Right or wrong time to pull out of a sale

marie rosanna

Hi, I have had a bit of a situation, I verbally agreed to buy a house, handshake, no deposit, with owner directly. After a month of my solicitor contacting by letter, phone and fax, requesting contracts I decided to look elsewhere and found something I liked. I pulled out of the deal, (my solicitor wrote to the vendors solicitor) and the vendors contract crossed over in the post. I sent him a text, letting him know that my solicitor had contacted his and that I would no longer be buying the property. I have had a number of texts which are quite abusive, and upsetting. The property I am looking to buy is in the same small town and am frankly a bit worried about bumping into him. I do feel bad and upset that he is so upset,,, so what I am saying is 1. I would recommend always going via an estate agent, not good to get personnel, and 2. have other people pulled out of buying without deposit paid, nothing signed with only verbal agreement and experienced anything like this or this kind of kick back??

crackcrack30

You should have sent him a sol's letter outlining a timeframe to sign up or else a null sale....I'm old fashioned so my handshake would have been my word and deposit.

marie rosanna

crackcrack30 wrote: »

You should have sent him a sol's letter outlining a timeframe to sign up or else a null sale....I'm old fashioned so my handshake would have been my word and deposit.

thanks for your input, and I do feel bad, but I am over a year trying to buy a house (for cash) and as time is moving on, I felt that trying to extract deeds from the vendors solicitor for over a month was a bit unacceptable, there were also one or two more issues, I suppose it just all felt wrong and as this is the last purchase I will ever make I had to make a decision that was in my best interests at that time.

crackcrack30

It is one of the biggest decisions of your adult life & everything happens for a reason....I'm sure he'll get over it.

saucyleopard

My dad bought a bit of land at an auction a few years back, paid the deposit and assumed the land was his until the farmer handed back the check a couple of weeks later as he had got a better price. My father ,unfortunately ,didn't take him to court and we all got over it. This was much worse than what occured between you and the house owner so he'll get over it too. He should have gotten he's finger out!

marie rosanna

crackcrack30 wrote: »

It is one of the biggest decisions of your adult life & everything happens for a reason....I'm sure he'll get over it.

thanks again, but I would definately advise people to work with estate agents (good or bad) to avoid something like this in the future.

marie rosanna

saucyleopard wrote: »

My dad bought a bit of land at an auction a few years back, paid the deposit and assumed the land was his until the farmer handed back the check a couple of weeks later as he had got a better price. My father ,unfortunately ,didn't take him to court and we all got over it. This was much worse than what occured between you and the house owner so he'll get over it too. He should have gotten he's finger out!

thanks, there were a couple of other issues too, that were ringing alarm bells and I did think over a month was odd, sorry to hear about your dad`s deal.

Muff Richardson

crackcrack30 wrote: »

You should have sent him a sol's letter outlining a timeframe to sign up or else a null sale....I'm old fashioned so my handshake would have been my word and deposit.

this has to be some kind of joke right???

I and several other people I know have gone sale agreed only to have buyer pull out even after booking deposits. everything refunded in full, no comeback for seller. you should expect a sale agreed 3/4 times before closing.

everything in favour of the buyer. it's par for course. the seller should expect this much.

OP you've done nothing wrong, there are terms and conditions in place which you have adhered to, it's business. call the guards if you receive any more abuse, end of story.

Mike Tobacco

First of all, someone sending you abusive and upsetting texts is completely out of order, you shouldn't feel afraid of bumping into anyone in your home town. If that continues you should let him know in no uncertain terms that you will get the Gardai involved if needs be.

That said, you did have a deal with the guy and it shouldn't come as a surprise to you that he's not happy about you reneging on it. He no doubt thought that he was being sound by agreeing to sell to you without a deposit. You must know each other reasonably well for him to have made that deal with you, so he's probably also annoyed that you didn't approach him directly when there were issues with his solicitor and certainly when you decided to pull out altogether. After all, he may not even have been aware that there were any delays on his side!

I would say always be careful about doing business with people you know or who live in your home area. If you do make informal deals with people then either stick to them or, if you have any issues, give them a chance to resolve them - this is usually the easiest way to avoid any ill-feeling.

marie rosanna

Muff Richardson wrote: »

this has to be some kind of joke right???

I and several other people I know have gone sale agreed only to have buyer pull out even after booking deposits. everything refunded in full, no comeback for seller. you should expect a sale agreed 3/4 times before closing.

everything in favour of the buyer. it's par for course. the seller should expect this much.

OP you've done nothing wrong, there are terms and conditions in place which you have adhered to, it's business. call the guards if you receive any more abuse, end of story.

no joke, text messages not nice, laying on a lot of emotional guilt, I just needed to know that what I did by withdrawing from sale was not as life destroying as implied by vendor. thanks for your feedback

Digital Society

Life destroying? This chap has issues.

If he was the one buying and the house was beside his parents and you then decided not to sell it would be a big deal.

But him being lazy is his own fault.

marie rosanna

Mike Tobacco wrote: »

First of all, someone sending you abusive and upsetting texts is completely out of order, you shouldn't feel afraid of bumping into anyone in your home town. If that continues you should let him know in no uncertain terms that you will get the Gardai involved if needs be.

That said, you did have a deal with the guy and it shouldn't come as a surprise to you that he's not happy about you reneging on it. He no doubt thought that he was being sound by agreeing to sell to you without a deposit. You must know each other reasonably well for him to have made that deal with you, so he's probably also annoyed that you didn't approach him directly when there were issues with his solicitor and certainly when you decided to pull out altogether. After all, he may not even have been aware that there were any delays on his side!

I would say always be careful about doing business with people you know or who live in your home area. If you do make informal deals with people then either stick to them or, if you have any issues, give them a chance to resolve them - this is usually the easiest way to avoid any ill-feeling.

sound advice Mike, thanks, I didnt know him before this, and am now buying not far from the home he was selling me, and I had tried to make contact with him, but he did not return my texts. He was aware of delays with his solicitor,,, but for future reference I would suggest that people go via EA. Have kept the texts on my phone should I need them in the future, and if people could forgive me for sounding a bit dramatic or nervous I dont mean to.
I am buying on my own and will be living on my own and when this sale goes through ( hopefully) I will be living closer to my children and grandchildren. Thanks everyone for your advice and thoughts on this, much appreciated

Muff Richardson

marie rosanna wrote: »

no joke, text messages not nice, laying on a lot of emotional guilt, I just needed to know that what I did by withdrawing from sale was not as life destroying as implied by vendor. thanks for your feedback

Marie/op, I think you've misunderstood my post. My "this has to be a joke" comment was in reference to somebody referring to a handshake and a wink being some kind of done deal heart and soul obligation on your behalf. I was saying you've done nothing wrong and owe the seller nothing by pulling out. This isn't the 1800's Ireland spitting on hands with a deal made and the seller giving you abuse for doing nothing other than what you are entitled to do by terms and agreements both parties have agreed to means you should take one more step by telling this seller that the guards will be contacted if you receive any further contact.

marie rosanna

Muff Richardson wrote: »

Marie/op, I think you've misunderstood my post. My "this has to be a joke" comment was in reference to somebody referring to a handshake and a wink being some kind of done deal heart and soul obligation on your behalf. I was saying you've done nothing wrong and owe the seller nothing by pulling out. This isn't the 1800's Ireland spitting on hands with a deal made and the seller giving you abuse for doing nothing other than what you are entitled to do by terms and agreements both parties have agreed to means you should take one more step by telling this seller that the guards will be contacted if you receive any further contact.

thanks muff richardson, no I did realise what you were saying, by saying if this was a joke, I couldnt believe his reaction either, and I came on the site here just to have it confirmed to me that what I did (by pulling out of the deal) was not as catastrophic as he stated it to be. That pulling out of deal, having been agreed, as you say, by handshake does not compel me to continue with the sale if things dont seem right . There is more to the story which I wont go into here. I have also not responded to his messages and they have ceased, (he sent 3 in total), Thanks again.

crackcrack30

Muff Richardson wrote: »

this has to be some kind of joke right???

I and several other people I know have gone sale agreed only to have buyer pull out even after booking deposits. everything refunded in full, no comeback for seller. you should expect a sale agreed 3/4 times before closing.

everything in favour of the buyer. it's par for course. the seller should expect this much.

OP you've done nothing wrong, there are terms and conditions in place which you have adhered to, it's business. call the guards if you receive any more abuse, end of story.

No joke , there is a seperate forum for that....
Don't enter arrangements such as buying a house lightly and don't go out for a pint of milk and come back with an apartment in kiev...people pull out of deals , people get upset ....this dosen't mean that we should all do it willy nilly what purpose dose that serve? Oh ya I remember half baked poorly thought out bids driving property prices up out of the reach of those that stick to their limits or have done some research ect....with no close of sale in the end.... Brilliant.

Muff Richardson

crackcrack30 wrote: »

No joke , there is a seperate forum for that....
Don't enter arrangements such as buying a house lightly and don't go out for a pint of milk and come back with an apartment in kiev...people pull out of deals , people get upset ....this dosen't mean that we should all do it willy nilly what purpose dose that serve? Oh ya I remember half baked poorly thought out bids driving property prices up out of the reach of those that stick to their limits or have done some research ect....with no close of sale in the end.... Brilliant.

Say what? I was the seller, I've had people pull out on the sale agreed, it was below asking, it's in the hands of the buyer and that's they way it is, it's equity law, they got their deposit back. I got dicked if anyone but it's within the rules/terms of agreement. This isn't a second hand car or a pint of milk from your friendly shop keeper you want to keep on good terms with, it's a lifelong mortgage or lifelong cash lump sum obtained from none of my business.

marie rosanna

crack crack 30,,,,none of this arrangement was done lightly nor without a lot of thought, it is a final buy on my part, I dont expect to move home again in my lifetime, so it must be the right one, and with a small amount of money that I have left. I dont think its ok to generalise nor compare the situation to going out to buy a bottle of milk, and I also am absolutely sure that my singular action has no baring on house prices increasing,,, trust me, making decisions willy nilly is not my style. But its good to hear different opinions albeit ones, like yours, that perhaps blankets some underlying anger from past experience. I did post this situation to get an overall view of peoples thinking... and I feel I have been supported (98%) in my decision to pull out of the deal. It doesnt make me feel better about the vendors feeling, but it does show me that pulling out of deals at the stage I did, can be the norm. I might add at this stage that this is the 5th property I have tried to buy in the last 15 mths. In previous cases to this:-,
Property 1. I paid heavily on a surveyor report just to find out that the house I had a deposit on had no planning permission.
Property 2. Waited 6 mths for a bank to give permission to the vendor to sell and I ended up pulling out because of other monies owed by the vendor and the property was not going to be released in the near future - its still up for sale, I put a deposit on last july 2013
Property 3. There were boundery issues, and the vendor wanted me to buy house were half of the garden right up to the house back door and the water source not included in sale. Although initially I was told it was.
property 4. The vendor selling forgot that the very sick relative actually owned the house and not him nor was he in a position to sell the property.
All of the above had deposits paid up front and surveyors reports done, and monies lost on these reports and valuable time lost..... so the term or thinking willy nilly is not in my vocabulary, but "cautious" most certainly is.

Henry Ford III

saucyleopard wrote: »

My dad bought a bit of land at an auction a few years back, paid the deposit and assumed the land was his until the farmer handed back the check a couple of weeks later as he had got a better price. My father ,unfortunately ,didn't take him to court and we all got over it. This was much worse than what occured between you and the house owner so he'll get over it too. He should have gotten he's finger out!

Seller of the land was quite entitled to do that. No signed contracts means no legally binding obligation.

Court action would have failed there too I reckon.

iguana

Muff Richardson wrote: »

Say what? I was the seller, I've had people pull out on the sale agreed, it was below asking, it's in the hands of the buyer and that's they way it is, it's equity law, they got their deposit back.

It's in the hands of the seller too. Between going sale agreed and signing contracts either party can pull out at any point without penalty. (Other than the costs they have incurred with solicitors/surveyors/etc).

Muff Richardson

iguana wrote: »

It's in the hands of the seller too. Between going sale agreed and signing contracts either party can pull out at any point without penalty. (Other than the costs they have incurred with solicitors/surveyors/etc).

sorry, yeah, I agree but I think its more in the hands of the buyer as the seller is the more likely to want to close as with any kind of sale really.

I dont think booking deposits should be refunded in full no questions asked...I had a sale agreed which I kept getting stalled with excuses for 8 weeks for closing contracts to be signed (my fault for trusting the other party I know), anyway they bailed and the other interested lower bidders had gone elsewhere by that stage.

jon1981

IMO the buyer gets screwed, all the cards are with the seller.

I , as a buyer can:

put in a bid with booking deposit - 5k
pay a solicitor - 2k
paya valuer - 150e
pay a surveyor - 300e
take lots of time off work

and then the seller can walk away thank you very much and i'm stuck with above and waiting months for my booking deposit back.


So a "handshake should be your bond?" ... get the boat. Dream land stuff.

Harbourside

Can I back out of a verbal agreement with an estate agent to sell my house. No paperwork signed or issued yet between us. If I decide to sell privately in the near future can they take legal action?

hayse

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119073218#Comment_119073218

Start back pedalling and fast.

Dav010

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119073218#Comment_119073218

Contract can be verbal or written. But it would be your word against his so hard to see how there would be any repercussions. But tell them straight away and expect your life to be consumed by tyre kickers, time wasters and hopefully, genuine bidders who have the finance necessary to buy your house.

Former Former Former

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119073218#Comment_119073218

Why do you think they would take legal action? I would only imagine that would happen if they found a buyer for your house and you subsequently sold to that person and cut the EA out of the loop.

If you haven't paid them, they haven't done any work so there's no harm done. They won't bat an eyelid.

Grolschevik

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/90398292#Comment_90398292

This just happened to me, with the sugar on top that the vendor is reneging after contracts exchanged, signed, and full deposit paid.

Wants to put it back up on the market for more. I'm currently exploring my options...

Marcusm

Your solicitor should issue a notice for completion, assuming that you are in a position to do so.

Mad_maxx

the OP is too precious for the world of property , pull out and forget about it , the vendor will have it sold in a week right now

Mad_maxx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/90386361#Comment_90386361

You're dad had all the aces there and could have sued the vendors ar5e off , that he sold it to someone else only added to the illegitimacy of the vendor

Even he felt remorse - regret about having sold it , he couldn't pull out as it was an auction unless you're dad missed closing deadline?

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/90396321#Comment_90396321

He said it was bought at an auction. Why the contracts were not signed at the auction may be a different matter but if it was a legitimate auction, he'd have been held to it

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119073598#Comment_119073598

Has to be in writing for property.