Buyers pulled out today

[Thefaceofboe]

Our buyers have pulled out today, the day we were due to exchange. My house is in boxes ready to relocate across the country. My child is due to start school in September and we both have jobs lined up. We have spent so much money (more than we have) on this. I’m in total disbelief. Not sure what I want from this thread really

Nobody gets the deposit. OP stated that contracts have not been exchanged. It's only after exchange that a deposit is forfeited.

Really sorry horrible for you. This has happened to me as well but not so far down the line. Fortunately we were in quite a "hot" area so found new buyers.
Clearly the system is dreadful but how would you define "proper" reasons for pulling out before exchange?

It really is time for the house buying/selling system to be overhauled. So many ordinary people out through unnecessary emotional and financial stress. Solicitors are probably doing quite well out of it.
Maybe we should all lobby our MP’s. Anyone know how to set up the Government Petitions to force Government to debate this ludicrous system?

I am so sorry. Utterly awful for them to do it last minute.

I feel your pain OP and I am sorry this has happened to you.

We were in the exact same position as you 10 years ago. All packed up, kids looking forward to their new schools, our dream house by the sea and the night before exchange we had the rug pulled out from under us. It was beyond devastating. The new life we had all been looking forward to was gone, just like that, in one phone call.

It is honestly the cruelest thing to do to someone but we were angry because this didn't just affect me and my DH, but the kids were devastated too.

We did get our happy ending though. We went back on the market, but it took another 6 months to sell again and then another 3 for the sale to go through. We ended up finding a house nicer than the one we were originally going for, in an amazing village with a great school. The kids loved it and we have never once regretted moving to where we did in the end.

So there will be a happy ending for you too, even though it doesn't feel like it right now. I look back at that time and that house and I know now that it wasn't meant to be. I feel like we were never meant to go there, we were meant to be here, where we are now.

One day you will look back at it and be glad that it happened.

Pick yourself up, pat yourself down and get back on the market.

Good Luck finding another buyer.

That's disgusting behaviour OP I'm so sorry this has happened, on the day of exchNge as well, awful.

We should definitely be like Scotland and other places where u can't just pull out because you don't fancy doing it anymore!

If they have not exchanged they won't have paid deposit.

This is 100% correct and but if the buyer pulls out after exchange, it is absolutely the vendor who gets the deposit not the bank. Why on earth would the bank randomly get 10% of the value of someone’s house?

The deposit has nothing to do with the bank? But more importantly, they haven’t exchanged so there is no deposit anyway?

This is terrible behaviour but sounds as if male buyer got cold feet. Really it would b good if once an offer was accepted it meant a small holding deposit had to be paid to cover the other parties expenses. I hope you find a new buyer soon OP.

Oh my fucking god, OP. That’s awful. I’m so sorry this happened to you and your family. The system is so rubbish.

I'm so very sorry. This happened to be on the very morning of exchange over 20 years ago.

It's grim and very soul destroying.

But sometimes things happen for a reason that you just can't see at the moment. It will all turn out OK in the end and you may well go onto purchase a better property than the one you currently want.

Dig deep, deep breaths and trust that it will all come good in the end.
Good luck.

I’m so sorry, we were in the same position last month, they pulled out the week before exchange. We wasted 6 months and a lot of money. Can’t get our dream house as the market has slumped and unlikely we’d get what we had back then. Terrible there is no consequences when people do this. The UK process is a shambles.

That's terrible @Thefaceofboe. Just awful when people pull out at the last minute.

Awful for you. Huge amounts of sympathy from me. One thing I would say is it's good this has zero to do with your house - you can stay confident that it's a house that is desirable enough to buy and priced right, and hopefully get another quick sale.

This is criminal.

I completely agree and I'd like to join the campaign. I'm not sure how to word the petition, though.

OP, I have experienced similar, albeit not because my buyers pulled out, (although they did try to gazunder me close to exchange). In my case, it was the sellers at the top of the chain who pulled out at the last minute, which ended up costing me and others a lot of money.

I hope you find another buyer very soon and the conveyancers can whizz it through in six weeks.

It is the people who were buying OPs house that have pulled out, so could well have been the prospect of the shared purchase binding them together that prompted one of them to leave.

As exchange of contracts never took place there is no deposit to keep. Deposits are made on signing the contract. Before that the buyer has no legal obligations whatsoever.

I'm sorry. This is awful.

That’s assuming they own a house together

edited to add I just read the are FTB

I’m still shaking as I can’t fathom how we now have to rearrange everything and none of it is happening as expected. My youngest is 13 months and I didn’t go back to my job after maternity leave as I was expecting to start my new job when we move. It’s such a mess I don’t know where to begin. I’m gonna have to find a new job here and childcare now

Its absolutely appalling that people will do this, I know the sudden breakup wasn't expected either, but its messed up your life in more ways than it would have done to their lives.

This absolutely stinks! Not sure if you can persue them for costs incurred/some compensation ie packers, loss of earnings etc
Is there any way you can buy the new house without selling ie rent it out? I had friends that did this when their buyers dropped out last minute.
Whichever way, keep things boxed up but tidied up in one room. Just take out essentials and live simply.....
See if the EA can work some magic, advertise to their mailing lists very much along the lines of ready to sell now.....
Just be aware that you may have to reapply for a school place....

Did you take out the insurance with the solicitors (normally around £70), if you did most of the legal fees will be covered.