The property was marketed and an offer was received within 10 days of marketing. The property was marked as “sold subject to contract” and we instructed both sets of solicitors. Every week, we called both seller’s and buyer’s solicitors for an update of the conveyancing progress. The seller’s solicitor discovered after a few weeks that the buyer had not yet instructed any “searches” to be done. We wrote to the buyer on the same day, in a diplomatic way, to urge the buyer to pay and start the searches, to avoid further delays. The buyer did so immediately. Had we not been pro-active, the buyer may have waited a few more weeks until survey results and mortgage application had been approved. The seller wanted a quick sale, so it was imperative not to allow the buyer’s solicitor to delay in carrying out the “searches”.
Then a couple of weeks later, the buyer received their survey report and it showed a mine shaft entry within 20m of the boundary. Belvoir immediately called a neighbour, who had commissioned their own mining report, to check the situation, since the buyer did not send us their survey report. Both solicitors were at a deadlock. The buyer’s solicitor was waiting for the seller to do a further “interpretive report”. The seller, having discussed with their solicitor, was not wanting to do such a report. Without that report, the buyer may have pulled out because the buyer was only buying the property as an investment. Investors can easily buy other properties that have no mine shafts nearby. Once again, we spent time explaining to the seller on the expediency of doing such a report and the risk of the sale falling through without the report as well as researching the cost of such reports directly with the Coal Authority. The seller immediately ordered the report (saving some money by doing it directly with the Coal Authority). Rather than wait for the report to filter through from one solicitor to another and to the buyer, Belvoir informed the buyer directly, on the same day, of the results of the interpretive report showing that the property was not at risk of mining subsidence. The buyer was happy to proceed.
In the end, the sale completed some 8 weeks after the offer was accepted. We are all happy that our client, the seller, has had the sale monies and is able to move on to their next dream!
