buying a repossession...7 day notice

[ChubbyPolecat]

I'm a FTB and have found a flat I love. It's a repossession and needs some work. One estate agent has told me it has an offer on it already and has said how much. The 7 day notice hasn't been put on any of the online adverts. I haven had a chance to check the local papers...does this mean anything? How long should it take for the estate agent to put the 7 day notice up if any offer I put in is accepted?

Also what is the quickest I should be able to get to exchange to make sure I can secure the property? I get the feeling I'm competing with developers so the likelihood of me getting it is pretty slim

If there is another offer on it and you aren't a cash buyer/haven't got all your funding in place, then I'm afraid you are very unlikely to get it. I have bought a couple of repos and it was 28 days to exchange from offer (including the obligatory advertising of the offer period which meant I wasn't very inclined to get my solicitor going through the paperwork in case someone else came along). Ask the estate agent what the process would involve exactly and, if you aren't a cash buyer, whether the seller would entertain an offer from someone who needs a mortgage.

Thanks for your response! The estate agents know I'm a first time buyer with an AIP and they've let me view the place so I assume they know so I should ask them outright. I'm prepared to move quickly but have found out the lease is less than 80 years so that's an added complication I could do without!

Again, if the lease has fewer than 80 years left to run, you may struggle to find a mainstream lender. Have you a mortgage broker? Phone him or her and run the details past to see if it can be done. You may find this calculator is useful to give you a very rough ballpark figure for the costs of extending the lease but you may find that you have two wait two years to qualify to do this anyway (be wary of a freeholder who offers to extend before the two years are up as many will alter the terms of the lease in the process to your disadvantage).

Good luck.

I've only gone direct at the moment but just rang the lender and they said it wouldn't be an issue that it's got a shorter lease. That calculator is incredibly helpful, thank you. I've booked to see it again and taking more knowledgeable people with me. I definitely want to go into this with my eyes open no matter how much I love the flat

Thank you for your help 😊

Buying a repo is a bit stressful. I had to 28 days from offer being accepted to exchange. That was a very fraught time! You will need a mortgage advisor. A good hard/fast working one. Mine was worth every penny. You need the same from your solicitor too as speed is key here.

The estate agents are all very keen for me to use their mortgage advisors would it be better to find an independent one? I'm going to look for a conveyancer asap

Not necessarily, so long as the MA is well recommended. I didn't use the EA one I went independent with one I know and trust. They are worth their salt in situations like this.