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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to have expected completion date by now?

32 replies

justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 22:22

I'm actually going silently crazy now. We have just bought a house and are on the verge of exchange. The solicitor has told us not to give notice until we have wxchanged contracts and due to the sellers solicitor we have been waiting 10 days now since I took our contract in. Our tenency expires on the 26th and have been unable to give notice. It doesn't state in our agreement anything about a notice period. and it's now 19 days to go! We can't afford to pay a mortgage and rent as i'm worried they're now going to add an extra month onto our tenency. Does anyone know where we stand?

OP posts:
Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 22:25

20 days to go* sorry

OP posts:
GiddyOnZackHunt · 05/08/2015 22:26

When you are ready to exchange you should agree a completion date. This can be chosen to suit all parties so make sure your solicitor understands your requirements before the exchange happens.

Fizrim · 05/08/2015 22:27

You would normally have to give a month's notice - check with your landlord/letting agent for the details. Can you shift the completion date later?

Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 22:29

We wanted to complete on 14th so we had an overlap. The 14th has been put forward but exchange not happened yet. I don't know what to do!

OP posts:
eurochick · 05/08/2015 22:31

Have a look at your tenancy agreement but I'd be very surprised if you had to give less than a month's notice.

Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 22:33

It oddly says nothing about notice. Everything I've read online says either, you don't have to give any notice and other places say between 21 and 90 days which were obviously now under due to incompetence.

OP posts:
GiddyOnZackHunt · 05/08/2015 22:40

Why do you assume incompetence? There could be delays further up the chain. We didn't have a completion date 8 days before we moved last time.

Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 22:43

Everything has been done on our end. There's no chain, seller already lives in another house. Our solicitor has been waiting 10 days for a reply from the other solicitor. Agent says seller is happy with 14th. But our solicitor has heard nothing despite daily attempts to contact them.

OP posts:
Fizrim · 05/08/2015 22:44

Then your solicitor tells them there is a 30 day gap between exchange and completion - we had this when we sold a house to people who were renting, we were expecting it

Fizrim · 05/08/2015 22:44

Then your solicitor tells them there is a 30 day gap between exchange and completion - we had this when we sold a house to people who were renting, we were expecting it

RuffDiamond · 05/08/2015 22:46

What is holding up exchange?

GiddyOnZackHunt · 05/08/2015 22:49

OK well get the EA to speak to the seller direct to give their solicitor a rocket.

ghostyslovesheep · 05/08/2015 22:50

I feel your pain I am in the same boat - supposed to complete last Friday

I am sat amidst a lot of boxes

My buyers solicitor keeps asking idiotic questions such as 'my client does not like cats - can you confirm your client is taking her cats with her' Hmm

so we are supposed to move this Friday - only her solicitor has a planning question (again - despite refusing to take my solicitors calls for 2 days)

I will know tomorrow at 4pm if I am moving on FRIDAY

I am a single working mum with 3 kids - I am keeping the vodka makers in business

ghostyslovesheep · 05/08/2015 22:51

I should add - she is a cash buyer in rented I am buying an empty property

GiddyOnZackHunt · 05/08/2015 22:55

Blimey ghostys that's ridiculous Wine

ghostyslovesheep · 05/08/2015 22:57

I know Grin I have wonderfully patient removers, builders, carpet fitters and kitchen people!

Bragadocia · 05/08/2015 23:00

Usually, you'd have to give one month's notice on the 26th of July, even with a fixed term rental contract ending 26th Aug. If you give notice even a few days after that, you would be liable for the period 27th Aug-26th Sept too. So, I understand that's your position at the moment. Is there really nothing in the tenancy agreement at all about giving notice? If not, you may get lucky.

Shelter's advice about the date on which to give notice

Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 23:01

That is awful Ghosty. It must be hard when planning a move from a bought house to another one in one day. I too am living pretty much out of boxes. I am so frustrated!

The estate agent has apparently phoned the sellers solicitors today but got an email from our solicitor at 6pm and he hadn't heard anything back.

Our tenency is being changed to a month by month when it expires this month. Does anyone know if we will then have to pay till the end of Sept or if we will just pay a month from our notice. I have resigned myself to believing it will be the former Angry

OP posts:
ghostyslovesheep · 05/08/2015 23:04

justalittlelemondrizzle bloody stressful isn't mate xxx

we'll both be in before Christmas Grin (I hope!!!)

Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 23:04

Brag - you answered my question before I posted as I didn't see it. No it doesn't say it anywhere, we have gone through it with a fine tooth comb several times. I was shocked. All it says is the tenency expires on 26th

OP posts:
Bragadocia · 05/08/2015 23:07

The thing that should save you then is from the Shelter thing:
"Normally the notice you give must end on the first or last day of the period of a tenancy, except when your tenancy agreement says something different."
And your agreement does say different - it says nothing about notice at all. So they wouldn't have a leg to stand on if they tried to enforce it.

Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 05/08/2015 23:11

Ghosty- it is. I've never done this before. I'm completely clueless! Between us we are keeping the vodka and wine industrys going Grin

Brag- hope so. As soon as we have exchanged I will hand deliver letter. Make them read it just to check I have fulfilled their requirements and then play dumb mentioning the fact I have read online you don't need to give any and there is no mention of a notice period in the tenancy.

OP posts:
Fizrim · 05/08/2015 23:11

Our tenency is being changed to a month by month when it expires this month.

Ah! Are you coming to the end of a 6 or 12 month contract? In that case if you haven't signed another fixed term, it will turn into what is termed a periodic tenancy and it will be a month's notice as described by Bragadocia.

Hope you hear about it soon, I find house buying and selling so stressful!

Peshwari · 05/08/2015 23:12

If you're currently in a fixed term contract then it is possible to leave at the end of that fixed term without notice. If you stay just one day over it will become a periodic tenancy and the one month notice will apply.

Fizrim · 05/08/2015 23:13

I was referring to Bragadocia's first post - do you have to leave on 26th then, do you rent it through a letting agent?