Exchange and completion

[melanierika7]

Hi there,

We are buying a second property and will be renting our current one out. We started the housebuying process at the end of May and were told not to make any plans with removals etc until we had an exchange date. The solicitors have numerous enquiries that they have sent to the vendor and it's been dragging on for a while. The Vendor is becoming impatient and wants to complete ASAP.

I'm not sure how things are supposed to work....We don't have an actual deposit, we are using equity from our current flat to buy this one. So basically exchange and completion have to happen simultaneously. I am just worried that if everything is ready next week, she will push to complete within a day or two, leaving us no time to arrange for a tenant or removals etc. Is it reasonable for me to say that I have had no warning about the completion date and can't be expected to complete within a day or two? We have told the estate agents that the availability date for our flat is the 1st of September, but even that is a gamble as we have no idea how much longer it will take.

no, exchange and completion do not have to happen simultaneously. Nonsense.

you've also had duff advice. You should be contacting removals companies, getting quotes and giving provisional dates. They are all well used to this.

you should also be getting your flat ready for rental; declutter, fix, decorate, gas safe, have all the insurances ready to go, quick-start guide written etc etc. You are right that you can't advertise it for letting until you have exchange and hence a completion date, but that's less of an issue as if you are in an area with rental demand it should be tenanted within a fortnight. And if you aren't in an area with rental demand you wouldn't be doing this!

We also have an offer accepted in May. The agents and lawyers indicated we are almost ready so I have started to contact the removal companies. They told me there are booked up to mid August by now. And that I should not agree to a specific date until I checked with them first. How about ringing some removal companies and see what they say?

thinking about it, OP, you don't have to move on completion day as you are not selling your flat. So tell the removers that, you'll find not-Fridays a lot cheaper and more likely to be available.

hopefully you have also been advised that you need to insure the new place from exchange, so get that lined up too.

The trouble is having to pay two mortgages with little notice.....The solicitors have given us no indication how long it will be..... I really feel like I'm in the dark. Don't know if it will be weeks or days....

...er, you've have plenty of notice as this would have been a possibility all the way along with this plan.

phone your solicitor, the guy you pay for, as often as you like for advice.

you do also realise that you need to budget for possible void periods when you will be paying both mortgages?

and you do, I hope, have rent guarantee insurance planned as well as all the other insurances you will need as a landlord.