So upset. Cant stop crying

[MummyoftwoBG]

so 7 weeks ago we accepted an offer on our house in Scotland . We have been chasing our solicitor to get contracts signed as due to move in less than a week. Yesterday the buyers solicitor said they were not meeting with their clients until the day before the date of moving. The buyers want a week extension to think about and discuss the contracts . They set the date. We have already arranged all the movers, utilities, mail redirection etc, my daughter has even visited her new school. Knowing now the reputation this people have I am certain at the beginning of the week that we will have to remarket our home. We had an offer accepted in another home. I feel devastated and can’t stop crying. I’m dreading telling my daughter who has accepted moving away from her friends , she is on the Autistic spectrum so this is a big deal. I am currently wearing sunglasses to avoid her seeing my tears 💔

So they haven't pulled out,just delayed?

Now knowing that they have done this many times I’m prepared for them pulling out

Does the contract need further mulling over? Seems a flimsy excuse but it’s one week and the solicitor has a meeting set up. Your solicitor could ask for more details.

They have had 7 weeks to meet with solicitor, this is them just arranging a meeting now. I feel so upset and lost. They set the date and we even accepted 8k below valuation

How do you know they have done this several times?

It’s a small place and our estate agent told us

I would go back to the agent , they should of advised you when the offer went in the buyers " reputation " .
I don't think I would give them a week ( only because they have pulled out of previous sales ) they complete on the day they set or its back on the market.

What @whowhatwerewhy said

Forgive my ignorance if it’s not right - I thought house buying was different in Scotland. I thought it was stricter and you can’t just pull out without penalties.

I think that’s what we will do, I’m so disappointed with possibly losing the home we had offered on. It’s the cost aspect too and the extra financial outlay that we can’t afford with all the work solicitor has already done. I just wish I could will myself to feel better. It’s all wrong 💔

Yes you can pull out if contract no signed

Oh I'm 😢

I though the sales process prevented this nonsense in Scotland. It's always being lauded that it's SO much better the the system in England,?!

It’s not any better, if the contract is not signed the it’s not any better. Human decency should kick in but clearly not 😢

Similar happened to us. 6 weeks to go and buyer pulled out. Missives weren’t concluded so nothing we could do. We’re we’re nearly £1800 out of pocket for legal expenses etc

its really upsetting but you’ve got to plan now what you will do it it does collapse, your house could go back on the market immediately but you’d need to be ready for viewers so I’d spend today doing that .

I thought the laws in Scotland were much more protective of this sort of thing? Won't they lose their deposit which they had to put down to make an offer (i.e they should have already have given ££££ in hold) and be liable for costs?

I agree - say no to an extension. You have agreed a date. But do not pull out yourself, let them pull out, but push for a clear answer.

Also, don't despair too much. We bought a house where the previous owners had already started their house purchase, their buyer pulled out because he was refused the mortgage right in the final hour. We swooped in, bought the already done searches saving weeks and weeks of time and then we completed. Job done in 6 weeks. The house they were going to buy held on because they understood the situation and it worked out well for everyone. So for our previous buyers it turned out as just a few weeks delay and they were able to change the dates of their moving.

Missives are normally concluded well before moving day. This is what stops last minute falling apart of deals. This is what makes the Scottish system ‘better’. But it’s only good if you have a serious buyer.

Your solicitor would normally push for this to be done asap but in this case the buyer is clearly dragging their heels which you can’t do anything about.

If the estate agent knew they were known for dropping out of deals they should have told the seller so they were aware as that could make a decision on whether to accept the offer and also give information to the sellers solicitor so they pushed for conclusion of missives asap

Things have changed a bit in Scotland since the financial crash.

It used to be that solicitors would be happy enough to conclude missives reasonably early in the process. This meant a legally binding contract could be concluded early, and are penalties for not proceeding once missives are concluded. This is why things seemed "better" in Scotland.

So, for my first flat, for example, we concluded missives before we had final mortgage approval.

That would not happen now. Post-crash, solicitors generally will not advise conclusion of missives until everything is done. Much, much more common now is last minute conclusion of the missives - so the same sort of last-minute fall through or back out is increasingly common.

There is no deposit in Scotland.

You put in and offer which is STC (subject to conclusion of missives - basically contract signed to legally agree to purchase a house )

Only at this point are buyers responsible for costs if the sale collapses due to them. This is why missives are generally concluded asap as that where the legal protection comes from.

Thanks everyone for listening, we will know where we stand for sure Monday and if they don’t intend to buy I have a massive list of utilities etc to contact to revert back, thankfully today I managed to stop postal redirection so at least that’s one positive, I could not wait any longer on that I had to be proactive . I’m hoping if it comes to it I can do all the rest last minute…..

I've never known of missives not signed a week before moving date so I think that was a massive red flag  Sorry, OP. I would be insistent next time that missives are signed asap.

Something doesn't add up here.

The solicitors for both parties have surely been working for weeks on the missives ? Your solicitor would be well aware long ago if no progress was being made. Both solicitors would know how close the missives were to completion .

No competent solicitor would allow their clients to repeatedly compromise his own professional reputation, by letting them keep pulling out of the Scottish system at the last minute.

IF your estate agent is telling the truth about this buyer's past history why the hell did he not warn you about them before you accepted their offer?

We have already arranged all the movers, utilities, mail redirection etc,

To a property you have not yet purchased? Really?

Wow things have changed in the last 15 years! We had to pull out of a purchase and had to pay tens of thousands in compensation.

Sorry this has happened to you OP.

I thought estate agents would blacklist buyers who pulled this sort of utter nonsense, let alone allowing them to do it repeatedly! WTF?!
Did you have any other offers on the house? Could your EA contact those people and ask them if they're still interested? Don't move the date at all and if they don't complete, put it straight back on the market.

We are due to sign for it so yes really. You can’t arrange on the day removals . Move out of one house into another in same day