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Original poster

can anyone tell me how long it should now take for me to complete / exchange?

40 replies

Nanabana · 25/03/2013 14:03

I have just had my mortgage issued (survey came back fine), solicitors have received contract from the seller (they didn't mention if it was still in draft form or not), they have had the questionnair about the property and fixtures and fittings form filled and returned by the seller, which I also have a copy of now.. they also have sent me a map of the property.. not entirely sure if that is the Title search?
I think they have to carry out all the searches now.. but i have no idea how long that takes normally.
As long as everything is ok.. does anyone have any idea how long i should now expect to complete/exchange? My solicitor is a bit difficult to get hold of...

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AngryFeet · 25/03/2013 14:08

Hard to say. About 6 weeks for us. Keep calling the solicitor. Too easy for your stuff to slip to the bottom of their tray if you don't hassle them. Call twice a week to find out the status. Honestly I know it feels awkward but they do seem to forget if they aren't reminded regularly!

Original poster
Nanabana · 25/03/2013 14:14

6 weels from start to finish, or 6 weeks from receiving a formal mortgage offer? Yes I feel a bit of a nuisance for calling the solicitors all the time

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Lonecatwithkitten · 25/03/2013 14:33

Are you in a chain? If not 6 weeks is probably about right. If you are it will also depend on everyone's agendas.

Original poster
Nanabana · 25/03/2013 14:35

i'm not in a chain, but the seller is.. so am trying to also gauge where they are with things too

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Lonecatwithkitten · 25/03/2013 14:45

You are the bottom of the chain then. You can try the estate agent as often they have a good handle on what the various agendas are as it gives them an idea of when they are going to get their money.

Original poster
Nanabana · 25/03/2013 14:50

when i spoke to the agent, they suggested another 7-8 days for the solicitors to conduct all the searches... it's already been over a month since our mortgage lender began their checks etc and now survey has just been completed.

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Original poster
Nanabana · 25/03/2013 14:50

"bottom of chain" Sad

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Lonecatwithkitten · 25/03/2013 14:51

It will depend on where everyone else is with their mortgages. Some people are really organised other are not. Average house sale seems to take 3 to 4 months from offer to completion some can be longer.

mrsbungle · 25/03/2013 14:52

My solicitor started the searches on the Monday then we exchanged and completed on the same day on the Friday. We did it all very quickly but there was no chain - I think that makes all the difference.

Original poster
Nanabana · 25/03/2013 14:54

Oh so the agent wasn't far off about how long searches take. Hope it is as quick as it was for you MrsBungle.

Our seller doesn't need a mortgage for the property they are buying... so at least that's one less thing to have to wait for.

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Lonecatwithkitten · 25/03/2013 15:36

Ah take that with a pinch of salt they may not 'need' a mortgage, but that doesn't mean they are going but without one. Been there done that bought that particular T-shirt.

SunsetSongster · 25/03/2013 15:43

We had our offer accepted on a house 4 months ago and are still waiting to move Sad. We don't even have a date yet. We are in a chain of 3 (our buyers are selling to FTBers and our vendor is buying a new build).

specialsubject · 25/03/2013 16:24

reminder that you pay the solicitor, that means you call the shots. Keep calling until the lazy bugger tells you what you want to know, and advise that you want updates (even if 'no change') every x days without having to chase.

search times depend on councils and should have been kicked off first.

keep nagging everyone concerned, otherwise they forget. You need to find out how long this chain is and what is going on all the way to the top. The chain only ends when someone moves into an empty property with a dead owner, or into rental.

mrsbungle · 25/03/2013 16:28

Totally agree with the nagging. My solicitor was getting well pissed off with me but it did happen!

Hope it all goes quickly for you!

Original poster
Nanabana · 25/03/2013 16:34

yet more nervous tummyaches to look forward to then! Will definitely get onto those blasted solicitors.. they've actually been poor with contacting me

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Original poster
Nanabana · 26/03/2013 15:43

spoke to solicitor.. reckons another 6 weeks as they only received the draft contract from the sellers solicitor last week! Said that it could be sooner... ooh so anxious

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MoreBeta · 26/03/2013 15:56

We are buying a house at the moment. Our solicitor said it would take about 1 week for searches but in reality took 2 weeks from start to actually signing contract. I sent several nagging emails. Six weeks though sounds like a long time to do what is pretty routine and now mostly online.

You have to keep this stuff on everybody's agenda or it just slides.

Now we just have to hope our seller will actually be ready exchange on Thursday but are as yet not confirming in writing the verbally agreed completion date.

Original poster
Nanabana · 26/03/2013 15:58

MoreBeta that was quick on the searches, I've read that it depends on the local authority you're dealing with, some are quicker than others..
Hope all goes well for you

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jammybean · 26/03/2013 16:11

I agree with specialsubject.

We requested that our solicitor and the vendor's solicitor communicated via email and phone. To ensure the process moved quickly, we made sure we chased every two days. Spoke to solicitors almost daily.

It's been exactly 4 weeks today since our offer was accepted. Searches took a week. Mortgage had already been agreed in principal for previous house. Exchanging on Thursday.

MoreBeta · 26/03/2013 16:20

Nana - thanks. Our local authority are online to be fair.

I'm fully expecting it all to fall apart on Thursday. All too smooth so far. Its quiet... too quiet.

Goodwordguide · 26/03/2013 16:35

I agree with nag away plus the EAs seemed to know more than the solicitors and were much more on the case. The solicitors are very passive and don't do anything unless specifically asked to. It's taken us 4 months from offer accepted to completion (fingers crossed for Thursday) though that's not bad as it's been a complicated purchase with Christmas etc in the way.

Original poster
Nanabana · 27/03/2013 11:52

Gaaah! just read my homebuyers report, there are quite a number of things on there that need further investigating.

Electrics is in need of urgent attention (will probably need to completely rewire). There are signs of damp, woodworm and asbestos which I will need to have looked at further too. Plastering is old and coming away from walls / ceilings (wasn't evident to me because it was all papered or tiled over). Roof may need a bit of repair too.
I am so disheartened, more fool me for being too optimistic at imagining that this was going to be a straight forward process.

I have emailed my solicitor listing everything that she needs to obtain guarantees for (as suggested by the surveyor).

This is becoming painful

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ILikeBirds · 27/03/2013 11:57

It's surprising how many buyers phone us up chasing searches when a) their solicitor has yet to request them or b) they're not getting the searches done through the local authority...

Original poster
Nanabana · 27/03/2013 12:34

what's surprising me the most is that the seller is using the sam solicitors as us so I fail to see why the negotiation of the contract should take verylong. I also wonder if that is even allowed!!!!

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Original poster
Nanabana · 27/03/2013 12:36

That's according to the agent so really not sure if that's correct or not. I will double check with my solicitor.

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