The Covid-19 pandemic, and in particular the Governmentimposed lockdowns, have to date had very little impact on our pipeline. There were, however, a limited number of unfortunate cases elsewhere where a combination our factors had a knock-on effect.
In the early stages of the first lockdown we were contacted by a solicitor whose client had lost their buyer, and in turn was faced with their dream move collapsing. Our team rarely deals with private house sales or chains, but in this case the client had agreed a sale to a developer. Developer no 1 had secured planning permission, but traded its contract to developer no 2 who failed to complete twice, and ultimately couldn't come up with the money!
Our task was quite simple - to find a buyer who had cash available, and would be willing to exchange and complete the purchase within 3 weeks. Furthermore, despite being unable to complete itself, the developer refused to release the copyright to the planning drawings!
Anyway, long story short, we found a buyer willing to take a view on the planning drawings, and who promptly stepped in to save the day - completing with cash in the required timeframe. Our sellers in this case had agreed their original sale directly to a buyer who claimed to be very successful, experienced and well-funded. The moral of the story is that if you believe your property has development potential, employ an agent to look after your interests - we're here to sort the wheat from the chaff, and only get paid on success, so you truly have nothing to lose.
PROJECT ADDRESS: 8 Abbots Lane, Kenley CR8 5JH
