitybobbityhat · 02/02/2012 15:03

I wouldn't buy a house that had a flood risk at all so I'd advise you to pull out.

mrsravelstein · 02/02/2012 15:06

you can ask for whatever you like, and these sound like potentially big issues which would certainly reduce the value of the house. you're not obliged to buy it, and they're not obliged to sell it, so just work out what you now think it's worth and take it from there.

Original poster
OhWesternWind · 02/02/2012 15:07

They are saying that subsequent to the garden floods banking works (flood defence works) were undertaken to the brook so it has not happened since then, but initially they said there was no flooding at all. Nightmare.

OP posts:
mousymouseprice · 02/02/2012 15:07

too many issues, time to pull out.

MoreBeta · 02/02/2012 15:09

Pull out. That is a huge difference between what was said to you and what has been discovered. What else are you going to discover once you move in?

breatheslowly · 02/02/2012 15:10

I would be really tempted to pull out. How long is left of the lease?

IdontknowwhyIcare · 02/02/2012 15:13

Pull out. If they lied about this god only knows what the state of the central heating, boiler, roof etc will be.

oldenoughtowearpurple · 02/02/2012 15:13

b is the deal breaker for me. I would pull out right now and take the risk of losing it, but you might want to ask your solicitor to investigate the length of lease, who the leaseholder is, whether its possible to buy the freehold etc etc. then make a new offer later on.

If you have a stream it will flood sometimes. It's natural for streams to break their banks. Question is how high and whether it's likely to be a threat to your property and therefore your insurance costs.

myron · 02/02/2012 15:14

Leasehold title when you understood it to be freehold AND flooding - I wouldn't bother with asking for a reduction - I wouldn't proceed full stop!

MoreBeta · 02/02/2012 15:16

At what point does thsi turn into deliberate property misdescription by the vendor/agents?

After discovering this I would be seeking to reclaim the legal costs.

Peekabooooo · 02/02/2012 15:19

I'd be pulling out if I was you.

skandi1 · 02/02/2012 15:19

Pull out. And dont give that house another thought.

If they are willing to tell untruths about the Title and extensions then who knowns what you might find once you have completed.

It's also very naughty to claim a property is freehold when in fact it's leasehold.

Under the Property Misdescriptions Act you are entitled to be fully compensated for survey money and money spent on solicitors so far as the vendor and their agent have lied about the title. This act and the estate agency act both state estate agents must see title deeds prior to marketing.

I would make a claim for your spend so far and go back to house hunting immediately. It's all far too dodgy and under hand.

Sorry! Am very Angry for you.

Original poster
OhWesternWind · 02/02/2012 15:24

It didn't have an EPC either but I was not too bothered about that. But these are major issues.

OP posts:
MoreBeta · 02/02/2012 15:40

Put it this way. If I ordered an item on the internet and it turned up totally different from as it was described I would expect a full refund of al costs and never do business with them again.

PigletJohn · 02/02/2012 15:50

(b) is completely wrong and changes the value of the house. Tell them to stuff it and say you are annoyed that they wasted your time. Tell the estate agent as well.

I am interested by what skandi says too.

Original poster
OhWesternWind · 02/02/2012 15:51

How do I claim for the money back? Do I have to get a solicitor to do this?

I am so fed up, just don't know what to do now. It is really urgent that we get a new house as we are stuck in grotty rented accommodation and this house ticks so many boxes for us.

OP posts:
MrsMagnolia · 02/02/2012 16:00

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

cece · 02/02/2012 16:02

PULL OUT!

londonlottie · 02/02/2012 16:21

Leasehold would be a deal breaker for me too. Very unusual I would have thought for a house to be LH - who owns the freehold?

In any case, I would be extremely nervous about proceeding - as others have said the leasehold status would most definitely impact upon value, but the biggest problem overall for me would be the sense of unease about the property in general, which is NOT what is needed with something so crucial as where you live!

iwantavuvezela · 02/02/2012 16:26

You would also want to ask how many years they have on the leasehold - once it falls under 85 or so (not sure of the exact year) - it gets very expensive to "buy" the extra years, and may be hard to get a mortgage. We sold our leasehold flat, and i am so glad we have now bought freehold. As we were selling our flat our leaseholder (forgot the term) sprang us with a £5000 for refurbishments of the property - for which we had little say in, other than to pay!
Our leasehold was around 89 years and it cost us almost £10,000 to buy more years, and you pay for all the costs (estimates; solicitors etc) Tread carefully around around leashold - of course if you are very familiar with it, no problem, i had no idea that there was such a thing as leasehold until moving to this country!

Collaborate · 02/02/2012 16:34

The flooding might mean that you won't be able to get insurance. I'd pull out.

lottiegb · 02/02/2012 16:38

Do you realise that the Council could demand the extension be pulled down, if it doesn't meet building regulations? Sounds like they don't have a building regs certificate, hence that lie.

These people have tried to defraud you and any other potential buyer, whether intentional or not misdescribing a property is a serious issue and could land them in court. Talk to your solicitor about action to recover costs.

Why on earth would you go ahead with a purchase from proven liars? You've no idea what other horrors might be lurking, surveys help but don't spot everything. This isn't about how much less to offer, you're no longer in a position to offer as you cannot know the true value of the house without full disclosure on their part of facts demanded by the sales process and you can no longer trust their answers.

exexpat · 02/02/2012 16:47

Another one saying pull out. There will be other houses.

You asked how you would claim for your money back - what money? Have you actually paid a deposit? Which means you have exchanged contracts? That gets more serious, and yes, you would need to talk to your solicitor.

Or do you mean the money you paid for a survey? I don't think you can get that back, but consider it money well spent for saving you from huge bills down the road.

CiderwithBuda · 02/02/2012 16:53

Definitely pull out. God only knows what other issues you would discover down the line.

And I would def be seeking to recover costs. They need to realise just how serious this is.

I know you will be desperate to move but this house is far too problematic.

skandi1 · 02/02/2012 16:53

Yes. You would have to get a solicitor to draft necessary letter.

I think the agents are extremely cheeky given the title issue. They must be well aware they are in breach.

This is exactly the type of situation the Misdescriptions act was passed for. As others said, it changes the whole offer in terms of value and outlook (ie needing freeholders consent for alteration extension etc etc).

And you should seek compensation as you have been essentially hoodwinked into spending money on legals and survey (what £500 to £1000 by now?).

Hth