Property Purchase contract - is this void.

[FKH]

"That is in the contract 18 months which was extended to 24 but ne completion date is approx 5 to six months over the 24 months"

It would seem that if you haven't agreed to any extension over the 24 months you are now free to walk away.

 

[ClubMan]

When walking away under such a clause do you lose nothing (e.g. including any deposit)?

 

[efm]

And to get back to the original answers - depends on what's in their contract and what their solicitor advises presumably?

As stated already the contract says 18 months, which was subsequently extended to 24 months - it is now 30 months since contracts were exchanged. OP's solicitor suggested arbitration. Vanilla says that the standard building contract is silent if the builder runs over time.

So given all the information we have learned in this post - what are the OP's options - is arbitration as suggested by their solicitor the only one?

 

[FKH]

I'm looking at a Building Agreement as I type. At the start there is the Covenant to Build (Clause 1), then the Completion Period (Clause 2) and then the Method of Payment (Clause3), under which the parties sign. The standard language in Clause 2 is as follows:

"The Contractor shall complete the Works and make same fit for habitation and use (vacating the Site and clearing away all scaffolding, unused materials and rubbish therefrom) within eighteen calendar months from the date hereof."

In General Condition 1 later on it states that the Contractor will complete the works within the time specified in Clause 2 "provided that the completion period shall be extended for a reasonable time if the Contractor is delayed in performing this Agreement by any cause which is not reasonably within his control..."

If you are in a position to invoke Clause 2 then the contract is at an end and your deposit is fully refundable. Obviously the Builder may seek to claim that they were delayed by something outside their control. Getting the deposit refunded could potentially still turn messy in such an instance but the issue would turn into one of whether the delay was reasonable which may be difficult to prove rather than the Purchaser simply facing a Breach of Contract claim.

 

[foxylady]

I'm looking at a Building Agreement as I type. At the start there is the Covenant to Build (Clause 1), then the Completion Period (Clause 2) and then the Method of Payment (Clause3), under which the parties sign. The standard language in Clause 2 is as follows:

"The Contractor shall complete the Works and make same fit for habitation and use (vacating the Site and clearing away all scaffolding, unused materials and rubbish therefrom) within eighteen calendar months from the date hereof."

In General Condition 1 later on it states that the Contractor will complete the works within the time specified in Clause 2 "provided that the completion period shall be extended for a reasonable time if the Contractor is delayed in performing this Agreement by any cause which is not reasonably within his control..."

If you are in a position to invoke Clause 2 then the contract is at an end and your deposit is fully refundable. Obviously the Builder may seek to claim that they were delayed by something outside their control. Getting the deposit refunded could potentially still turn messy in such an instance but the issue would turn into one of whether the delay was reasonable which may be difficult to prove rather than the Purchaser simply facing a Breach of Contract claim.

What exactly do you mean by invoking clause 2 is that the same as arbitration ?

 

[FKH]

I mean that you have your solicitor write to the builder's solicitor and explain that as the time for completion of the property under Clause 2 of the Building Agreement has expired (plus the agreed extension of 6 months) you are now treating the Contract as at an end and the deposit should be returned.

 

[foxylady]

I mean that you have your solicitor write to the builder's solicitor and explain that as the time for completion of the property under Clause 2 of the Building Agreement has expired (plus the agreed extension of 6 months) you are now treating the Contract as at an end and the deposit should be returned.

Solicitor did that only to be told that delays were due to things beyond their control and would therefore not be returning the money.

 

[mercman]

Of course they said that. What would you expect them to say ?? A lame duck excuse. They are building houses not space rockets and their problems are not yours. Example - if they didn't pay their suppliers and could not get the goods is it your problem. You should ask for details in the first instance

 

[FKH]

Your solicitor should get details of the claimed delays. Delays reasonably within the control of the contractor cannot be considered. They may claim that bad weather affected construction or some such. If you badly want out of the contract you will to have your solicitor challenge them on this and explain all delays in detail.

 

[smurf]

I am in a similar situation. Deposit paid. Over 2 years ago. The builders are overdue.

If a person said that "the bank won't give mortgage". Then a person could not go through with contract. What can the developer do.

I appreciate people advice to ask solicitor whats in contract i have asked and the advice is ' the developers can come after you" has this happen people.

I would like to know what people experiences with developers actions

I have paid 11k deposit - total cost 250k ... with 15equity & SD & Fit out I dont want to chase 11k with approx 56k and would be happy to step back from contract ....

My options

1. Walk away and get deposit back ---- best option
2. walk away lose deposit =========== 2nd best option
3. Forced to continue and buy property ---- worst options
4. get into legal battle with developer be pursued have to pay 250k and loose
house -- nuclear option

opinions welcomed

 

[Brendan Burgess]

Smurf

While I am sorry for you, is there any point to your post? Has it not been covered extensively already in the thread?

Brendan

 

[smurf]

I don't think so. I appreciate that guidance has been given re contacting solicitor.

However I am interested as to whether other posters who may have have had experiences of this and the actions of developers, the guidance of solicitors in these situations. Also others may have had experiences where banks may not have given mortgage yet deposit was paid.

I think there is a lot more mileage.

also
Got PM
Trying to add comment but forum won't allow me. You need to contact the Administrator to sort this out and then you might get comments.

 

[Brendan Burgess]

If anyone has any more to add, they can add it to this thread. But it seems to me that the question has been answered. You are asking the same question, so you will get the same answer.

If other people have been in this situation, they can share their experiences with us on this thread.

Brendan

 

[FKH]

I do know of a situation where a person was to purchase a property in Dublin. It took over one year to be finished and the mortgage offer they received when signing the contract had expired. Their bank valued the property at a lesser value than that in the contact. There were second-hand units on sale in the development for the lower amount. The vendor agreed to an independent valuation and ultimately agreed to negotiate on the price.

In this particular instance it would have been impossible to sell the property at the higher price as second-hand units were available cheaper and I would presume that the vendor took the view that it was better to sell and make some profit rather than be stuck with the property which they may not sell.

The vendor had other options legally but they chose to go this route so not all builders will aggressively push for the contract price and threaten legal action if the purchaser can't complete. I hope that helps answer your question. Ultimately my advice would be to talk to your solicitor and have them run through your options.

 

[Dublingirlie]

Does anybody know of any instances where the builder has successfully sued the purchaser in this instance. Obviously you would lose your deposit but if you have no additional savings then what can the builder sue you for.

Also does anybody know of specific cases where a person has managed to get out of a contract or negotiated a lower price with the builder inline with market price so that the buyer can actually get a mortgage to close the contract.

Thanks