Buying-how often to chase estate agents?

[NotAnotherUserName5]

We are 8 weeks into buying. Us first time buyer, and vendors are buying a chain free property.
No sign of a date to exchange yet!

Should I sit and wait for them to contact me? Or am I meant to be chasing it up regularly?

You chase your solicitor, and if necessary get them to chase the vendors' solicitor. It's not got much to do with the agent now.

Where are you on your end of stuff? Searches, survey, fixtures and fittings list etc?

At 8 weeks I would start nagging my solicitor. 12 weeks is a reasonable time frame for a simple short chain purchase.

Have you had results of searches back, draft contracts, etc?

Chase your solicitor, not the agent. And ask him for updates. My solicitor probably wouldn't work at all without daily calls. Chase the agent only in a case that the seller's solicitor is not responding. Agent can approach the owner directly.

We are vendors so a bit different, but with our first buyer, I was very naive as I'd never sold a house before, I was quite lax in chasing the estate agents, after 6 weeks the buyer pulled out due to being unable to get a mortgage. I didn't make that mistake again, I was on the phone practically every day wanting an update on marketing, viewers and then once an offer on the status of that. And I've done the same with the solicitors, they must be sick of me!

Thanks. I'll get on to the solicitors tomorrow.
All searches are done and back, so I'm not sure what we are waiting for.

usernotfound0000-that's terrible they strung you along for 6 weeks! Hope it all went/goes well for you this time.

Thanks! They knew our buyer as he had sold through them so I think they put some trust in him. Fingers crossed all going well this time, should be exchanging next week!