Developer delayed my Czech new-build: what should I do?

The promised quarter has passed, your rental is ending and the bank offer may expire. Before demanding “the penalty” or signing a developer’s extension, identify the exact obligation and date in the signed documents. Construction completion, legal approval, ownership registration and physical handover are different events with different triggers and consequences.

Build one contract chronology before replying

• Reservation agreement, future purchase agreement, draft/final purchase agreement, amendments and every annex.
• The original clause, defined event, date or calculation method, grace period and long-stop date.
• Permitted extensions, force-majeure wording, developer notice requirements and any maximum extension.
• Payment milestones, amounts already paid, escrow or project account and remaining triggers.
• All progress reports, delay notices, revised programmes, promised dates and your replies.
• Mortgage approval, valuation, drawdown conditions, rate or offer expiry and bank contacts.

Put the dates in a table and quote the operative wording, not only the sales manager’s summary. Mark each date as marketing estimate, contractual deadline, permitted extension or newly proposed date. The developer’s revised programme does not necessarily amend the contract merely because it was emailed to you.

Ask for the delay basis and evidence in writing

Request the clause relied on, event said to trigger it, date the event began and ended, causal effect on your unit, days claimed, notice already given and a current binding programme. “Supply-chain issues” or “authorities” is a description, not a completed contract analysis. A broad clause still needs to be read in its exact context, including consumer rules where you bought outside a business activity.

Protect the mortgage before the contract dispute is resolved

• Tell the bank the original and revised dates and request written validity of approval, valuation and drawdown conditions.
• Ask whether the interest offer, income assessment, loan-to-value result or supporting documents expire.
• Confirm who pays any extension, repeat valuation, reservation or commitment fee.
• Do not let the developer call for a payment before the bank-recognised contractual trigger and required documents exist.
• Record if the delay risks a linked sale, bridge financing, rental termination or equity payment.

A developer delay does not automatically extend a bank offer. Conversely, an expiring mortgage does not automatically entitle the buyer to cancel the project. Keep the bank and contract tracks connected, but do not state that one decides the other.

Do not improvise with the next instalment

Check the exact milestone evidence, invoice, cure period and consequences before paying or withholding. A disputed delay may not suspend every buyer obligation, and an unjustified missed instalment can put the buyer in breach. Ask the escrow holder or bank only about their documented release mechanics; they do not decide the wider legal dispute unless the agreement gives them that role.

If the project’s explanations or payment routing change, recheck the contracting company in the official company register, the insolvency register and project land in the cadastral viewer. A delay alone does not prove insolvency, but paid-money exposure should not be ignored.

Calculate a contractual penalty from the clause, not intuition

• Which exact developer duty is secured: completion, signature, cadastral filing, defect cure or handover?
• When accrual starts, whether a grace period applies, calendar or business days and the end event.
• Daily or fixed amount, percentage base, cap, exclusions and any notice or claim procedure.
• Whether the amendment or handover protocol contains a waiver, settlement or confirmation that no claims remain.
• How the clause treats damages alongside the penalty; Civil Code section 2050 may matter unless the contract changes the default.

Keep a dated calculation and update it without inflating days that the clause excludes. Do not deduct a penalty unilaterally from the next payment without checking set-off, maturity, notice and financing consequences.

Track real costs separately from the penalty

• Extra rent, storage, temporary accommodation and cancelled or rebooked movers.
• Mortgage extension, repeat valuation, bridge finance and documented bank charges.
• Lost deposits or fees on a linked transaction, with the relevant contracts and notices.
• Travel, technical inspection and other expenses that the revised date made necessary.
• Steps you took to limit the loss, alternative offers and costs avoided.

A receipt proves payment, not automatically recoverability. The causal link, scope of compensable loss, reasonable mitigation, the breached duty and the relationship between damages and a contractual penalty all matter. Keep the ledger even if you initially request only information or performance.

Withdrawal is a legal step, not a cancellation email

The Civil Code distinguishes consequences of material and non-material breach, while your agreements may add cure periods, long-stop dates and specific withdrawal rights. Identify which contract you would end, the legal and contractual basis, any additional deadline you must set, the notice method and what happens to all paid amounts, interest, costs and related agreements.

If the developer suddenly offers keys

Do not let urgency collapse inspection, ownership and payment into one signature. Ask what legal and contractual event has occurred, which documents are ready, what remains unfinished and whether accepting possession affects delay claims. Use an independent technical inspection and list each defect with location, photograph, severity, responsible party and cure date.

Serious defects, minor defects, missing documents and unfinished common areas need different treatment. Follow the new-build contract and handover checklist and, for a problem discovered after delivery, the hidden-defect notice plan.

A delay notice you can adapt