Hoping it doesn't fall through

We are just over two weeks away from settling on the sale of our investment property in far north Queensland. It has not been a good investment, as we have lost money on it, and we've been keen to divest it for a while now.

We found a buyer who made a reasonable offer, and the contracts were signed three weeks ago. Usually, with a contract sale, it is subject to a property inspection. So I wasn't surprised when the buyer returned with a list of issues on the inspection report, asking for a discount on the buying price due to the cost they will incur to repair the problems.

My first reaction is that the buyer is making an ambit claim, as there was no report attached, just a dot point list of issues. If the problems were structural, they might have a claim, but I don't think they have a claim if the problems were general maintenance.

We have always kept up the maintenance on the property. If the managing agent suggested a repair, then we always had it done without hesitation. So, I would suggest that the house was in good condition for sale and the buyer is trying us on.

I have asked our selling agent to get another assessment of the issues identified by the buyer, so we can get a better understanding of whether it is a structural or maintenance issue. I may have to concede on a structural problem, but I am not sure I will relent on a maintenance issue. 

Let's hope it doesn't cost too much, or even worse, the sales falls through.