Condominium purchased turnkey, completion is delayed.

Dear forum,

We bought a large condominium in December that was supposed to be completed by 31.3.2015. (Notarvertrag).
Now it is 1.4. and the apartment is still not finished.
According to the builder, the apartment should be ready to move into by 1.5., but according to the parquet layer, he can only start working at the end of April to lay the parquet (on behalf of the builder). He said nothing will be finished before 15.5.
Due to the current weather, we suspect that the work will be further delayed and that we will be able to move into our new apartment at the beginning/middle of June. (Haus wird von außen und innen saniert und kann nur komplett fertiggestellt übernommen werden).

We have now sold our current condominium for 1.6. We are parents of small children and quite at a loss as to what to do next.
What can you do if a construction is delayed?
We are afraid of ending up without an apartment but with a lot of furniture and stuff.

Best regards,

Tobia

Hello Tobia,

What can you do if a construction is delayed?

What does the notary contract say for this case?

Best regards from the Rhineland

I would first talk to the buyers of your current condominium. Does it bother them if you move out later? As long as they have not already terminated, it might work out.

The notarized contract states that the seller commits to completion and readiness for occupancy by 31.03.2015, whereby circumstances not attributable to the seller may delay the date (in particular force majeure, etc.).

Unfortunately, we will not make further progress with the buyers of our current condominium as they have already terminated their apartment.

Good evening,

The notary contract states that the seller commits to completion and readiness for occupancy by 03/31/2015, however, circumstances not attributable to the seller can postpone the deadline (in particular force majeure, etc.).

I suspected that; if you cannot provide a verifiable indication that the builder (I assume a property developer) is responsible for the delay in construction time "through their own fault and outside the notarial exclusions," then – as much as I regret it – you have drawn the short straw.

Unfortunately, we will not get any further with the buyers of our current condo as they have already terminated their apartment.

That is naturally bitter.

If there is no possibility to temporarily stay with family or friends, you will incur the costs for a temporary interim solution. Are there perhaps holiday apartments near you that you could rent for a short-term transition?

Rhenish regards

Stupid question: What actually happens if you haven't moved out? Filing an eviction lawsuit against a family with small children is probably difficult. The option I mentioned would also be really mean towards your buyers - although very pragmatic ;)