Buyer having second survey done

[LoyalGuide]

Hi all,
I viewed a house I liked about 4 months ago but another buyer made an offer before I could and it was accepted. I moved on.

Recently, I saw a different house on the same street (but it's too small grrr) and I noticed that the house I viewed previously still had its sale sign outside. As I was walking back to my car, I saw the seller/owner come out and as I walked past I said hello and just told him I had just been to view his neighbour's house, and that I had actually seen his house a few months earlier. He seemed to stop to talk, so I just congratulated him on getting a buyer and asked if he was near completion.

I didn't expect him to tell me that he was feeling frustrated with his buyer and that apparently his buyer "couldn't get the money he needed", and another bank survey is being done. He said it's all up in the air but they should know for sure in about 1-2 weeks.

I said, sorry to hear that and hope it goes ok, then politely left after a bit of small talk.

Anyways, I started wondering if maybe this first house might come back to market. I called the estate agent who marketed it to let me know if it does. The agent seemed annoyed (no idea why but they were a bit short and rude tbh!). The estate agent said that everything is going fine with that purchase and the buyer and vendor are hoping to exchange soon and they aren't allowed to share details about it. This is completely different to what the seller actually told me.

Anyways, does anyone have an idea why a "second bank survey" might be done? I wondered if it was a new lender the buyer went to? Or, do banks normally do second surveys if they've already told you they won't you all the money? Bit new to this.

Please tell me if I'm reading too much into this? Thanks!

@catswithbowties thank you! I will just have to let it go and if the EA calls back, then all good, but if not, hopefully something else will come up.

@LoyalGuide I totally understand it's disappointing when you really like a house but I honestly think with properties, if it's meant to be, it'll happen. Keep searching, you'll probably find something you end up loving even more! Fingers crossed for you.

@catswithbowties thank you :(
it's been quite stressful. not many houses and not many good houses either.

btw did you buy recently? glad it worked out for you. no place like home

You actually sign the contracts fairly early on but leave them undated. The conveyancers will date them on exchange and that’s when it become legally binding. Signing the contracts means the seller has agreed to the contents and fittings and sale price as it is but it doesn’t actually mean anything until contracts are exchanged.

Drop a note through the door of the property to the vendor and say that you are interested in purchasing if it falls through for any reason. Just bypass the EA

Impossible to know exactly why.

Maybe the EA sees this as the best way of getting their commission and the seller has been a pain all along or there are other issues that make them believe that this is genuinely the best price the house will sell for and the best chance of the vendor doing a deal. It may be that the buyers are signed up to the EAs mortgage brokers or conveyancers which gets them additional revenue - something unlikely to be repeated with another buyer.

Or maybe they want the buyers to get it cheap for some reason and are suggesting this as a negotiating tactic for the buyer while batting away any other interested parties.

Or maybe a load of other reasons.

Whatever their motivation I would just do what many others have suggested and put a note through the door to the seller or contact the seller directly. Make sure that the agent isn't in a position to "intercept" your communication.

Assuming there are no changes to fundamentals of the contract ie. Agreed Price the seller can sign in readiness, with completion date added later.

Thanks everyone for your responses. I've dropped a note through the vendor's door earlier this afternoon. The vendor opened the door (lol!). Anyways, we chatted briefly and he just confirmed he had signed the contracts but "no news yet" from the buyer. I think I left it on a good note, fingers crossed!

I guess it sounds like it's 50/50. Vendor has signed contracts but it's not a done deal yet and it seems buyer hasn't sorted their side out yet. time will tell.

thanks all for encouraging me to try and I guess I shouldn't get my hopes up too high, but at least I know I tried my best.

@WhereIsMyLight thanks for this.
Just for my own knowledge, how early on would I/seller sign the contract? I didn't realise it was like this.

Does the seller always draw up the contract first? i just don't know

It depends on the conveyancing process, it’s when the seller has pulled together the fittings and contents, so they’ve pulled together a form that says what is integrated, what they are leaving (which can include things like curtain poles, blinds, oven) or things from the above list that they may be willing to sell you. We probably signed the contracts in June but didn’t actually move until November.

So the seller has signed the contracts means that he’s signed the contract. It doesn’t actually mean it’s any closer to completing. It does mean you could still have found something else and be ready to exchange before his contract has been exchanged. You need to still keep looking because it could drag on for a while and it still could go through.

Sounds like a crappy agent (as is usual), you'd think they would be glad to know you are still interested if this falls through. Always makes me laugh when being an estate agent is referred to as a 'professional', giving my many many experiences of dealing with them in various parts of the country.

Another Update 😬

I forgot to mention that when i dropped off the note to the seller, he also mentioned making contact with me "in a week because it could go either way". i.e. that the exchange may or may not happen. I should have mentioned that.

I'm hoping the seller has put a deadline on the exchange date and hearing back about the second bank's survey. fingers crossed. perhaps my chances are 50/50 now, rather than 0 a few days ago 🙃

@WhereIsMyLight thanks for your explanation. It sounds like the seller is waiting on the buyer and you're right, there's no formal exchange as yet. i never quite understood this part of the process before, now I get it :)

@Portakalkedi yes! the first EA was really rude, basically making me feel like i should never call again. He is a Manager there too, so quite "high up" for a estate agent world. The second EA was a bit more forthcoming and more polite. I honestly can't wait to buy a house soon because I can't stand the types of people in this industry. i don't think i'd ever move again haha