cancellation of a contract

[dannymitchel]

As a first time home buyer, I purchased an apartment of the plans and paid a 10% deposit. The apartment is now complete and I have not closed. The reason for this is due to a number of defects with the apartment which I believe is not of merchantable quality. The finish throughout is unprofessional and im not the only person who has a problem with the apartment building. I wont go into the details of the engineers report. My main question: is it possibe to terminate a contract and get my deposit back? I have spoken to a solicitor but im still unsure.I feel like this is impossible and that I am at the mercy of the developers who could not care less.

 

[Lobby]

Without seeing the contract its hard to say, but in general, no you cannot easily get out of the contract, if at all.

 

[ClubMan]

If you are not sure based on what your solicitor told you then you should seek further clarification. If you are still not sure then you should probably seek a second opinion from another solicitor.

Are you sure that the defects merit cancellation of the contract - e.g. are they structural or superficial (which, while annoying, is something that many people just have to accept if not sorted at the snagging phase I'm afraid).

 

[dannymitchel]

The defects are structural. Dampness being the main culprit. There are also a lot of superficial defects, generally poor craftmanship, for example window panes are scraped. Half the development are refusing to close and this is 6 months post completion date.

 

[ClubMan]

Don't new builds have to be inspected by some official to ensure that they comply with building regulations/standards? Not sure if this is separate from the issuance of a floor area cert? Might be worth inquiring about this and if it has happened in this case?