Latest NewsOff the Plan.... Devil is Always in the DetailTuesday, 14 March 2017

Unwary buyers risk finding out, to their peril, that off-the-plan sales contracts can be a minefield of problems.

It's common for an OTP sales document to run to more than 100 pages, most of which is written in dense industry and legal jargon.

Complicating matters, there is no industry-standard template and each developer draws up a contract to their own specifications (and with their own interests in mind).

For buyers who are essentially committing to one day paying for something that doesn't yet exist - backed up by a 10 per cent deposit - this contract is the only surety that they'll end up getting what they're paying for.

Regardless of what's been said in the sales office, if what you've been promised isn't specified in the contract of sale - whether that's the completion time for the project or the type of fixtures/fittings in the property - then you don't have a legal foot to stand on.

Given the importance of these documents, buyers should have them reviewed and approved by a solicitor experienced with OTP contracts and commercial law.

Many developers will outright refuse to alter anything in their contract, regardless of any objections. If that's the case, consider walking away.

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