Buyer pulls out a week before settlement with no penalty?

I hired an expensive solicitor in Melbourne to settle a purchase. The solicitor was so incompetent that they almost crashed settlement.

When I sold the same property, I used a highly competent and much cheaper conveyancer and had absolutely no issues.

People have some kind of illusion that of they hire a solicitor they will get competent service but that is not always the case.

In all of my purchases and sales I have never had an issue with a conveyancer. Every problem I have had has been with a solicitor.

That said, if I was buying or selling in Queensland, I would hire RPI.

 

Sounds like a bad situation, I had a conveyancer once who was as useful a **** flavoured lollipop, thankfully i ended up getting the manager of the ocmpany to help me and he was a whole lot better. You should try and speak to someone above them, presuming there is. You need a full run down of what your options are.

 

The conveyancer rang me and I agreed over the phone. I didn’t really understand what I agreed to.

It sounded like it was a clause that in case the country goes into total lock down and the settlement couldn’t take place.

I didn’t receive anything in writing.

 

Dump that conveyancer before you go to sell again. What a disaster. I bet the buyer is pretty chuffed that you had someone so incompetent.

Maybe use whoever the buyer used!

 

You've been shafted!

 

Is that the legal term?

 

What is the real estate agent entitled to commission wise now??

 

The hide of the Conveyancer.

 

After reading the rest of this thread I'm starting to agree with you. A seemingly improbable sequence of events. I still have concerns about that letter.

 

For a letter from a lawyer, the standard of English grammar used is pretty woeful.

 

Subject to finance....That can happen after apparent loan approval of course and means all contracts which are STF remain so until settled. Banks can withdraw finance and this has always been in the T&Cs. Just never quite so evident as these days. Loan approval is always conditional. The view that it becomes unconditional is quite incorrect and could misinform vendors. CV19 has changed a lot of peoples understanding about a lot of things they believed in like daily freedoms, job security, travel insurance and even how some people can rise in a challenge (and others descend to the gutter)

A lot of people will find the legal advice they did or didnt get will now impact them. eg A small deposit may leave vendors exposed to loss.

 

And I woudnt pay the convyancer either. But they may have costs.....