Developers

I dont act for many developers and those I have tend to build the odd property or maybe a pair. I have a small development of four new houses for a builder client all selling for in excess of £500K and since day one the client has been on my back. The last plot is due to exchange and complete tomorrow and I received a fax this afternoon from the buyers' solicitors advising me that one of the previous purchasers has done a search of whole rather than in respect of the plot they were purchasing. The following points arise:-

1. The wrong search was in respect of the first plot sold and since then two others have completed. The searches of part of the two later completions must have revealed the earlier search of whole which has priority and on checking the day list it confers priority for a charge in favour of Coventry Building Society. Neither of the solicitors has raised a query about this.
2. I've told the client this afternoon as it may affect the proposed completion tomorrow and all he wants to know is who is going to pay him compensation if he doesn't receive the sale proceeds tomorrow and why this has arisen at the last minute.

Is there a lesson from this I don't know. The solicitor who lodged the search of whole is nearly as old as me so I guess he delegated the search to someone lower down the food chain who clearly didnt know what they were doing. Needless to say he is out this afternoon and will be in tomorrow at 10 a.m. when he will have to fax the land registry to cancel his search of whole and lodge the correct search of part unless he has already lodged his AP1 but I doubt that given the delays with SDLT if you dont submit the returns online. I will probably use up £200 of fee earning time sorting this out so the question is "who will pay me compensation" and the answer is nobody.

Roll on the weekend