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In a chain support thread Sept 2017

999 replies

Gizlotsmum · 04/09/2017 17:55

Hope it's ok to start another one! So we have a week of waiting for surveys etc...

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LBOCS2 · 19/09/2017 22:25

So... I've got a probate property with a sale going through (teeny chain, only three people and one is prepared to go into rental to make it happen), and I was going to let that go through, sit on the money and then start house hunting once it was complete.

Except DH and I had an offer accepted on a house today. And they want to exchange by Dec 1st.

So it's squeaky bum time here! We've spoken to our IFA, got our AIP, instructed our solicitors for the new house purchase as well as the old house sale... and now we need to decide what to do with the house we're in now. Christmas in our new houses everyone?

Nessalina · 20/09/2017 07:03

Ha! Sounds good to me LBOCS2! If you've already got a little chain on the go, I'm sure you can get it sorted for then! Smile

LazyDailyMailJournos · 20/09/2017 09:33

Oh yes definitely Christmas in new houses!! We accepted the offer on our place at the start of June - and I rather naively thought that we'd be all done and dusted by the end of August...

I hate living in limbo. We've started packing up some bits and bobs and we have also cleared out the loft, so everything is de-cluttered and ready to pack. But I can't stand mess and disorder and I am finding it so hard to work in this environment. I also don't like the feeling of being stuck between two houses. I normally have flowers in the house, but when I went to the supermarket at the weekend I didn't bother buying any, because it seems a bit daft to get them when the place looks like a storage unit!

I also keep having recurring nightmares about being scammed on the deposit transfer and sending our life savings to the wrong bank account!!

YogaDrone · 20/09/2017 09:44

Here's hoping you all have Father Christmas coming down the chimneys of your new homes this year Brew Cake (too early for Wine !)

My EA is coming round at 12pm to re-take some photos, re-do the floor plan and discuss all the points I want to raise. I've actually realised what is fundamentally wrong with the floorplan - the house isn't the correct shape! This accounts for the seemingly impossible room sizes and odd scaling of the rooms Hmm

LazyDailyMailJournos · 20/09/2017 10:17

They do some odd things with floor plans, don't they?

Top tip - make sure the dimensions of the rooms are actually legible. I always looked at room sizes on the listing and it's amazing how many of them had dimensions on the floor plan which were in such tiny font you couldn't read them.

YogaDrone · 20/09/2017 13:39

Another good point! He's going to send me the draft of the revised floor plan so I'll check that Lazy, thanks.

Quite productive I meeting I hope. EA was very receptive to the ideas I put forward. He has taken some photos again including the front garden, which I've now dressed with some large pots of bright yellow marigolds and some winter flowering cyclamen. We also had the drive cleaned and weeded yesterday. Hopefully the house will look a little softer around the edges now. I raised the possibility of a professional photographer but have agreed to give it a week or so with the new shots. The order of the photos on RM will be changed to be more logical and to he's going to play with the description to include the SE facing garden and Ofsted Outstanding primary nearby.

He has also confirmed that there are buyers in a position to proceed registered with him for houses of this size and price bracket. We also went through the RM stats for the week since we've been back on the market which aren't bad. Though I have Lazy and Nessa to thank for 2 of the "click throughs"!

So, I guess we shall see. Patience is not one of my virtues though!

Nessalina · 20/09/2017 17:50

Oh that's good detective work Yoga! The shape of the house is the kind of thing you'd think would be hard to get wrong wouldn't you?! Grin

Loads of legal docs through from vendors today inc contract, transfer, and details of the extension which I've already gone through with a fine toothed comb on the local planning portal anyway etc etc so that's all good! My EA is chasing our buyers for an update on their mortgage application status...

mussinboots · 20/09/2017 23:09

Not been on for a while but seems like some of you are almost at the finishing line and others not far behind- wuhooo! 🙌🏻 🤝 🥂

We've had a very bumpy ride so far: rude and threatening vendor's EA (the woman is a complete and utter cow), elderly buyers who lost their original buyer as her ex reneged on their divorce settlement and then 2 different people who put offers in then went awol and wouldn't answer EA calls! Luckily new buyers for our buyer (sorry- confusing, I know!) were found very recently and they had a mortgage valuation done today. I'm hoping and praying all went well with that and our buyers place sells verrrrrryyyyyy soon! We've been told by our EA that because we're in the middle of a chain (of 5), all we can do is wait. Thing is, I don't do patience and am beside myself with 'what if scenarios'.

We had a Structural Survey done on the place we want to buy and the preliminary feedback today has been that the building (1930s) bungalow has asbestos in the Artex ceilings within the house and also in garage and out building's corrugated roof 😷. The main bedroom came up with a high reading of damp that'll have to be fixed ASAP. Also, Some roots along the front entrance have also left the boundary wall unstable which'll need fixing. Oh, the roof has moss growing on it which'll also need jet washing off apparently! 😭 And, all this on top of the fact that the property is within a 1-5% (I think) Radon gas risk area 😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩.

Has anyone experienced serious things wrong in their surveys? What do we do now? We receive the official report in 5 working days and then what? Do we negotiate property price? What if the owner says no? So, so, soooooo upset right now :'(

LazyDailyMailJournos · 21/09/2017 08:10

Oh Muss what a palaver!!

First off, some surveys do tend to err on the side of caution. That's not to try and dismiss what yours says, but I know from other posters on MN and also my own experience that they can sometimes overplay issues and make them sound more serious than they actually are.

Lots of roofs have moss on them. They always flag this. Yes, you may want to get it dealt with but it's not a priority, so don't worry about it. The main issue with this is that the moss can clog the gutters. I must admit when you said there's a damp issue in the bedroom, my first thought was to check the guttering. Make sure it's clear and secure and that there is no water leaking from the gutters into the bedroom wall. Clearing the gutters shouldn't cost a lot - if you have a long enough ladder and don't mind heights then you can do it yourself. It's cold and messy but quite satisfying!!

If the gutters are OK, then the next thing I would check is the pointing on the wall in front of the bedroom. If this has given way then it could account for why the damp is there - in which case you need the pointing to be repaired. Again you can DIY it if you want or get someone in to do it. It shouldn't be expensive.

Asbestos in the ceilings is a specialist job - no two ways about it. You do NOT want to be messing about with that yourself. Find a reputable company, check they are fully insured and get quotes for removing it. However it is only an issue if you are planning to dislodge, remove or change something on the ceilings - so unless you're planning to refurb and pull down the Artex on day one then it can wait. Asbestos is fine as long as you leave it alone (there are a lot of older schools and public buildings which have asbestos in them).

Roots making the boundary wall unstable will need to be sorted. However this may not be as big a job as you think. A general builder should be able to sort this out for you. The main issue is to identify which roots are causing the problem and if possible, try and remove them.

Can't comment on radon results as it's not something I'm familiar with. My advice would be to speak to your solicitor about this - because they should know about it and this is what you are paying them for!

Our survey flagged up two serious issues. One we were already aware of (and we don't think it's as serious as the surveyor made out) and another which we didn't know about which was worrying. We had the other issue looked at by a professional, who couldn't stop laughing when he went round because apparently it's absolutely fine. In his words "I don't know what the surveyor was on about because there's nothing like that in this area. Nothing to worry about!". I'm not trying to dismiss surveys out of hand - or suggest that they are all over-egged; just that sometimes the reports can make issues sound desperately serious whereas they may not be. Also surveys do sometimes get things wrong (as evidenced by our non-issue!).

We're using ours as a useful list of things that need maintenance and attention, as you would expect on any property that's not brand new. If you are really worried about how much things like asbestos removal will cost, then you could ask for trades to go and quote now before you exchange contracts. If it's a significant amount of money then you may want to ask the vendor to renegotiate on price to reflect the work that needs doing. A word of warning though; the vendor may refuse on the basis that it's not uncommon for a 1930s semi to need work and for them to include asbestos in their construction.

Gizlotsmum · 21/09/2017 08:21

Seconding a lot of what Lazy said. Our survey raised moss ( we are leaving it for now) roof may need repointing ( again it will wait) asbestos may be present ( but not w problem unless you intend to disturb it). I would only be concerned about the damp and the roots.. our searches showed potential for susbsidence due to location but all houses round here have that risk and no signs at the house ( and already have an approximate insurance quote so can get insurance at a reasonable price).

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YogaDrone · 21/09/2017 13:35

Nice to have loads of paperwork to go through Nessalina. I found sleep very hard to achieve in the last few weeks of pregnancy so some nice boring legal documents might help you nod off Wink

Mussinboots - I agree (as usual) with Lazy. Our roof has moss too which we deal with by having the gutters cleared a few times a year. No idea about Radon either. Is this something you just have to accept might be there or are there further searches/tests that could be carried out?

Ecureuil · 21/09/2017 19:38

We were due to exchange today... we were told it was going ahead this morning, transferred our deposit money, got our contents insurance in place... and it didn't happen.
Fx for tomorrow.

Gizlotsmum · 21/09/2017 19:51

Fx ecureuil!

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Gizlotsmum · 21/09/2017 19:53

So got quote to properly fit log burner and it will be £1250. So not too bad! Things seem to be moving. Waiting on Buyers mortgage offer but all searches are back so half term is looking good for completion

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LazyDailyMailJournos · 21/09/2017 22:07

FX Ecureuil!! Please share how you didn't have a total meltdown when transferring the deposit and convincing yourself that scammers were going to somehow invade your bank account and steal it. Asking for a friend Grin

MightyMunki · 22/09/2017 01:11

I've been lurking for ages, can I share my rollercoaster/ nightmare experience so far.

Current status- towards the bottom of a chain of 4, we are selling to first time buyers who are at the bottom. They offered on our house and we found our dream house a couple of days later, the chain was complete, all we needed to do was get ourselves and the FTB transaction sorted. We emphasized how important it was to complete the transaction as soon as we could due to the chain being complete (previous chain on house we were buying was ready to go when their buyer fell through the day before exchange). Everything is ready for our purchase but the sale of our house has been a total nightmare.

After taking forever to book their survey (went on holiday first), it seems like they've delayed this in every way they can- mortgage offer sent to wrong solicitor. We finally are both at the stage now where all searches, surveys and enquiries have been dealt with.

We were supposed to exchange last week and complete next Friday, however they failed to notify their landlord they were buying a house and didn't give any notice, so they've asked for an extra 6 weeks as they couldn't afford the extra months rent and mortgage payment in one go.

The parties up the chain are keen to move sooner, as they've been waiting to move for the last 6 months, and generously offered to pay the rent so we can all complete sooner.

On Monday they told us all documents had been sent in and deposit paid. Our buyer agreed to complete next week on Tuesday and we were all set to exchange, however found out they were holding onto their signed contracts which they hadn't yet sent back to their solicitor, promised to post that day. On Wednesday they came back and said they changed their minds, and would prefer to complete later rather than be inconvenienced by going between two properties for the last month of their rental, and would be pulling out if we didn't agree. The EA begged those up the chain to allow a few more weeks before completion, they conceded, everyone agreed to the new moving day. We were due to exchange Thursday and they've now gone AWOL. All attempts to chase them up for exchange via the solicitors or EA have gone unanswered.

I am so upset by this whole process, I pulled my preschoolers out of nursery as I didn't think it would be fair to settle them in if we would be due to move shortly.
I feel like they are holding the contracts as ransom and can't believe they would lie about sending them in, they will only send them in once every demand has been met. I'm expecting them to try and renegotiate on price- already done this once which we agreed to. I just seems like everyday this past week and the one before they told us we will exchange the next day and then renege on the agreement. I wish we'd never accepted their offer. Really don't want to lose the house we are buying. So stressed and don't know what to do, if they don't reply later on today then I think it's all going to be over for us.

Gizlotsmum · 22/09/2017 06:34

Oh munki that’s pants. How could all the solicitors failed to have noticed such key documentation wasn’t complete?

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MightyMunki · 22/09/2017 07:20

Their solicitor only checked the client file once we were ready to exchange, that's when he noticed the mortgage offer was missing. It is beyond belief. This is so unbelievably stressful. I can't understand why they went silent, surely the decent thing to do would be to tell the other party if you no longer wish to continue.

DragonMamma · 22/09/2017 07:33

Oh Munki that's bloody shit. Sounds like you have nightmar buyers. Hopefully you believe in karma and that they'll get their dues when they want to sell.

My buyer is an absolute star and low maintenance to boot and I'll be leaving him what I can when we leave as he's a FTB with two small kids.

It's mortgage valuation day here - fc it doesn't all go belly up. Luckily I have a busy day in work so can't think about it too much otherwise I'd be watching my phone the entire time Blush

Aside from that I'm trying to get everything sorted but until we have a date I'm seriously lacking in motivation. I know it'll be October so I don't have the luxury of time, especially as I'm away with work a lot next month. Oh well, DH will have to step up and help for once!

LazyDailyMailJournos · 22/09/2017 09:39

Oh Munki that's horrendous. I don't understand why people do this? Has any money actually changed hands towards their rent? If it has then it might be worth liaising with your vendors and issuing a joint ultimatum to the FTB advising that if they don't exchange you will be suing for the return of the rental monies.

It's a gamble - because it's probably not worth incurring the legal costs for doing it. But it may shock them into realising that they can't keep dicking people about like this. I really sympathise - it must be awful. Did your house sell quickly and is it in an area where there is lots of interest? If so then I'd call your EA and get it banged straight back on the market - and tell the FTB it's gone back on the market because they haven't exchanged. Sometimes some pressure tactics can bear fruit - either with getting them to commit, or admit they don't want to proceed.

YogaDrone · 22/09/2017 10:01

Fingers crossed it happens today Ecureuil

Oh Munki that's outrageous. We really do need some variation of the Scottish system in England & Wales because fuckwittery like that shouldn't be allowed to happen. Does you EA have any potential buyers for your house? If so I'd be tempted to invite them round for a little impromptu tea and offers party.

YogaDrone · 22/09/2017 10:06

Hope the mortgage valuation goes well today DragonMama

I hadn't seen Lazy's last post when I replied but, as usual, I agree with her Smile . Get some pressure on your buyers. At this point they have invested heavily both with money and in time and it may focus them if you say you are going back on the market. Presumably they have now given notice to their landlord so they are on the clock too.

Gizlotsmum · 22/09/2017 10:11

Good luck Dragon!

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Nessalina · 22/09/2017 10:35

Bloody hell Munki that's awful!! They sound like proper spoilt children about the whole process. This is where I feel like the Scottish system has some benefits over ours, people shouldn't be allowed to dick about once they're committed to a chain Angry I think Lazy has it right, get it back on the market as a shock tactic at least, and a means of finding other buyers at best!!

Fx for your valuation Dragon!

Here's hoping you're moving house right now Ecureuil!

We've just got our searches back, nothing to worry about which is fab, just a sewage pipe that cuts across the very front of the plot, but can't imagine that's going to have any impact. We also got a massive list of enquiries back from our buyers, but nothing that should be a problem. Only slight hitch is that we should have a copy of an indemnity cover that our vendors took out when we bought the property 11yrs ago because they didn't get building regs when they knocked down an internal wall. We don't have it, and our buyers solicitors want a copy, but because the work is now ancient history there's no action that could be taken re the work, so our conveyancer thinks he can probably tell them to whistle.

AnnPerkins · 22/09/2017 12:03

Hi everyone. Nice to see you again, DailyMail.

Munki, what dreadful, dreadful people. But they have shelled out a fair bit of money on fees by now so you may be able to call their bluff. Can you discuss a plan of action with your other vendors? They might be happy to risk starting again with new buyers rather than hanging on for an indefinite period with these chancers. You have all my sympathy, it must be so stressful.

I hope your exchange is taking place right now, Ecureuil.

Good luck with your valuation, Dragon.

Nessalina, I hope your buyer's conveyancer sees sense about the indemnity thing.

Good luck for today’s viewing, Yoga.

We received the contract for our purchase today. I think the sale contract should be imminent too, just waiting for the buyer’s sol to agree their queries are satisfied now. The buyer's buyer may still be waiting for mortgage offer and search results and I'm not sure what's going on at the other end of the chain. The vendor's EA is not very good at progress reports but I've got my EA and DH badgering them now.

The buyers at the bottom of the chain are keen to complete asap and I'm doing what I can to keep the momentum going. I will drive this to completion at half term single-handedly if I have to. (Gizlot, just one month to go, clock's ticking...)

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