Agricultural land purchased verbally, but seller withdraws

Questioner

Adjacent to our garden is a piece of agricultural land. After years of insistence and negotiations - both parties have made concessions - we (the purchasing party) and the selling party (private individual) have finally reached a verbal agreement for the purchase of a piece of agricultural land. It is clear which piece of land (cadestral number), what the dimensions are, what the sales price is and how the land will be delivered. This plot also borders the gardens of other neighbours. In order to give everyone a fair chance and to avoid any awkward faces afterwards, they even check whether the other neighbours also want to buy. This is not the case, as the sales price is on the high side. At that time, we are the only ones who are prepared to buy under the stated conditions. Everything is therefore clear and transparent, but also difficult and slow. The seller took years to sell and is a doubter. That is why we also communicated some things via WhatsApp, so there is something tangible. After the verbal purchase, the seller goes on vacation, gets severe Corona during his vacation, and as a result, the appointment with the notary is postponed by 2.5 months. In the meantime, after the verbal sale has been concluded - the seller is in bed with Corona - he has more time to think about things more deeply and for longer, and apparently he only then continues with in-depth research (the seller also admits by telephone that he should have done the research before the verbal sale instead of afterwards). Now there are rumors that a high-voltage line that hangs above the property line may be removed in the next 10 years, and that this may result in changes to the zoning plan of the agricultural land. In other words, housing construction may take place in the distant future, which is not yet allowed/desirable due to this high-voltage line. I even shared this information with the seller before the negotiations. Because the selling party comes from a different region, he was not fully aware of this rumor, but he did know about it. The municipality also indicates to me that in the current zoning plan, current permits and environmental developments there is absolutely no mention of changes in the zoning plan in the vicinity of this particular plot, and that no one can give any guarantees as to what will happen in 10, 20 or 30 years. The zoning plan does state that the municipality is working on changing zoning plans elsewhere, but that is 1/2 kilometre away. However, the selling party is now seizing on these possible future changes in zoning plan changes to unilaterally dissolve the purchase. After the verbal sale we have already set a lot in motion (particularly preparing the financial part). Question: Can and may a private seller of agricultural land simply unilaterally cancel a verbal sale based on possible rumors of zoning plan changes, of which no one currently knows whether or when they will occur?

Lawyer

In principle, when buying a piece of land, the requirement of writing and cooling-off period does not apply and a buyer may not simply withdraw if the negotiations of the purchase have progressed as far as you state. You could then possibly enforce the purchase due to the far-reaching contractual preliminary phase, but you will need a lawyer for that.

Questioner

Thank you very much for your response. It has now become clear to us that the seller wants to do everything in his power to avoid a sale. I would of course prefer to conclude the sale mutually, to avoid unnecessary time, money, frustration, etc. If this is done with the help of a lawyer, it will probably take a lot of time, certainly if this has to be brought before a judge. Is it permitted for the selling party to do things with the agricultural land until a ruling is made? (for example, sowing a new crop). Do interim adjustments to documents still count AFTER we have concluded the verbal sale? In other words, is the seller allowed to quickly transfer the land to someone else's name, or resell it? Because the seller does not meet his obligation, is it also possible to recover consequential damages or to impose a penalty for each day that the passing of the deed of sale is delayed?

Lawyer

If you expect the sale to be frustrated or interim actions that can cause damage, then summary proceedings must be filed and also the question of the main issue immediately. The buyer is expected to investigate municipal plans in a timely manner before he determines a price.