Commercial

Property problems: Suspicious vendor has to prove bad faith

Q. I read your recent article on purchasers' obligations to fulfil conditions with great interest.

Having had my two-storey suburban warehouse on the market for some months, I was relieved to finally get an unconditional offer. The offer was a bit low so I entered into good-natured negotiations with the purchaser, who agreed to increase the offer by $50,000, but made it subject

Sunday, April 18th 2004

to getting satisfactory finance.

I understood from our discussion (and in today's market) that the finance condition was all but a formality. On the date for confirmation of the finance condition, I was amazed to be told that my purchaser had not obtained finance and was pulling out of the deal. I found this hard to believe given the other property I knew this purchaser owned and the "lifestyle" he enjoyed.

Having asked around, it appeared my purchaser had just found a better deal. I don't think he has honestly been refused finance. What can I do now?

A. The first step is for you to find out exactly why the purchaser has not confirmed the finance condition. As vendor, you are entitled to ask for reasons because the purchaser has a contractual obligation to take all reasonable steps to obtain finance. You should instruct your solicitor to formally request reasons from the purchaser.

Read More - Opens in a new window

Most Read

Unity First Home Buyer special 3.99
ICBC 4.25
SBS FirstHome Combo 4.29
Co-operative Bank - First Home Special 4.35
TSB Special 4.39
Co-operative Bank - Owner Occ 4.45
ANZ Special 4.49
ASB Bank 4.49
SBS Bank Special 4.49
Unity Special 4.49
Westpac Special 4.49
ASB Bank 4.49
TSB Special 4.49
AIA - Go Home Loans 4.49
SBS Bank Special 4.49
Kainga Ora 4.49
BNZ - Std 4.49
Kiwibank Special 4.49
Wairarapa Building Society 4.59
Nelson Building Society 4.59
ICBC 4.59
Unity Special 4.65
ICBC 4.99
BNZ - Std 4.99
SBS Bank Special 4.99
Kainga Ora 5.15
ASB Bank 5.15
AIA - Go Home Loans 5.15
Westpac Special 5.29
TSB Special 5.39
Kiwibank Special 5.39
Co-operative Bank - Owner Occ 5.49
BNZ - Classic 5.59
SBS FirstHome Combo 3.29
AIA - Back My Build 3.34
SBS Construction lending for FHB 3.74
CFML 321 Loans 3.95
Co-operative Bank - Owner Occ 4.99
Co-operative Bank - Standard 4.99
Heartland Bank - Online 5.30
ICBC 5.39
Kiwibank - Offset 5.65
Kiwibank 5.65
ANZ 5.69

More Stories

Buyers sitting on the sidelines in best time to buy in a decade

Thursday, December 04th 2025

Buyers sitting on the sidelines in best time to buy in a decade

Stable house prices, low interest rates and plenty of houses to choose from are still not enticing buyers.

Differing views on 50-year mortgage

Tuesday, December 02nd 2025

Differing views on 50-year mortgage

US president Donald Trump recently raised the idea of 50 year mortgages; but New Zealand advisers say such long loans won’t take off in New Zealand.

Houses selling at a loss hit a 12 year high

Wednesday, November 26th 2025

Houses selling at a loss hit a 12 year high

About one in five Auckland residential properties (19.3%) sold for less than their original purchase price in the third quarter, up from up from 15.9% in the second quarter.

OCR Preview: How far is far enough for the RBNZ?

Friday, November 21st 2025

OCR Preview: How far is far enough for the RBNZ?

Economists expect the OCR to drop another 0.25% to 2.25% next week, with a 50/50 chance of another cut in February.