Maverick74 said:
The option of buying site as is seems to be possible. I would be concerned about the common areas being finished though. I was told that the builder would have to have lodged a bond with the Co. Council relating to the finishing of common areas at the start of project.. Can anyone confirm this pls??
Yes. Some county councils dick around with calling in the bond and it expires . I must warn you of that !
You will have to satisfy yourself that :
1. The Bond Exists and is lodged. An undertaking from a solicitor that it will be lodged by a date may be enough., An undertaking from the builder is meaningless in the extreme .
2. Duration of Bond (does not expire at an early stage while council looks away )
3. That the council in question are known to call bonds in and do the work the builder neglected . Some are good and some useless.
4. That the builder cannot and will not stop them because he has mates in there.
5. The fact that if the council call in the bond and finish it themselves they effectively MUST take it in charge there and then....very tricky that.
Your solicitor will advise you but I would talk to a local councillor first maybe .
If only one plot is sold out of 6 (yours) the builder probably needs to sell 4 to get the money to proceed. I have seen 'estates' like yours being constructed willy nilly for over 20 years and with no footpaths for 10 and no road surface for 15.
Each new purchaser wrings another concession out of the builder, 2 new street lights, a bollard, a sign at the entrance.
I still think the other 5 houses are unsold and that the builder has no money. Have you checked ??? Be careful.