Hi can anyone put my mind at rest i bought a house off plans in jan and the builder started building in feb . My Mortgage was due to expire in April and my Solicitor put in a condition that if my mortgage offer was not renewed that i could pull out,The builders Solicitors were fighting it, we sent the deposit , but then i was getting a bad feeling about the builder and asked my Solicitor not to send back the Contract till i checked out a few things . She told me she had sent them back but would not agree to delete the condition till i told her otherwise , so it was still in. Then the builder tried to change the name of the company to another one that he had going .but he could not, he even had a new building agreement with the new company drawn up to give to my Solicitor. Then he met me with the original Contracts that were signed by me to give to my Solicitor , don’t know how he got his hands on them any way i kept them as he was getting totally dodgy. He then went in to liquidation so my Solicitor said we were no longer interested and wanted our deposit back as far as she was concerned no contracts were exchanged . The Solicitors for the builder sent back a letter saying that our deposit was being held in trust. No sign of our money coming back the builders Solicitor would not return my Solicitors phonecalls then we had to meet with the Liquidator who informed us that he would be building the House , i told him i was not interested in it as it would not be built for months (I also had a 9 Month completion clause on the Contract)
The Liquidator says that all my contracts and stuff will be sent to the bank that have a charge on the property and they have the final say on it . I have put a deposit on another house but i cancelled my bank appointment over it
I was sick with worry all week the Solicitor says it fine and to continue with the other house purchase as contacts were not exchanged , the liquidator says its fine but he has to cover his back and get the final say from them , i am just afraid they will try and tie me to the property. while i am waiting for the liquidator to get back to me can any give me some assurance before i crack up. Thanks in advance
Looks like your solicitor has done a good job
Thanks but do you think that it will be OK , still have a terrible fear that the Contracts are binding , but then again even though they were signed the special subject was still not removed and still being debated between them
Can anyone give me any more advice on this as i am still waiting for the liquidator to get back to me, its torture waiting to hear
Thanks
I can well imagine your fear but it is unlikely that anyone here will be able to give you any more detail than your solicitor already has.
If they are saying not to worry then don’t. Or alternatively ask them to put that in writing so that you can take action against them if it turns out not to be the case.
But going on what you have stated your solicitor said I would relax.
The only fear is that the other solicitor is crooked and has given the deposit to the developer and tis gone. In this case it would be assumed that you could claim off the solicitor directly and recover your deposit this way.
That said it may be a little while before you do actually get your deposit back.
There are good solicitors, and there are bad solicitors. If you have a good solicitor then all will be fine. If you have a bad solicitor then get a good one quick. You don’t have to engage him to complete this deal but it might be no harm to have him fully informed on your situation in case it gets messy. He will also be able to set your mind at ease and advise the best course of action. One meeting should suffice and it’s unlikely that it would cost more than 80 euro. Best medicine you’ll ever get.
well never wear blue & green…
No point in going to another solicitor until the liquidator (in other words the banks legal advisor) makes their decision.
+1. Good advice. Blue and green should never be seen.
Well… I’m not so sure. The solicitor may have made a very expensive mistake and I’d be inclined to secure my position as much as I could.
Try and get some info from your solicitor via email (or in writing) pertaining to how the builder got the contract.
If you do it by email you have a watertight record of what was said.
You dont want to be in a position where your solicitor has fucked up you and the only evidence you have is ‘but she told me on the telephone…’
The builder had the contracts as you solicitor had sent them no?
Lose your mortgage approval. Go see the bank. Not that hard really.
Hi guys thanks for the replies gratefully recieved i will try and list the query
1 9 Month completion clause from Jan Liquidator says Nov Dec which brings it 2 to 3 months over the building agreement.
2 Solicitor was still in the process of negotiating the the loan clause as my mortgage offer was due to expire in april and had to re submit the application the builders solicitor said no but my solicitor wanted to keep it in so the issue was not settled.
3 No Contracts or building agreements were returned to my solicitor
4 why has the Liquidator a hold on my money and how long will it take for him to release the money back to me
5 I have a letter from the builders solicitor from a few weeks before saying we do not have a binding agreement till the loan condition was removed and it was not.
Thanks in advance
Builders solicitor has your money " in trust" , tell them to send it back .
The liquidator can only do so much wind and piss, the builder was INCAPABLE of performing the contract coz they were skint all along. But that is for the legal eagles to squabble over I think. Even if the liquidator says they will finish it
- They are not builders
- The builder was insolvent when they assured you they were able to perform and it is their insolvency at the time that counts.
You solicitor should be asked to request money held “in trust” back and if the money does not appear then threaten Law Society on builders solicitor …your own will probably not help with that and you will have to threaten it yourself directly. Also tell them they are personally liable if they give a penny to the liquidator and will have the Law Society to answer to if they do.
Worst case if they have the money is that the money is ‘held’ until the end of the liquidation but not actually given to the liquidator. But that solicitor is liable personally, ensure they know that!!!
Geware of even listening to advice from non professionals, a little knowledge can be very dangerous.
Get a second and 3rd professional opinion, then you will have some balance hopefully.
Ask direct questions from the solicitors, - e.g. Why has my deposit not been returned. Also try get as much as possible in writing, especially from your own solicitor.
Hi Guys thanks for the replies ,this is the situation now i went to see the Liquidator last week and he finally sat down and went through everything he then went upstairs and made a phonecall to the Builders Solicitors he then came back down to me and said I as the Liquidator for the said property cannot see a binding Contract therefore i am instructing the Builders Solicitor to release your money. I was ecstatic. 3 days passed and my Solicitor has not heard a word. She has written them a letter saying that if our money is not back by Wednesday we will be taking legal proceedings against them. Why are they not following the Liquidators instructions . I also have an email sent to my Solicitor on the day i collected the Contracts that i was collecting new Contracts under the new building company name and i was not going to sign them till i was completely happy so i did not know i was collecting the original Contracts . I am stressed to the max any help is appreciated
There is always the possibility that the builder’s solicitor released funds to them notwithstanding the fact they should have held it on trust.
However, given that your own solicitor seems to have done a perfectly good job protecting you so far why don’t you ask her?
If writing a letter was all it took to get someone to do something then some people would have a lt less to do every day!
Hi Stifster thanks for the reply its not just a letter she has already consulted a Barrister and is going to bring legal proceedings against them . This is a big big firm and 20 grand is nothing to them. I just don’t understand why they have not contacted my Solicitor in regard to the Liquidators request , they will not take my Solicitors phonecalls and have not replied to her Letter. The Liquidator said i would have my money by last friday.
If your solicitor and their solictor ( ex solicitor maybe if in liquidation) agreed that the downpayment was in trust only then the builders solicitor should not have released the money to the construction company and should still have it.
Many deals are done this way with money paid to a legal representative of a firm pending further paperwork/clarification or part performance.
This is sometimes called ‘in trust’ and more often Escrow.
While it appears that the liquidator is co operating somewhat only the return of the money that should not have been released to the builder actually means anything and from what the liquidator said to you they seem to think the solicitor has it.
Your solicitor appears to have matters well in hand, if the other solicitors are “a big big firm” as you put it they will cough eventually. They are probably awaiting a letter from the liquidator, ring them directly and ask if they got the letter the liquidator was sending if you have a name in the big big firm to ask for.
Hi Guys
Just want to tell ye i got my money back just on the deadline of legal proceedings being brought against them , so thanks to all who gave advice to me. Keep up the good work
Excellent. Any chance of a few quid. 
