Sellers/Buyers Roll Call No 6

[Violetroselily]

New thread

Why do EAs take so long to get back to you?! We called with some questions and to implement DPs strategy and he said he'd call back with the answers. That was 3hrs ago! I really wanted to get our offer in before it gets too late as they now have another viewing tomorrow apparently.

Trying to hard to be realistic that it won't happen but it's impossible not to!!

I've been very reluctant to join in any of these chats in case I jinxed things, but we're looking to exchange any day now, and have today proposed a moving date of 13 September!

It's all gone remarkably smoothly - we were the first to view the house we're buying at the beginning of June, and put in an offer the next day. We hadn't got ours on the market, so marketed ours the following week, and got 2 over-asking offers within 2 days. Our buyers are cash buyers, don't need to sell their house to buy ours, and our sellers are going into rented until their next house is ready (refurb job), so a very easy chain.

I've found this section so helpful, and my heart has been in my mouth for so many of you, I wish you all good outcomes.

I had my photos done yesterday and the EA arranged a viewing before I’d even signed off the brochure. The guy really liked the house and is coming back for a second viewing this afternoon. The house isn’t even on rightmove yet.

Welcome @EmmaStone - I hope things continue to progress smoothly for you! Not every sale is a disaster but as you’ve seen we’ve had some crazy stories on this thread.

EA called yesterday to discuss completion dates! Aiming for 6th Sept. I hope we can exchange in the next week or so

@MrBobLobLaw any update ?

Good new about completion @Fleabag123! Better start packing now hey?!

We put our offer in yesterday via email as the vendors are on holiday, plus they have more viewings this weekend so expecting to hear back on Monday. Really hoping we get this one.. but I don't want to get our hopes up in equal measure. We just went in for the OIEO Asking price but we don't have huge room for manoeuvre sadly.

Hi all,

I've read this thread from start to finish and as awful as it sounds - I'm glad to see we're not the only unlucky ones in the house buying business!

A bit of context:
DP and I have had a bloody nightmare. We are FTB and have had every problem going; gazumped, shitty estate agents and finally culminating in being told to buy the freehold would be 4k... Shot up to 12k after we had put an offer in and we had to withdraw

We were feeling pretty deflated after three disappointments and put our search on hold. A week later, we went to a wedding and got chatting to a builder who was working on a property in the area we want to buy in. Managed to get in there before the property went on the market, discussed a price with the owner and looks like we will be purchasing it! It is a 1960s build but they have stripped it back to the brick and put a really modern finish inside so we are feeling pretty positive.

We have got in touch with our broker and are in the process of sorting the mortgage... Should we organise a survey or do we need something in writing first?

Sorry for the huge essay

Emma stone and Fleabag- hope all continues to go smoothly for you both.

MrBobloblaw , fingers crossed your offer is accepted. You deserve some good luck.

Chanteuse, congratulations on finding somewhere after your bad luck. I don't know about the survey stuff sorry

Mum going to see and pay solicitor today- and find out date I can move!

Complicated story, but my beloved grandmother died a year ago. I am disabled and have always rented. So my mum is using some of her inheritance to buy me a house so I will have security for the rest of my life. I realise how incredibly lucky I am, and can't wait to have my first ever home.

So we have a provisional date! Going in to sign the contract for our purchase on Thursday with the aim to complete next Wednesday... all seems a bit tight but solicitor says it is do-able! Can’t let myself get excited yet as we haven’t seen any paperwork so far except a scanned page out of the fixtures and fittings form

Solicitor on our side has been pretty much useless and we’ve had to rely on the estate agent for nearly all our info so I can’t help but think something will be amiss with the paperwork when we go to sign. Has everyone else seen copies of the searches / buildings regs certs etc before signing/exchanging?

@ravenshope @Bumblebeemee
Great news then! It's such an exciting time but also very stressful.

Can't help with paperwork sorry as we're not quite there yet, but congratulations!

I’ve just had an offer accepted on a property so probably way too prematurely joining this thread

As a FTB, I’ve already gone on a rollercoaster of emotions just between viewing and offering and can’t see the woods for the trees now. My anxiety is in overdrive!

My main worry is that I’ve offered too much for it. Would anyone be able to cast an objective eye via PM and tell me whether they consider it a sensible investment please?

I am so, so close to pulling out of my purchase. The vendor is either deliberately misleading the agent, or is an idiot and doesn't understand the cost of the works being carried out so we are getting nowhere in the price renegotiation.

I know they're doing this deliberately - they're professional landlords and surveyors ffs - and I'm sick of it.

Telling the agent that I wont be proceeding unless they start being transparent and stop saying the opposite of what the enquiry responses say

Completion date- Friday 16th; moving date Monday 19th.
Thanks Chanteuse!
Oh no Violetroselily I hope they start being transparent, it's all stressful enough without that.
SabaliSabali congratulations. I think all this anxiety and second guessing yourself is perfectly normal.
Bumblebeeme Yay!!
I received the contract to sign, the search results etc all at the same time.

Thanks @ravenshope it’s reassuring to know something in the process is pretty standard.

@SabaliSabali I think your reaction is quite typical, we offered the asking price on our purchase due to losing out on 2 other houses we loved because they were snapped up within 48 hours of being on the market. We didn’t want to mess about with low offers and miss out on this one but we did start to second guess whether we should have gone in lower. In the end we won’t be looking to move in the next 10+ years so it’s how much we value it as our home rather than making a profit.

@Violetroselily sounds like they’re not interested in renegotiations and they’re hoping you’ll concede. Where do you stand if you pull out?

@Bumblebeemee I had expected them to refuse because they've been pretty unreasonable in other, more minor respects. If they had just said no I wouldn't give it much more thought, but my emotions are getting the better of me and I'm pissed off that they're lying about it all to the agent because it's just wasting more time. I honestly could have punched something when I got the agents email this afternoon.

If I pull out I lose about £1300, need to find a new short term rental (I have to leave mine soon and can only stay with family for a few weeks in between), mortgage offer expires in 2 months and I'd be back at square one with viewings. Theres some, but not alot on the market here.

Going to sleep on it and see how I feel in the morning. I don't want to pull out when we are 17 weeks in and are so close to the finishing line - for the sake of 5k I don't think it's worth it.

But I am so utterly fucked off with this whole process

That is so annoying for you violet! I agree with PPs it just sounds like they're not interested in negotiations. Incredibly frustrating!

We gave the go ahead to our broker today and got the sellers solicitors details. They are putting in a new gate/fence in the back and front gardens and my partner asked if they could leave the front so we could put a drive way in. They said they will put one in which was lovely!

Hoping this is the one for us this time!

May I join the party? We’ve had all the estate agents round and are waiting for the formal valuations and fee for selling info. Any advice, those of you who are way beyond this stage?

I've had to pull out of my purchase - results of the full HB survey came back showing 'substantial structural movement' and building society said they wouldn't loan against house. Mortgage adviser said he'd never seen a letter like that before and suggested I walk away immediately.

Gutted (but not surprised) that yet another house move won't go smoothly for me and that I will end up putting stuff into storage to pacify buyers by completing on 3rd October as planned rather than moving out of old and into new house on same day for once.

@Blobby10 - that's rubbish but it's unequivocal isn't it? You had no choice.

Was it an HB Survey or a Structural Survey? Thank god you weren't relying g on a valuation survey. Had the vendors declared anything in the property information forms?

Hi Giraffey! I know my mum didn't go with the highest valuation when selling my grandmother's house. There were others on the street at much higher but they still haven't sold. As she wanted a quick sale, she went for a lower price. It sold within a couple of weeks but then that fell through so had to start again. But otherwise it would have been quick.

Blobby10, so sorry. There is a much better house out there for you but I know you won't feel that right now.

*@sandybayley * it was the full HB survey -house is only 20 years old but when I was looking round I noticed the carpet at one end of one room was about half an inch below the skirting board so decided to have the full survey and thankful that I did! sellers didn't know anything about it apparently, and estate agents are horrified. They have asked for a copy of the report so they can feed back to the sellers - I'm feeling so petulant and stroppy and pissed off that I feel like saying 'I've paid £630 for this - you aren't benefitting from it'!!!! But I won't

@ravenshope I know that really but the trouble is there just aren't any other houses around that come close to what I need and in the area I want at the price I can afford. This house was perfect sizewise and costwise. I was just really really hoping that this would be one house move to go smoothly - clearly I've pissed off the fates again but hey ho, its only a house. Plenty of other people have far worse problems to deal with so I won't dwell on my minor 'misfortune'

Hi All,
I'm joining late but have read most of the previous posts.

I'm a buyer, specifically a property investor (or consultant). I work with vendors who are struggling to sell because of problems such as short leases. I'm working on two projects at the moment. We'll see if our offers get accepted.

Hi everyone new and old.

Congrats to those of you who have had exciting progress like completing dates! It must be so exciting to have an end date in sight.

Interested to hear about your experience @dgrant so your full time job is selling awkward to sell properties?

Not much of an update from us except that we've put in our offer on the garden flat and are waiting to hear back from the vendors (who are on holiday!) hopefully today. Apparently another 2 offers were put, one higher and one lower, but people from the higher offer are less proceedable than us. Anyway hoping we don't get in another bidding war and really hope we can secure the place this week so we can tell our buyer that we're on the go again. Feel really bad making him wait around.

Sorry you're being so dicked around @Violetroselily. Any more word today?

Joining the party. We've put our first offer in on a property- I'm expecting it to rejected as it's 10% under the asking price. I'm so impatient and want it now 😭

What were your EAs like when it came to their charges and what was included? Did you get charged extra for photography? And did you choose a fixed fee price ? We are still waiting for all the figures but already have a 0.8% plus VAT and a 1.25% plus VAT. Then they talk about extra fees for photos etc. I really think they should say here is the fee, which includes everything , VAT and the lot. It would make comparisons so much easier.