Pulled out just before exchange

deewillow · 28/10/2024 15:57

Snap.....3.5 months into a sale and due to exchange end of this week. Buyer has emailed estate agent over the weekend to say their financial position has changed and they no longer have the large cash deposit so have withdrawn. Total waste of everyone's time and so deflating to think of starting over with marketing it again.
Feel for you

ForPearlViper · 28/10/2024 15:58

I had buyers withdraw just before exchange. I did cry. It sucks but fingers crossed it might resolve itself. I'm sure your the estate agents will be working hard on it as they won't want to lose commission at this stage.

Tupster · 28/10/2024 16:24

OK, totally get how awful you are feeling right now, but I don't think your sellers have done anything wrong here. The conveyancing process exists for everyone to fully investigate the properties they are about to throw mind-bending amounts of money at. The specialist damp survey would have been a follow-up to issues raised in the first survey - it takes time to get through the process and get multiple surveys arranged and receive the reports. Given they probably offered on their purchase after accepting your offer, it really doesn't sound unreasonable or even unusual to have taken 10 weeks or so to get to the stage they are. These people are probably devastated themselves that the property they were trying to buy has turned out to be in a condition that means they can't risk continuing with the purchase and they probably don't know themselves right now what they are going to do.

I don't know why you think you were meant to exchange last Friday because the rest of the chain clearly wasn't close to being able to do that. But this really isn't people pulling out at the "last minute" just to screw you over, it's people following the correct process for carrying out due diligence on their purchase. It's shit when you are on your side of the fall-out, but you really can't expect people to just plough on and hand thousands of pounds over for a moneypit property that could destroy their lives, just so you don't have your move delayed by a few weeks.

good96 · 28/10/2024 18:06

Shadysadiebaby · 28/10/2024 14:57

We're 3 months in to our purchase and sale. We were meant to exchange last Friday but it got delayed because our seller decided NOW to get a specialist damp survey done on their onwards purchase. Well it came back last Thursday and they've decided this morning to pull out of their onward purchase. They're also dodging calls from the estate agent.
How can people do this? Right at the last fucking minute. And then to dodge the estate agent calls so we don't even know for sure what's happening with them selling to us. I mean, I assume it's off but the estate agent apparently thinks they might move into rented. I very much doubt that though if I'm honest. And our buyers don't want to wait for us.
Fucking arseholes I could cry.

It’s the tough nature of buying and selling property I am afraid.
We had the chain collapse a few weeks back on our house sale - luckily managed to SSTC again within 48 hours and keep the house we were originally buying! It’s sooo stressful, so soul destroying - I know how you feel as you had your heart on the property I bet!

We were supposed to be completing this week with the original sale - would’ve worked out well as half term and I’m in education…. We should now be completing in late November/early December - spending this week packing the majority of everything, number of tip runs to clear rubbish to make it easier when it comes! OH will be able to take annual leave but I won’t be able to!

FrequentlyAskedQuestion · 28/10/2024 18:13

They might be dodging calls while they decide what to do, and might end up going into rented.

Get the EAs to hold on to your buyers until you find out.

I hope it works out for you.

Nextdoor55 · 28/10/2024 18:21

I'd hold your nerve & put a choice in front of them, they can go into rented or lose their buyers?

Original poster

Shadysadiebaby · 28/10/2024 19:30

Tupster · 28/10/2024 16:24

OK, totally get how awful you are feeling right now, but I don't think your sellers have done anything wrong here. The conveyancing process exists for everyone to fully investigate the properties they are about to throw mind-bending amounts of money at. The specialist damp survey would have been a follow-up to issues raised in the first survey - it takes time to get through the process and get multiple surveys arranged and receive the reports. Given they probably offered on their purchase after accepting your offer, it really doesn't sound unreasonable or even unusual to have taken 10 weeks or so to get to the stage they are. These people are probably devastated themselves that the property they were trying to buy has turned out to be in a condition that means they can't risk continuing with the purchase and they probably don't know themselves right now what they are going to do.

I don't know why you think you were meant to exchange last Friday because the rest of the chain clearly wasn't close to being able to do that. But this really isn't people pulling out at the "last minute" just to screw you over, it's people following the correct process for carrying out due diligence on their purchase. It's shit when you are on your side of the fall-out, but you really can't expect people to just plough on and hand thousands of pounds over for a moneypit property that could destroy their lives, just so you don't have your move delayed by a few weeks.

Well I totally agree they shouldnt be shelling out a load of money on a house that has problems they didn't know about. But they agreed their purchase 12 weeks ago. The same day they agreed our sale. I know that because they negotiated our offer up with us and their sale price down on the same day. I DO actually think they're massively unreasonable to leave their survey this long. We were meant to be exchanging on Friday last week. They agreed that date. And they also agreed a completion date of 18th November. As did the rest of the chain. And now they've gone AWOL.
So feel they're not unreasonable if you like, but I disagree. Completely. Why agree to exchange on a set day if they knew they were waiting on a survey? And why leave the survey so late? And lastly, they apparently decided to pull out over the weekend, so why not also think over the weekend what that means for selling? Rather than just leaving us and our buyers hanging?

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