Pulling out of a purchase before exchange

That sound much more convincing to me. :)

NT

Reply to
N. Thornton
Loading thread data ...

That sound much more convincing to me. :)

NT

Reply to
N. Thornton

Ther's a lot of dodgey dealing that goes on in the building tade, just like in the motor trade. Sometimes builders can make money (avoid tax) buy selling to a friend/relative then selling on again. It doesn't necessarily mean that the house is a bad one.

No doubt the estate agent's details said something to the extent of "all details are preliminary & are subject to confirmation etc etc." The mains drainage probably just meant that there wasn't a septic tank etc.

Reply to
adder

Me too Mike, if I remember right you're new to this house-buying game, though no longer in the first flush of youth, right? I think you're being understandably over-cautious. You're looking at a new build on a partly-already-settled estate, right? So other buyers haven't found anything major to worry about in the sewerage arrangements (and ISTR you've already asked a couple of them outright). The likeliest sort of buyer you'll be reselling to in 5? 10? years time would be one or two adults, maybe with a young kid or two - or a couple of people sharing. It's quite unlikely that they'll be anything like as picky as you are being - if it's got a scrap of garden, close enough to shops and work, it'll sell.

The minor discrepancy in NHBC-vs-sale values similarly seems like a non-issue from where I sit. I call it "minor" because as a proportion of the sale value it's not huge - the absolute amount might seem like a lot to thee or me, but for the developer it's down in the small change ;-) Unless your solicitor spontaneously tells you it's a deal-breaker, I wouldn't lose sleep over it.

Stefek

Reply to
s-nilnews-nov04

what do you mean by 'off plan'?

NT

Reply to
N. Thornton

I have spoken to two neighbours, one in person, the other on the phone, and both assured me without prompting that they were thoroughly happy with their properties, that the latter were solidly built, and that there was no problem they knew of in respect of the sewage treatment plant. I suppose it's just because where I currently live in the shires close to London such private sewage treatment plants are unheard of. But where I am moving to they are commonplace. The estate agent said that they are so good that nowadays they are even being used for very small developments of two to three bungalows instead of a septic tank for each.

MM

Reply to
MM

Correct!

I'm 59. But inside I feel like I'm 17...

Very likely. I am a pedant, a perfectionist and a born worrier. It's the cross I have to bear!

Yes.

Correct on both.

Yeah, I reckon that is pretty much going to be the case. And by then I might have gone completely ga-ga anyway and be left at a hospital somewhere with all identification removed.

My solicitor raised it as a minor issue, but did not give me the impression that he would be unduly concerned either.

Anyway, I shall probably keep on worrying until the day I move in, and then when everything turns out to be fine after all, I shall no doubt find something else to worry about.

MM

Reply to
MM

I think it's the fact that in Lincs these private sewage treatment plants are quite widely used now, so that people in general just think of them as 'the' sewerage system. My estate agent did apologise when I pointed it out, but said that they can only go on what the vendor tells them.

Item: The development includes a mix of houses, and some of them are extremely large 4 double-bed detached with double garages (absolutely massive, they are!) and the kinds of owner living in these houses are going to have some clout, I assume, if push ever came to shove and there were some disagreement about how the plant were being run. I expect among the 35 or so householders there will be a canny few (or a lot!).

My problem is that I cannot think like most (probably much younger) people do. For instance, it is usual now to conduct nearly all business over the phone, but I am used to the days when everything was put in writing. Unless I see something in writing, on a sheet of paper I can hold or show to other people and stab my finger at a sentence and say, there! Look, there! That's what they wrote! Unless I see that, I tend to get discombobulated. I try to inculcate a desire in others to send me letters by writing to them, but ten to one, they only ring back. The other day I wanted a removal quote and the lady said, give me your email, and I said, can't she send it to me in writing, and she said, well, it *would* be in writing (i.e. via email), wouldn't it! My brother and I were discussing this last night and we both came to the conclusion that this is why we all die. It's because we finally understand absolutely nothing about the world we are living in, and thus have to make way for the next generation to learn it all over again.

MM

Reply to
MM

My solicitor is making enquiries as to the bona fides of and reason for the previous transaction followed by immediate sale.

MM

Reply to
MM

In message , N. Thornton writes

It means buying the house before it is built - when all you have are the plans (hence 'off plan')

Reply to
chris French

"MM" wrote | ... I suppose it's just because where I currently live in | the shires close to London such private sewage treatment | plants are unheard of. But where I am moving to they are | commonplace. The estate agent said that they are so good | that nowadays they are even being used for very small | developments of two to three bungalows instead of a | septic tank for each.

They are being used because (a) public sewage plant has no spare capacity and planning permission is being refused unless private sewage arrangments are made (b) the Environment people are enforcing more stringent requirements on effluents, so septic tanks are prohibited in many locations

They are being used because they have to be, not because theyr'e "so good". Not that there's anything wrong with them technically, but ownership and maintenance is an issue with any communal system, particularly one which has the possibility of going as offensively and expensively wrong as Drains. I would probably be happy with one if the ownership and maintenance was co-operatively owned by the householders using it and a majority decision on maintenance was binding on the others (ie one stubborn owner can't hold up essential work or refuse to pay their share) but less happy if it was, say, the developer's own management company operating at a profit and unaccountable to the householders.

Owain

Reply to
Owain

There's plenty of possible reasons. It could be as simple as using up a relative's capital gains allowance, or giving them money without potential inheritance tax.

Christian.

Reply to
Christian McArdle

But what difference if it is a developer running a for-profit sewage system than a water company? Is there a size limit to come under OFWAT or OFTURD or whoever is responsible?

Christian.

Reply to
Christian McArdle

"Christian McArdle" wrote | > but less happy if it was, say, the developer's own management | > company operating at a profit and unaccountable to the householders. | But what difference if it is a developer running a for-profit sewage | system than a water company? Is there a size limit to come under OFWAT | or OFTURD or whoever is responsible?

The developer may not come under Ofturd :-) by virtue of being a private supplier to a limited development rather than a statutory undertaking for public supply. Also, a 200% hike in charges affecting a few dozen homes is less likely to attract Parliamentary scrutiny than one affecting a few million.

Owain

Reply to
Owain

The residents on the development will all form the "Management Company". This is the latest little extra nugget of knowledge I recently obtained. All good fun! (But you're not completely correct in (a) in that many of the far off-the-beaten-track places (e.g. in Lincs) simply have no sewers anywhere near them, and the cost to lay same would be prohibitive. Put it this way, I'd rather have a sewer, but I also do want to live off-the-beaten-track, away from it all. There's not much point going to all this hassle, then moving to Boston or Spalding. I might as well stay put instead. I want wide open spaces, and the nearest major conurbation to me in a seawardly direction will be Norway.

MM

Reply to
MM

They'd probably invoke the Parliament Act since the issue wouldn't actually justify parliamentary attention. I can just see Michael Martin brandishing a toilet plunger........

Reply to
Andy Hall

I've always been waiting for the Govt to come up with a new Office for Effluent, or OfEff.

MM

Reply to
MM

Or better yet, the Effluent Office - EffOff.

Reply to
Andy Hall

I'd tend to agree that none of these things are a deal breaker, just an opportunity for negotiation.

i.e. a) Your worried that any snagging that may be required by the developer will not be carried out as it is not the developer that your buying from, as you were led to believe. Get the correct reassurances and/or a discount

b) You were led to believe that the property was on main sewerage, thats not the case, get a discount (a new system is unlikely to need a lot of maintenance for quite a few years)

Its not a problem to say that your first instinct was to pull out of purchasing the house, but you want to give them the opportunity to solve the problems/reassure you, before doing so.

We had a perceived problem with the roof of the house we were purchasing, it wasn't a deal breaker, but it could have been if we hadn't got the correct documentation from the vendor.

Good Luck.

Reply to
big al - Peoples Pal

"MM" wrote | The residents on the development will all form the | "Management Company". This is the latest little extra | nugget of knowledge I recently obtained. All good fun!

I think that is reassuring.

| (But you're not completely correct in (a) in that many of the | far off-the-beaten-track places (e.g. in Lincs)

Well, yes, but Lincs isn't really off-the-beaten-track. I speak as someone who endured childhood holidays in Cape Wrath. I bet there's even a Waitrose in Lincs.

| I want wide open spaces, and the nearest major conurbation | to me in a seawardly direction will be Norway.

Reminds me of the story of a soldier or sailor based on Shetland during the war, filling in a docket for travel warrant, wrote in Oslo for "nearest railway station"

Owain

Reply to
Owain

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.