Why am I under pressure to buy my new-build home despite legal snags?

BC from Kent has had multiple problems with builder Charles Church and its parent company, Persimmon, in the course of trying to buy a house in East Sussex. In addition to previously barring BC’s snagging surveyors from the property, BC’s solicitors discovered that Charles Church had a previously undisclosed overage (aka a clawback) on the property that entitle them to a large chunk of the profits if the value of the property ever increased. Persimmon failed to submit the proper forms to the Land Registry to resolve or prevent this issue, and only after inquiries from the Guardian did they agree to not require BC to complete the contract before the issue could be resolved. It is no wonder that Persimmon’s rating from the Home Builders’ Federation has dropped.

Key Takeaways:

Charles Church, and it’s parent company Persimmon, have an overage (aka a clawback) on the house BC wants to buy, entitling them to a share of any profits when BC sells it.
Charles Church previously denied BC’d snagging surveyor access to the property in dubious health and safety grounds until questioned about this by The Guardian.
Persimmon’s customer satisfaction rating in the Home Builder Federation’s last three years’ worth of surveys has dropped from four points down to three.

“This is an extraordinary case. The fact that Persimmon neglected such a crucial process at the outset, the fact that six other solicitors failed to spot a clause that would have made the contract untenable, and the fact that the developer was prepared to pressure you to signing it to boost its accounting figures, is lamentable. And not a word of contrition to me.”