Buying house, and kitchen fitted incorrectly. Please Help!

LFC Murphy

Hi,

Can anyone help me, I am so fustrated at the moment. Ok. so I have just bought a house near galway in a new development, So firstly there are allowances for my house:

1. Fireplace
2. Tiling (Excluding floors)
3. Wardrobes
4. Kitchen.

I was told by the estate agent on the day I viewed the house, that there was gonna be a coordinator for the estate that would tie in with the buyers regarding kitchen etc, of which I was told there were 3 styles.

All was going ok until I visited the site with the builder to find my kitchen being installed. The day I arrived I found that my Kitchen was half finished, as were my wardrobes. Now I was not asked by the builder what style etc, or if in fact I want to take the allowance and install these myself.

A week prior to the I has foned & mailed the estate agent saying that the coordinator or builder as she put it had not been in contact.

Anyway I went back to the estate agent (Muppet and on holidays at the time) and talked to his assistant. She stated that her boss was out for the week and anyway I needed to fix this with the builder. And basically pawned me off.
Upon the estate agent boss's return, I quickly got in contact and stated my case.!
And this is what he said "That I muddled things in my head, that he didn't say anything of the sort, that the coordinator was only for the higher priced houses" Now I wasn't alone, my girlfriend was also there that day and heard what I heard, I reminded him of this and said again that me "muddled" things. 4 days after the viewing I brought my mother to view the house and she also heard that there was 3 styles of kitchen to choose from.......

So that the story to date!


And if that doesnt do it for you last nite I was reviewing the plans for the house with the engineer that will do my snag list and he pointed out that the builder has installed my kitchen in the completly wrong location........

My Questions are
1. Where do I stand with the lying estate agent. (if I misheard I would admit it)
2. How do I approach the builder to inform him that the location of the kitchen is completly wrong, he has put it where it is to save on plumming as it is back to back with nexk doors kitchen.

This is a long one so thanks anybody that takes the time to read & respond. But my head is recked.

Oh Im meeting the builder the afternoon so any feedback

homeOwner

LFC Murphy wrote:

And this is what he said "That I muddled things in my head, that he didn't say anything of the sort, that the coordinator was only for the higher priced houses" Now I wasn't alone, my girlfriend was also there that day and heard what I heard, I reminded him of this and said again that me "muddled" things. 4 days after the viewing I brought my mother to view the house and she also heard that there was 3 styles of kitchen to choose from.......

1. Where do I stand with the lying estate agent. (if I misheard I would admit it)

Is it is documented on any of the brochures or paperwork you got when you signed the contract that you have an allowance for the items you mentioned? Did you see it anywhere in writing or were you going on the word of the estate agent solely? If it isnt in writing anywhere then I think you have to accept that there is nothing you can do. I bought my apartment off the plans and the estate agent dealing with the complex (one of the major estate agents in the country) was truely awful and made it as difficult as possible for us. Some of them are just w@nkers and there is nothing you can do.

LFC Murphy wrote:

the builder has installed my kitchen in the completly wrong location........

2. How do I approach the builder to inform him that the location of the kitchen is completly wrong, he has put it where it is to save on plumming as it is back to back with nexk doors kitchen.

What is the arhictect basing his opinion on? If it is the picture on the brochure you got, as far as I remember those diagrams you get when you sign have writen on them that they dont form any part of the contract (maybe you have exact plans that do, check your documentation). Some builders are very accomodating and approachable, some are very intimidating. You could mention it to him but I doubt at this stage, if it is already half installed that they will move it. If it is written somewhere in your contract that the kitchen should be in a certain place or if there are building regulations/standards being broken by the kitchen being where it is currently, get your architect to write a letter to this effect and do not close the sale until they move it.

My experience buying off plans was so bad I would never do it again.
Good luck.

MorningStar

LFC Murphy wrote:

My Questions are
1. Where do I stand with the lying estate agent. (if I misheard I would admit it)
2. How do I approach the builder to inform him that the location of the kitchen is completly wrong, he has put it where it is to save on plumming as it is back to back with nexk doors kitchen.

This is a long one so thanks anybody that takes the time to read & respond. But my head is recked.

Oh Im meeting the builder the afternoon so any feedback

1)Lying estate agent is hard to prove. Even with a few people agreeing what they heard. If all the new home owners say the same you might be able to bring a case or even get the consumer rights people could do it. They can always claim it was a misunderstanding.
2) What plans are you looking at that make you say it is in the "wrong" place? If it is the brochure it means nothing as they have disclaimers saying it is only a representation and nothing more. Even if it is blueprints certain aspects are subject to change. Position of internal walls and kitchen counters would be some of the "subject to change" aspects.

The legal documentation are what counts so you should ask the lawyer. As far as remember they don't go into that much detail of kitchens etc... I can only imagine how frustrating this is but from what you have said I don't think there is much you can do.

podgeen

Ive recently bought an apartment and I had similar problems with the estate agent. Almost everything she told us was wrong or misleading.

Did your solicitor provide you with the floor plan for your apartment? If so where is the kitchen located in these?

LFC Murphy

Thanks folks, gonna run with it for now, as I have no legal standing due to no contracts being signed.


However I will say if you are reading this and are buying property be aware of what the selling agent states and get him to write in down there and then. I am not saying all agents are as bad, but my dealings to date has left a bitter taste in my mouth, to the extent that I am looking at Cork IT to do a course in auctioneering & valuation which costs the huge sum of €700.............



I'll leave it at that. Thanks again for your time.