Completion dates

[OKKOKIE]

Just looking for some opinions really. My OH and I put an offer on a house on the 8th November. We are in a rental at the minute which finishes at the end of February, originally our solicitor said mid January would be the most likely completion, but things have apparently moved on quite quickly and the seller now wants to complete before Christmas.

The survey is being done this week and our mortgage offer should be through next week so technically we could complete then, but it leaves us in a bit of a pickle in that we would then have rent December January and February along with mortgage payments which would completely zap our finances and mean we couldn't do the work we need to do to the new house as soon as we hoped. We also need to buy all the white goods.

If everything is ready to complete before Christmas would we be totally unreasonable to still ask for completion to happen mid January?

If you were selling to us would you completely hate that?

So the difference is four weeks rent? Why don’t you say that you can either stick to he original date or they can pay those four weeks rent for you and see what they say?

I think I’d ask the solicitor to exchange before Christmas to have that 100% certainty. However, I’d ask to complete later- perhaps try to negotiate end of Jan. You’d have a month of double payments but it’d also give you time to do tings with the new property without all your stuff there.

I agree with rogan. If they’re desperate to complete then ask them to pay the extra rent. Completing before Christmas sounds incredibly quick and I don’t think you’re unreasonable to plan for January. I say that as someone who had an offer accepted in early Oct, no chain and haven’t yet exchanged.

I think the plan to exchange before Christmas is good, it will hopefully reassure the seller that we are definitely buying, it just would help us out to complete in the new year. I had budgeted for the overlap and as others have said didn't mind having a month on the end as floors need replaced and a kitchen refit is needed, which would be better to happen whilst we were living elsewhere.

thanks for setting my mind at ease!