Stephen Acton examines developers’ delays in completion of off-plan purchases
Purchasing off-plan in a new development can raise all sorts of problems for the purchaser. Not the least of them concerns the typical lack of certainty as regards the developer’s obligation to complete by any given time, and the consequences of that to the purchaser.
In a one-off development for one specific client, there might well be a contractual completion date, or at least a target date, with contractual penalties for missing that date. Developers do not often, if at all, offer that sort of arrangement in respect of a multiple development, whether commercial or residential. Indeed, in some cases the contract will specify an anticipated legal completion date, but permit the developer to extend that date when delays occur, in particular building delays, for specified reasons.
In other cases, however, the date for completion will be completely open-ended, simply being triggered by the developer’s notice to complete. At most, this might be tied to the completion of the construction, whether issue of a formal certificate of practical completion or otherwise, so that the developer
