What happens if we don’t exchange/complete today?

[carrielou2007]

After some advice please. I moved house a week before Christmas, stressful but all turned out fine in the end, happily been here 7 months.

We have been trying to exchange contracts on my late mum and dad’s house, Solicitor’s are trying to exchange and complete today. I’ve driven past the people buying and they have a removal van loading up. It has been their buying holding things up, we were due to exchange to complete on 6th July but we couldn’t as the DAY before he went on holiday for a week with no communication.

It doesn’t really make any difference to us but if we don’t exchange and complete today what happens? The people buying from us will have to unload back to their sold house or what (bit clueless!!)

Solicitor of course is shut now, she told me this morning the reason we haven’t been able to exchange each day this week was the buyers buyer mortgage funds or something and they only found this out despite asking each day by email yesterday at 5.30pm.

Any advice/experiences I would be most grateful for thank you.

Very little as you haven't exchanged yet. The buyer could still walk away if they wanted to with no consequences (as could you).

I’ve driven past the people buying and they have a removal van loading up

It sounds like they have a plan in place ... that doesn't necessarily involve your parents' house!
Go back and talk to them, get their new address. If they won't give it then you know something is wrong.

And double check with your agents that they will not give the keys without the solicitors' say-so.

solicitor knocks off at 1pm? Has no deputy when goes on holiday?

and is so incompetent that they add extra work by simultaneous exchange and complete?

you have employed the village idiot there. Happily you aren't moving but you are still getting all the hassle, and of course you need to know regarding insurance, post, ending utilites, council tax etc etc.

when solicitor decides to go back to work, demand answers. That's one of the things you pay for.

Can you clarify your terms a bit?

exchange normally means the exchange of contracts committing all parties to complete on a specific day in the future - usually at least 2 weeks away - allowing everyone time to make removals arrangements.

Are you trying to exchange and complete on the same day or do you have a contract?

If the money doesn't get to you then the new owners don't get the keys and have to pay the removals van people extra and probably sleep in a hotel tonight. If this is all the fault of their buyers, then hopefully if their solicitors are competent there will be a punitive clause in the contract for their buyers to foot the bill for this extra expense. However - none of this is your problem. do not be "nice" - do not let then into the property or allow them to unload the van. The legal situation if it all falls through would be a nightmare. It is not your problem though is it? You yourselves are not moving?

Thank you for your replies, panic over all done. We have been trying to exchange contracts to be able to stick to (second attempt) proposed completion date of today, obs I know we can’t do that until he have exchanged.

Our buyers buyer has been the spanner in the works the whole time, not replying to proposed exchange/complete dates for over a week so of course we then have to propose another date for everyone to agree to work towards. Solicitor was closed for lunch st 1pm but has been great, both my my house sale another in the group dealt with probate for late parents and has had everything ready to go with late parents house for last four weeks.

We completed at 4pm and handed over keys and £££ in my bank account now. Drove past on way back from end of school picnic to see their removal van unloading. They are a young family and I think my parents would love the idea of another family and children growing up there. It was my family home, my parents bought from new in 1976 and only people to have lived there.

I shall be having a nice big glass of chilled wine with my dinner later even if it is only Thursday and not the weekend thank you all again for your replies.

good news - thank you for the update and enjoy that well deserved glass!

nightmare for your buyers too, sitting with a van-full not knowing if they were moving. A lesson in never agreeing to simultaneous exchange and complete, especially if there is a brat in the chain as you had. We had one as well, the guy at the bottom spent a week in a travelodge because Daddy was trying to avoid CGT for his princess.

I'm glad the family home has gone to a good home.

Nice to hear a happy ending.