An Auckland couple took the vendors of this Otahuhu home to court after they backed out of selling the house.
An Auckland couple took the vendors of this Otahuhu home to court after they backed out of selling the house.
An Auckland couple who sued a pair of siblings who tried to back out of selling a house to them will finally have the sale and purchase agreement honoured.
Three years after Massey University academic Dr Marewa Glover and her partner Steve Piner bought the Otahuhu home, they are still waiting for the keys to be handed over for a house that has risen in value by at least $50,000.
They have been embroiled in a lengthy legal battle, which they estimate has cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars, for the Church St home they bought for $450,000. It now has a council valuation of $495,000, but that was two years ago and the price has likely risen even more.
The battle has taken the couple first to the High Court and the Court of Appeal.
They bought the house at auction in December 2013.
But only days later, the vendors, siblings Thi Kim Chu Nguyen and Vinh Hgoc Nguyen, tried to back out of the unconditional deal.
Barfoot agent Ricky Yap, who handled the sale, received a text message in Vietnamese from the Nguyens, which read: "Hi Ricky, I don't want to sell my house any more. Please cancel all contact."
In December last year, the case went to the Auckland High Court.
The Nguyens' defence counsel argued they were unaware the contract was legally binding and they had twice asked Yap to cancel the auction.
Yap disputed the vendors' claims, calling the allegations "astonishing" and "not true".
The court ordered the Nguyens to honour the sale and purchase contract, but the pair appealed the finding.
Steve Piner and Dr Marewa Glover say the decision is a "huge relief". Photo / Kellie Blizard
"We won the court case and then we thought 'yay'," Glover said.
"That was a huge relief. Then it went to appeal. You always have that hanging over your head. That you could lose and you could have to pay everybody else's fees. It's something that can break you."
Justices Randerson, Whata and Duffy dismissed the appeal last month and ordered the Nguyens to pay penalty interest of 15 per cent for late settlement.
The Court of Appeal ruling was released yesterday.
But the lengthy battle to get the keys to wasn't over quite yet.
"In practical terms we still have to settle the property and how and when that happens, we're unclear in that at the moment," Piner said.
The couple expected the property to be settled in late January at the earliest.
"We're waiting to hear from our lawyer about what happens next," Glover said.
"Because it's been so long there's still some fear that they might still refuse to go through with it. We never knew that this could happen. We never thought they would go to appeal. We just have never been through this before."
"If there is a next step, another process that [the Nguyens] elect to try to pursue, then it would be enormously frustrating," Piner added.
"The moral of the story is: read the contract and know what you're selling."
The rates for the home are $2423.88 a year. It is understood the Nguyens were responsible for paying as their name is still on the title.
Glover and her husband were cautiously celebrating last night.
"We've kind of learned, don't think it's all over. It might not be.
"It has such big implications for real estate in New Zealand. I think with this decision everyone breathe a sigh of relief that buying and selling at auction is safe. It returns surety to that whole process."
The couple were unsure exactly how much taking the case to court had cost them, but it would likely end up in the hundreds of thousands.
