How long should I give the other side before pulling out?

[prettyperfect]

First time buyer, starting to get really fed up of people not taking this process seriously and just being incredibly slow.

We're 9 weeks in and have still not received the draft contract from the other side (entirely the sellers fault although I don't think his solicitor chased him, it was only when the EA rang him that he got his arse into gear)

I've received my mortgage offer and the survey and searches have been done. My solicitor hasn't been able to raise any enquiries yet because of this. The searches were returned 2.5 weeks ago so I'm really pissed off if I'm honest because they've massively slowed things down by not having the paperwork ready.

The EA rang me last Wednesday and said the seller had returned the protocol forms on Tuesday and his solicitor was going to prioritise getting the contract over to us but we've still not received it. How long would you give them before pulling out?

I'm dreading what they'll be like if my solicitor has enquires (which I'm sure she will). Annoyingly I've already wasted money on the searches and survey.

When you have found a house that you prefer

Yeah, keep looking for another property

Are they looking to find an inward purchase? If so you won't get their signed contract back as they'll be waiting h to sort that purchase out. 9 weeks isn't too long really but yeah if you annoyed you can pull out at any time really if you really choose to do so

Thank you for replying.

Unfortunately there isn't anything else on the market right now that I'm interested in.

Just fed up of waiting!

@WhatMe123 no it's an ex rental, currently vacant, no chain.

Well if you pull out and you've got nothing else surely it'll take longer? Seems a bit daft, just keep nagging and it'll all fall into place

@WhatMe123 as far as I'm aware the draft contract is sent within the first couple of weeks (that's what my solicitor and the EA said anyway) not sure why it's taken 9 weeks to do.

@ItWasOnAStarryNight yeah that's true. I just feel like a broken record asking the same thing over and over. Honestly can't understand why someone would put their house up for sale if they're not actually motivated to sell.

You need to ring your solicitor every day to get them to prioritise you. Also frequently ring the estate agent frequently. The market has started rising so it's possible the ex landlord wants a better offer so find out why a landlord is being slow

9 weeks isn’t that long in conveyancing. The conveyancing for our first house which was also chain free was 3.5 months and that was prior to the delays in the system now. Your solicitor can also raise queries without the draft contract.

Sometimes it’s also not the seller not doing something, when we sold we were waiting on other people to get back to us (a surveyor, the heating installer who had installed the boiler). We also had some documents from our purchase but our solicitor had to go through them to make sure they answered the question our buyer’s solicitors were asking.

However, if there is nothing else on the market then you just have to wait it out. It’s frustrating.

If I couldn’t find another property I liked, then I wouldn’t pull out. Even if another property does come onto the market soon, there’s a high chance it’ll be part of a chain and you’ll just swap one set of frustrating delays for another.

I completed on a sale and purchase within that time frame during lockdown. You need to set expectations from the start. Did you agree a rough date via the Estate Agent when you offered? I’d go back now if you haven’t. Unfortunately, if you’ve not discussed this with any party then you’ll just be left in the queue waiting for the wheels to turn. I’d get on the phone if I was you.

Just a thought - I have a friend who is a conveyencer and she is fed up with things only being sent for her attention when they are ridiculously overdue. It should have settled by now, but I wonder if the solicitors are part of the problem?

@prettyperfect

9 weeks isn't that long, in this process, unfortunately.

there isn't much you can do except keep friendly communication up with your solicitor🤷🏻‍♀️

but if there's nothing else on the market you're interested in. What's the point in pulling out??

even if you found a property tomorrow, it would take you weeks to get back to this stage.

is there an actual reason you have to get moved assp or just because you want to?

@Just4thisthreadtoday I know 9 weeks isn't long and I certainly wasn't expecting to complete within that timeframe, but it's a long time for the draft contract to arrive according to my solicitor and even the EA. Apparently it should have been done within the first couple of weeks and considering I managed to sort my mortgage and survey out in that time, I don't think it was a big ask expecting some forms to be filled out before now.

I didn't specify a date that I wanted to complete by, but I was told it would be a maximum of 13 weeks if no issues. I'm currently renting so would like to move asap. Also, not very happy in my current job (main reason) I'd like to start looking for another job but can't until the mortgage has gone through.

9 weeks is not that long. Also, assume that everybody will blame each other for delays.

Our estate agents were blaming our buyers for delays but when we spoke direct to them, it wasn't true.
They all seemed to blame each other so take the excuses with a pinch of salt and keep nagging them all.

Agree with PP that they all blame each other. We were supposed to complete last July at the latest (process started in March) and ended up moving end of Sept. If they said 13 weeks add 6 on and hope for the best. It's SO frustrating, having bought and sold a good few houses now I can confirm it gets no less annoying and thankfully you're not in a chain 🥴

Conveyancers are overworked and underpaid. Because there has been a race to the bottom on fees this is what you get I'm afraid.

Tbh I was hoping this was a sex thread 🤣

"Apparently it should have been done within the first couple of weeks and considering I managed to sort my mortgage and survey out in that time"

You made 2 phone calls, hardly brain surgery. Honestly, it's normal, it'll fall into place, just be patient

If you need a management pack then allow 3 months for that alone.

Welcome to house buying in England. It takes months and months... no idea why.

I have just completed. 2 weeks for contract and then further 20 with no chain either side!

It took 7 months for our first house purchase. 9 weeks is nothing. Chase your solicitor and the estate agent regularly. You wouldn’t find another house and complete in the same time so I don’t see why you would pull out tbh.

Wahahahahahaha so did I!