I have had a number of phonecalls and a letter from the estate agent who I
informed two months ago that I was withdrawing my property from the market,
and placing it with another estate agent.

I had an offer on my property for 4 months up to the end of December, and
when the purchaser did not exchange contracts I informed their solicitor and
the estate agent that the property was being withdrawn from the market.

Should I just ignore him, or what should I tell him?

About a month ago I just put the phone down on him, because I had told him,
and my solicitor had told their solicitor that we were not selling the
property to this purchaser.

Nick

I have had a number of phonecalls and a letter from the estate agent who I
informed two months ago that I was withdrawing my property from the market,
and placing it with another estate agent.

What's the context of the letter? If it just says "ignore this
letter", ignore it. If it says, "We want some money or else", then
that's different gravy.

--
Hywel

In message , Nick
writes
I have had a number of phonecalls and a letter from the estate agent who I
informed two months ago that I was withdrawing my property from the market,
and placing it with another estate agent.


What are the phone calls about?

I had an offer on my property for 4 months up to the end of December, and
when the purchaser did not exchange contracts I informed their solicitor and
the estate agent that the property was being withdrawn from the market.

Should I just ignore him, or what should I tell him?

If the calls are about this buyer wanting to go ahead, I would tell him
that if a signed contract and deposit lands on your solicitors desk, at
a price which covers the extra fees you will probably have to pay the
new agent, you might consider exchanging contracts, ( you would be
cutting off your nose to spite your face if you didnt go ahead under
these circumstances). Tell him his calls to you are a complete waste of
time, and if he calls you again, you may not even consider exchanging
contracts under the above circumstances.

If ever I experienced the above situation, I would always suggest to a
seller who had been ****ing about, and who had then been dumped,
(whether we had been dumped or not), that the only thing they could
realistically do is to put a contract in front of the seller, and give
him a real decision to make.


--
Richard Faulkner

"Richard Faulkner" wrote in message
...
In message , Nick
writes
I have had a number of phonecalls and a letter from the estate agent who I
informed two months ago that I was withdrawing my property from the
market,
and placing it with another estate agent.


What are the phone calls about?

I had an offer on my property for 4 months up to the end of December, and
when the purchaser did not exchange contracts I informed their solicitor
and
the estate agent that the property was being withdrawn from the market.

Should I just ignore him, or what should I tell him?

If the calls are about this buyer wanting to go ahead, I would tell him
that if a signed contract and deposit lands on your solicitors desk, at a
price which covers the extra fees you will probably have to pay the new
agent, you might consider exchanging contracts, ( you would be cutting off
your nose to spite your face if you didnt go ahead under these
circumstances). Tell him his calls to you are a complete waste of time,
and if he calls you again, you may not even consider exchanging contracts
under the above circumstances.

If ever I experienced the above situation, I would always suggest to a
seller who had been ****ing about, and who had then been dumped, (whether
we had been dumped or not), that the only thing they could realistically
do is to put a contract in front of the seller, and give him a real
decision to make.


I am the seller. In this case, the buyer has been ****ing about (and I would
suggest the estate agent).

In early September, the estate agent told me that the first bidder had gone
off to foreign fields and suggested that we replace him with the second
bidder - also a buyer for rent.

Conscious of solicitor's bills I wasn't on the phone everyday to my
solicitor but it also seemed to me that she wasn't doing her job properly in
that she seemed to wait for me to contact her before getting on to the other
party's solicitor.

If I had been me that solicitor, I would have marked in my diary to contact
the other party every 10 days if nothing had been heard from them.

You will have to bear in mind (and it would seem to me that the solicitor
didn't) that I have never sold a place before so that I was dependent on the
advice of my solicitor.

I think that draft contracts were exchanged and at the beginning of December
the buyer's solicitor contacted me to ask whether he could send round his
architect to measure the place up. This seemed to be just timewasting - for
starters a school-leaver could measure a place.

I was hoping the purchase could go through quickly but it was clear from a
comment that my solicitor didn't expect this to happen.

At one point when contacting the estate agent I think, I was told that the
purchaser was difficult to contact because they were out at auctions - as
anyone knows who has watched BBC's "Under the Hammer" someone who goes to
auctions must have the money immediately at their disposal, so my thought
was if he has the money to go to an auction, he equally should have the
money to immediately buy my property.

Near the beginning of December, my solicitor wrote to the other solicitor
giving them a deadline of the end of December for exchanging contracts. By
the end of December we had heard nothing.

I note from my records that one of the things that the other party was
concerned about was that there were monies outstanding for forthcoming roof
repair which we had already been billed for. I transferred this money to my
managing agent on 12 December (£692) and informed the estate agent so.

The exchange of emails between me and the estate agent between 11 and 14
December was as follows:

"Dear Estate agent

I attach a copy of a letter to my managing agents, Prior Estates, confirming
that I have just made an electronic transfer to Prior Estates of £692.00
in payment for the proposed roofing work.

Would you please pass this to the purchaser's solicitor?

I have also passed the letter to my solicitor.

I am probably not working until the New Year so that it would be ideal
for my move for completion to take place in the next 10 days.

Regards

Nick Landau"

"Dear Estate Agent

I did speak to my solicitor yesterday and she said that she was waiting to
hear from (other solicitor).

She offered the view that (other solicitor) were waiting for the go-ahead
from
the purchaser.

She will be contacting you and the solicitor but I believe that she is going
to present the solicitor with an ultimatum that if the sale doesn't go
through by 31 December I will be putting the property back on the market.

I am not working at the moment and therefore it would be an ideal time to
make my move.

What I understand from a property developer friend is called "at your
convenience" and by definition is not at my convenience is not an option.

I am ready to move and this has been going on for just too long.

I was told by (your colleague) in both cases that they were cash purchases
as
though this was an advantage. This seems to be quite opposite of the case,
when clearly my property is just many that he is looking at and it is
neither here nor there whether or not he buys my particular property.

I certainly wouldn't recommend anyone else to consider accepting an offer
which is described as a "cash purchase" because despite the obvious snags
with a chain and getting a mortgage there are actual drivers that force the
purchase along.

It is quite clear that in practice there is very little that I can do in
relation to this purchase is to threaten to put the property back on the
market.

Regards"

"Dear Estate agent

I will contact you later in the day by phone to see if you know if there
are any developments.

I have paid the £692 that was being requested for the roof repair so that
I can't see now why there should be any holdup to the completion.

Regards"

These elicited the response (their original unprofessional formatting):

"Dear (Nick),
I have spoken to the buyer this morning finally, having tried without
success all day yesterday. He was at auction yesterday hence not being
able to take my calls.
He maintains that he needs to speak to his solicitor to obtain
confirmation that all is now ready, and I have reminded him that I have
already forwarded the details that you emailed me this week about the roof
work payment and that his solicitor confirmed that he had got these and
was happy.
I am trying my best to ensure we get an exchange of contracts asap. I
tried to call your solicitor this morning but she was away all day but I
have updated her secretary.
Regards
(Estate agent)"

I see from my email records that the following day I emailed my solicitor:

"Dear (my solicitor)

I have had a phonecall from (estate agent) saying that he has passed on my
ultimatum regarding the 31 December to the purchaser.

(Estate agent) said that the purchaser asked if he had a floorplan of the
property. Whilst I am sure that they took approximate measurements I am sure
they wouldn't have a floorplan.

He has therefore asked if the purchaser's architect can come round this
afternoon which naturally I have agreed to - fortunately I am at home and
this is convenient.

I gather from (estate agent) that the purchaser is regularly at auctions. I
also watch the TV programme where they auction properties. I know from that
that the purchaser at an auction has to pay the money immediately. So
clearly it is not that the purchaser doesn't have the money.

I hope that it is not to decide whether he wants the property but rather
that once they have bought the property that they can get it ready for
letting as soon as possible.

You will have a better idea about these things than me.

I will keep you posted, as I hope you will do me."

It was decided to give the buyer/solicitor a little leaway until the middle
of January but then I asked my solicitor how we should advise the
buyer/solicitor/estate agent that I was no longer selling the property to
them (my intention was to put the property back on the market with another
estate agent - I felt that the estate agent was colluding with the buyer and
that they were part of the reason for the situation).

My solicitor was none too precise about this, so that I wrote to the estate
agent:

"I am writing to inform you that I am withdrawing (my property) from the
market.


It is my intention to place it back on the market with another agent."



I received this



In the next few days I put the property back on the market with another
estate agent.



A week later I wrote to the first estate agent again:



"I have now put the property on the market again with (new estate agent).


I have given permission of the Manager to collect the keys of my flat.

I think that she will be calling today."

By return I received this (illiterate/unprofessional) reply by the first
estate agent:

"Dear Nick,
I would happily release keys however we are not and have not held them for
Tin a Court. All previous appointments have been direct when you were in,
the last one being Mr Reid who came around to do a plan for the buyer.
The buyer has returned from holiday yesterday and I have tried to call him
yesterday but he was too busy in meetings. I hope to be able to speak to him
today as his solicitor has emailed his p/a (she was surprised that contracts
had not been exchanged as she was aware that it was scheduled to happen
before Christmas !) . It seems his solicitor had failed to clear final
instructions from his client before he went on his holiday despite the fact
that I confirmed your instructions that you emailed me for withdrawl of
papers prior to the new year to the solicitor and the buyer...
Certainly my last conversationswith the buyer was that he had instructed his
solicitor to exchange in accordance with you deadline...I will try and
update you later but am aware that you are just instructing (new estate
agent)."

I am afraid that this is all too depressing. I had decided by this point
that I had no intention of selling to the former buyer. My solicitor has now
withdrawn papers from the other solicitor.

Despite there has been a number of approaches to me by phone - the most
recent when I returned from a short break last Friday.

The final straw was when my solicitor rang me about 3 weeks ago saying that
they were ready to exchange. I didn't know who she was talking about as I
was certainly not ready to exchange on the flat that I am hoping to buy and
I thought that we had told the buyer above where to go.

Apparently she had received a contract from the solicitor of that buyer. I
had already told my solicitor that I didn't want to deal with them because
of the way that they had messed me around so that I felt that she was almost
trying to bounce me into going into selling my property to this buyer.

I told her in no uncertain terms that I wasn't selling to them - and put the
phone down.

She informed me that she had written to the other solicitor that I didn't
wish to sell to them, and again (I think) asked for the return of papers
(she had already asked this).

It is since then that I have had two letters and one phonecall from the
estate agent. As far as I am concerned what they say is neither here nor
there as I don't want have anything to do with any of them.

I would have been fairly willing to sell to them at the end of December -
they have had their chance.

I will sell my property to whom I want and not be bamboozled into it by some
shysters.

If I sound angry and I am bloody fuming.

Nick

In message , Nick
writes


I think that draft contracts were exchanged

The actual process here is that the sellers solicitor sends the buyers
solicitor a draft contract and associated documents - It would be
interesting to know when this happened as this is the point at which the
sellers solicitor tends to start their part of the transaction.


The final straw was when my solicitor rang me about 3 weeks ago saying that
they were ready to exchange.

1st week of March?

I didn't know who she was talking about as I
was certainly not ready to exchange on the flat that I am hoping to buy and
I thought that we had told the buyer above where to go.

Apparently she had received a contract from the solicitor of that buyer. I
had already told my solicitor that I didn't want to deal with them because
of the way that they had messed me around so that I felt that she was almost
trying to bounce me into going into selling my property to this buyer.

I told her in no uncertain terms that I wasn't selling to them - and put the
phone down.


Ah! They have done what I was suggesting. Possibly a bit short-sighted
of you to dismiss it out of hand, particularly in the absence of another
buyer, but understandable given your anger...

She informed me that she had written to the other solicitor that I didn't
wish to sell to them, and again (I think) asked for the return of papers
(she had already asked this).

It is since then that I have had two letters and one phonecall from the
estate agent. As far as I am concerned what they say is neither here nor
there as I don't want have anything to do with any of them.


Fair enough - but the agents have nothing to lose, and everything to
gain so, if they are of a thick skinned and persistent nature, it costs
them nothing to write or call.

I would have been fairly willing to sell to them at the end of December -
they have had their chance.


I will sell my property to whom I want and not be bamboozled into it by some
shysters.

If I sound angry and I am bloody fuming.


And therein lies the problem. Anger and frustration are the enemies of
the rational thought process.

The transaction you describe, along with its' progress, seems quite
normal and average, but it has left you fuming - and you are not on your
own.

It looks like several of the usual delays have occurred and nobody has
bothered to explain them to you. As time goes by, you start to think
conspiracy, and everyone is the bad guy.

If the contract is still on the table, and the price is what you are
looking for, I believe that you should dispel anything which relates to
emotion and personality, do the transaction, and get on with life. In 6
months, it will be history, and probably forgotten, (apart from the odd
anecdote over the dinner table).



--
Richard Faulkner

"Richard Faulkner" wrote in message
...
In message , Nick
writes


I think that draft contracts were exchanged

The actual process here is that the sellers solicitor sends the buyers
solicitor a draft contract and associated documents - It would be
interesting to know when this happened as this is the point at which the
sellers solicitor tends to start their part of the transaction.


The final straw was when my solicitor rang me about 3 weeks ago saying
that
they were ready to exchange.

1st week of March?

I didn't know who she was talking about as I
was certainly not ready to exchange on the flat that I am hoping to buy
and
I thought that we had told the buyer above where to go.

Apparently she had received a contract from the solicitor of that buyer. I
had already told my solicitor that I didn't want to deal with them because
of the way that they had messed me around so that I felt that she was
almost
trying to bounce me into going into selling my property to this buyer.

I told her in no uncertain terms that I wasn't selling to them - and put
the
phone down.


Ah! They have done what I was suggesting. Possibly a bit short-sighted of
you to dismiss it out of hand, particularly in the absence of another
buyer, but understandable given your anger...

She informed me that she had written to the other solicitor that I didn't
wish to sell to them, and again (I think) asked for the return of papers
(she had already asked this).

It is since then that I have had two letters and one phonecall from the
estate agent. As far as I am concerned what they say is neither here nor
there as I don't want have anything to do with any of them.


Fair enough - but the agents have nothing to lose, and everything to gain
so, if they are of a thick skinned and persistent nature, it costs them
nothing to write or call.

I would have been fairly willing to sell to them at the end of December -
they have had their chance.


I will sell my property to whom I want and not be bamboozled into it by
some
shysters.

If I sound angry and I am bloody fuming.


And therein lies the problem. Anger and frustration are the enemies of the
rational thought process.

The transaction you describe, along with its' progress, seems quite normal
and average, but it has left you fuming - and you are not on your own.

It looks like several of the usual delays have occurred and nobody has
bothered to explain them to you. As time goes by, you start to think
conspiracy, and everyone is the bad guy.

If the contract is still on the table, and the price is what you are
looking for, I believe that you should dispel anything which relates to
emotion and personality, do the transaction, and get on with life. In 6
months, it will be history, and probably forgotten, (apart from the odd
anecdote over the dinner table).

I agree with that. And I don't think there is any good reason for blaming
the estate agent. The fault, if any, lies with the buyer or his solicitor
(or maybe even with the seller's solicitor for not pushing a bit harder and
for not explaining the reason for the delays).

I think one has to be ruthlessly businesslike about these things. If the
buyer is now keen to exchange, take advantage of that. It might mean putting
the price up by a couple of thousand on the basis that property values have
in your opinion altered since Christmas.

"The Todal" wrote in message
...

"Richard Faulkner" wrote in message
...
In message , Nick
writes


I think that draft contracts were exchanged

The actual process here is that the sellers solicitor sends the buyers
solicitor a draft contract and associated documents - It would be
interesting to know when this happened as this is the point at which the
sellers solicitor tends to start their part of the transaction.


The final straw was when my solicitor rang me about 3 weeks ago saying
that
they were ready to exchange.

1st week of March?


6 weeks after I decided that I didn't wish to deal with them anymore.

My premise is that I will decide who I sell my flat to. Not be "forced" in
to it when it suits other people. They had their chance and now I have moved
on.

They can't just string me along and expect me to play ball.

I don't also see why the estate agent should get their commission for doing
sweet nothing.

I don't wish to just sell the flat to anyone. I have lived here for 22 years
and I would like to hand on the flat to someone I can trust, in the same way
that I bought the flat from someone who I could trust.

I don't want to move from this property with a nasty taste in my mouth.

If I sound like a foolish idealist sobeit. I am not wanting to make a vast
profit out of the sale. I am selling my home.

Nick

I didn't know who she was talking about as I
was certainly not ready to exchange on the flat that I am hoping to buy
and
I thought that we had told the buyer above where to go.

Apparently she had received a contract from the solicitor of that buyer.
I
had already told my solicitor that I didn't want to deal with them
because
of the way that they had messed me around so that I felt that she was
almost
trying to bounce me into going into selling my property to this buyer.

I told her in no uncertain terms that I wasn't selling to them - and put
the
phone down.


Ah! They have done what I was suggesting. Possibly a bit short-sighted of
you to dismiss it out of hand, particularly in the absence of another
buyer, but understandable given your anger...

She informed me that she had written to the other solicitor that I didn't
wish to sell to them, and again (I think) asked for the return of papers
(she had already asked this).

It is since then that I have had two letters and one phonecall from the
estate agent. As far as I am concerned what they say is neither here nor
there as I don't want have anything to do with any of them.


Fair enough - but the agents have nothing to lose, and everything to gain
so, if they are of a thick skinned and persistent nature, it costs them
nothing to write or call.

I would have been fairly willing to sell to them at the end of December -
they have had their chance.


I will sell my property to whom I want and not be bamboozled into it by
some
shysters.

If I sound angry and I am bloody fuming.


And therein lies the problem. Anger and frustration are the enemies of
the
rational thought process.

The transaction you describe, along with its' progress, seems quite
normal
and average, but it has left you fuming - and you are not on your own.

It looks like several of the usual delays have occurred and nobody has
bothered to explain them to you. As time goes by, you start to think
conspiracy, and everyone is the bad guy.

If the contract is still on the table, and the price is what you are
looking for, I believe that you should dispel anything which relates to
emotion and personality, do the transaction, and get on with life. In 6
months, it will be history, and probably forgotten, (apart from the odd
anecdote over the dinner table).

I agree with that. And I don't think there is any good reason for blaming
the estate agent. The fault, if any, lies with the buyer or his solicitor
(or maybe even with the seller's solicitor for not pushing a bit harder
and
for not explaining the reason for the delays).

I think one has to be ruthlessly businesslike about these things. If the
buyer is now keen to exchange, take advantage of that. It might mean
putting
the price up by a couple of thousand on the basis that property values
have
in your opinion altered since Christmas.


Nick

Nick ] said

"The Todal" wrote in message
...

"Richard Faulkner" wrote in message
...
In message , Nick
writes


I think that draft contracts were exchanged

The actual process here is that the sellers solicitor sends the buyers
solicitor a draft contract and associated documents - It would be
interesting to know when this happened as this is the point at which the
sellers solicitor tends to start their part of the transaction.


The final straw was when my solicitor rang me about 3 weeks ago saying
that
they were ready to exchange.

1st week of March?


6 weeks after I decided that I didn't wish to deal with them anymore.

My premise is that I will decide who I sell my flat to. Not be "forced" in
to it when it suits other people. They had their chance and now I have moved
on.

On discussing whether to change my estate agent, I was cautioned by a
solicitor that I was could be liable for the original estate agent's fee
if they had a willing and able buyer and I had refused to proceed.