Trying to decide if we really need to exchange before giving notice on current rented property

[ScarlettInSpace]

We had our offer accepted in June, no chain either side, it's all been really straightforward.

All the searches are done, queries all answered, happy with HBS.

Mortgage agreed, gift info supplied, valuation satisfactory.

We returned all the signed docs special delivery to our conveyancer on tues, although due to her internal post she only got them today

Yesterday she said all she is waiting for is confirmation the mortgage co [Barclays] are happy with gift info - it's from my Aunt, she sighed the waiver document & our financial advisor already submitted it to the mortgage co with the original application.

We need to give 1 month notice on our current rented property but can only give on the last day of the month, so Monday - if we miss Monday we can't give notice until 31st August which means another month here which I reeaaaaallllly don't want!!!

So our dilemma is, do we do the 'right thing' and not hand notice in until we've exchanged, even though that will probably mean a delay of another month - even in we exchange on 1st August we can't agree to complete until 2nd half of September due to doubling rent/mortgage costs.

Or do we chance it & hand our notice in on Monday anyway, on the basis that everything is done so there is no conceivable reason why we won't exchange & complete in August...

It's unlike the agent will market the house straightaway (they're pretty shit) so if we haven't exchanged by the end of the first week of August, we could ask if they would extend our notice to the end of September? We'd be a bit buggered if they said no though

Help!!

The whole point is that you have security that the seller won't pull out after the point of exchange, meaning you know you've definitely got the house to move into at the end of your notice period.

It's up to you whether you want to go ahead and hand your notice in without that absolute security - would you have somewhere to go if it all went wrong for whatever reason and the sale fell through after you'd given notice on your rental? Like you say it probably will all be fine, just depends if you want to take the risk or not!

Yes you can give notice. Effectively, even if the letting agent say no to an extension of you need it, you dont actually have to go. There isn't much they can do.

Ultimately they can take you to court for possession but they won't do that as it costs loads and you'll leave anyway before the court date.

The worst you risk is not getting a reference from them- which you won't need.

And they can't keep your deposit on this basis either. It's unrelated.

I suspect your solicitor will suggest you don't hand in your notice until you exchange. It's not a done deal - relatively few purchases don't proceed once you've exchanged (but it can happen).

I really wouldnt. Youve got a slow conveyancer and there is always a chance of a last minute problem. Ask for a long gap to completion to minimise overlap.

Thanks everyone, all valuable input for us to think on over the weekend.

The risk taking rebel in me goes 'just do it, let's get moved asap' but the grown up part is saying 'don't be daft it's only an extra month, and this way you'll have more time to pack & get organised'

Lots to think about though!

Property lawyer here: don't do it.

Some bugger elsewhere in the chain will suddenly announce a previously unknown holiday and everything will be delayed & you'll have a ranting landlord.

Moving is stressful enough; don't add to it

I'd ring the solicitors on Monday and chase for confirmation there is nothing in the way of exchanging. Also ring letting agent/LL and ask if they can give few days grace?
We are in the same situation, contracts all signed, solicitors have our money, buildings insurance done today. The minute I get the phone call from the solicitors on Monday I will ping a pre drafted email giving notice on the rental.

We agreed the timescales in writing a month ago so everyone knew we were aiming for 31st.

But had there been a delay I was going to give notice anyway as we do have all of August to sort things out.

Good luck!

Also just to add, your solicitor should be able to clarify that everything is fine with the lender in a very quick phone call. If the lender is aware of the gift info already there should really be no problems from their end.

Would be a bit daft to have to put everything off an extra month if that's the only thing holding exchange back!

As long as you are cool to use storage + airbnb if it gets delayed! Or rent somewhere else if it fals thru...

I think I've decided on a plan [i always need a plan]

I'm going to ring my conveyancer on Monday morning and see if she sees any reason for not exchanging this week. Also push her to ring the mortgage co to check they are happy with everything re the gift.

Then I'm going to ring the ea & ask him to speak to the vendors, and check there is no reason they are aware of why exchange can't happen this week, and that they are happy to proceed. I'm also going to ask them to ask their solicitor to put pressure on ours to exchange asap.

Once I've had those conversations & hopefully got some exchange & completion dates agreed then we'll take a call on whether we send the notice email.

I feel better just for having a plan! Thanks again for all the input, it has helped us work through the various risks & possible outcomes

Don't forget to back up the email with a letter, with proof of posting.

Do be careful - the only person who suffers if there is a cockup is you. Solicitors etc may not be that bothered.

We didn't put in our notice for our rented house until we'd exchanged - which proved wise. We'd been told we'd exchange and complete on the same day (and had transferred funds to the solicitors to make that happen), and were waiting to be told the key was ready - we were moving into an empty house which had previously been rented out, so there was no reason for the seller to delay. But when I eventually managed to contact our solicitor, they told us that we had exchanged, but not completed that day - we completed a week later. DH and I had booked time off work to move stuff etc. It was only a week, but at least we had somewhere to live during that time!

Also, we had a typical assured shorthold tenancy, and discovered that we could give our notice at any point; it was a month from the day we gave it, we didn't have to give it on (say) 1st of the month. So hopefully you won't be too screwed with that.

We actually found an overlap (which we were fortunate to be able to afford) really useful - we did a lot of painting before we moved the bulk of our stuff in, then had a week to clean the old house. But I appreciate we paid for a month of overlap, which wasn't cheap.

Wait until you have exchanged. You can usually push out completion anyway.

I think your plan is a good one. To be honest as we wanted to move quickly I would have been really pissed off as a seller if I didn't realise your rental notice issues. And would have pushed and pushed to get the exchange done.

As a landlord I like it when a tenant tells me they are looking for something to buy and keeps me in the picture. Indeed I currently have a tenant who is hoping to move to a new build Help to Buy property in September.

I will still expect a months notice but my preferred local agents are aware that the flat is coming up. Hopefully as soon as the current tenant knows his completion date, I get the notice and start marketing. If he can move out earlier than the month and I find a tenant who wants to move in earlier, he saves money. So he is motivated to have the flat looking nice for viewings. Good communication backed by everyone being clear on legal obligations, is usually the key to good landlord-tenant stuff.

Well I've spoken to the vendors ea, he absolutely says NOT to hand our notice in until we've exchanged. He is going to speak to the vendors but he's quite sure they are in no rush and will be happy to wait until September to complete to ensure everything is done properly.

My conveyancer is, typically, not answering her phone.

Re LL / tenant relationships, our LL lives on the other side of the world so his letting agent is pretty autonomous & unfortunately they are awful. We wouldn't even view houses on the market through them due to their consistent shitness .

We've been here 8 yrs and never missed a payment or caused any issues, their littany of shitness is a whole new thread, and their decision to impose an 11% rent increase at Easter promote us to reassess our position, hence buying our own place. So I guess they did us a favour! I wish I could contact the LL direct to advise he finds a new LA who would actually care about this property & his tenants.

All that aside, we are reasonable people & did tell them as soon as we had our offer accepted, so they had a headsup, their only response was suggesting we sign a new 6 month contract as 'buying a house takes time'...

Anyway thanks again for all the responses, all really helpful, I'm 15 weeks pg, I should probably just take the extra month as a blessing so I'm putting myself under all the extra pressure!

I'd speak to your letting agent and ask if there is scope for giving notice not on the first of the month, but tell them you'd give more than a month in that case.

you are entitled to landlord contact details. And it is the landlord that sets rent, not agent. 11%?? No wonder you are leaving.

Sign nothing, stay on a rolling contract.

Oh that's interesting, I don't even know the LL name! It has to be in the original tenancy agreement I guess? When we challenged the rent increase it felt like they hadn't even spoken to the LL, it felt like they went to him retrospectively, but who knows! We just pay the rent and look after the house, hopefully after the next few weeks we won't need to think about letting agents & landlords ever again 🤞

The good news is the call to the vendors estate agent has paid off! The vendors have fed back that they are in no rush, no concerns their end & happy to push completion to mid Sept to make sure all is done properly, it sounds like that timescale suits them better to be honest.

My solicitor still hasn't replied to my email, DM or VM but heyho