Sellers/Buyers Roll Call No 6

[Violetroselily]

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Completed! What a long time coming - and a bit of an anticlimax in the end ☹️
I will love it in time, but the vendor left everything so dusty except the kitchen and bathroom.
We’ve decided to rip the carpets up and take off the peeling wallpaper.
Also removed two (hideous) electric fireplaces - sadly no beautiful originals underneath but better than the eyesores that were there.
It will all come good in the end - hopefully! Just very relieved to be in finally

Congratulations L238 - what a relief for you!!! I hope you'll be very happy in your new home!! How long did it take you to complete your purchase? I know it's a bit daunting when you get in and see all those jobs which you don't notice when the house is full of furniture (we're doing curtain poles as we speak lol!!) but it will be so worth it in the end. Anyway pat yourself on the back that you got in before the political mayhem really kicks off. Hope you get the champagne out tonight. Be prepared for feeling shattered for months - it truly all takes its toll both mentally and physically. Really thrilled for you!

Sorry name change fail - Fleabag123 here for those who’ve been following my saga !

@DaphneduM - it’s been forever. Started looking last summer, first offer accepted last Oct, fell through in Jan and this one has been dragged from March. Got in before the mortgage offer expires (next week!)

Congratulations @L238 !!

Congratulations @L238

@BeauticianNotMagician81 if it's just the chimney could you stomach the £10k? Does the seller feel he's already taken off money from the price therefore you should swallow it? He must know now that any survey will bring this up surely!

@MrBobLobLaw any news about the house - a LOT of people are renting at the moment just to secure their buyer so I'm crossing fingers that this happens for you

I'm in a very similar position to @DayDreamingAway. I've just put an offer in and had to prove within 7 days we were serious. I got the mortgage offer, booked the survey etc. and they have taken the house off the market. BUT I have now heard absolutely nothing and I'm really worried that having rushed us they are now taking their time. When I spoke to the agent, they hadn't even appointed solicitors. I did say 'come on mate, I've run around like a headless chicken sorting my side out' but I guess what can you do! I just hope they aren't fishing around trying to get higher offers :(. I absolutely love the property - it's my ideal place (loads of land, lots of outbuildings to play with)

@lornz it has taken 16 weeks for probate to be granted. I think it's 12 weeks on average usually.

@DayDreamingAway wow that is fast. Why are the sellers in such a hurry? If they've chosen to sell to you hopefully they will keep to their promise.

@MrBobLobLaw the buyer of MILS house wants to move in next week as probate is through. So things can move fast and hopefully you get in at your desired date. You can ask the question regarding them renting. Would you not hold out for them to find somewhere else? Things could still move fast. It's all moving faster for us second time around.

@Blobby10 that's crazy. I thought each LA had their own time scales so thought they always kept with that, not different timings for everyone.

@Violetroselily Eek good luck. I hope the enquiries come through soon.

@L238 Congratulations on finally being in. I'm sure you will love it in time. Ours will take some work too but DH has a plan. I'm very, very impatient though.

@PirateRadio Yes I think we are just going to have to suck up the £10,000.

So we've decided to get some builders quotes for the chimney. I don't think we need the structural engineer as DH is quite high up in the building trade and will know what needs done so it's just a case of a scaffold and getting the work done. We planned to do a loft conversion eventually so while we have the scaffold we might just get the planning permission and put in the veluxes.

We are hoping to move the first week of October. It's just enquiries now. Although my solicitor informed me that our buyers are trying to buy the searches off our previous buyers but the old buyers solicitors aren't getting back to them. The EA told us that this was all done . So if we have to wait for searches that's going to be a pain as ours have just taken 4 weeks to come back

Yay congrats @L238 / Fleabag. Just think how satisfying it'll be when you get it all cleaned up and just how you want it.

That'd worry me too @PirateRadio, I wonder why they're not rushing around. We had two vendors go on bloody holiday after accepting an offer from us, it's like - come on guys! FX next week brings more momentum.

We asked about them renting @PirateRadio @BeauticianNotMagician81 but apparently they'd have to break their mortgage which would cost them £10k.. we would give them time to look by tbh I'm 8 weeks away from DC2s due date and our buyer has already waited through our gazumping episode and then 2 weeks of us having an offer accepted on this place that's fallen through, so I dunno how much longer he'd wait tbh.

We did however view a great place today. A different location to our part of S London but a much bigger place but above at the top of our budget. It's owned by a developer so no onward chain but we'd have to offer about £20k under AP and even then we'd only have £5k to play with. I think I still prefer the flat that's fallen through, and potentially they may have found a new onward place this weekend or the probate place might have sorted themselves out. But so many ifs and buts.. renting is looking like a possibility for us too tbh  really not what I wanted to do with a toddler and a newborn.

That's annoying about the searches @BeauticianNotMagician81!! Solicitors can be so useless- I bet your old buyers would be annoyed to know that they could be making some £££ back but their solicitors are dragging their feet.

Eatage agent just called - the vendor is irate and has put the flat back on the market. Says I'm taking too long and he's had enough but will still proceed with my purchase unless another offer comes in.

Literally every step of this process I've been way ahead of him. It's his solicitor who is holding up the last enquiries. It took him 6 weeks to even appoint his solicitor.

The agent is a useless cunt and has no idea what's going on. I've been telling them for months that it was all taking too long and they did nothing about it.

Another flat in the same block has just gone on the market for 20k more than I'm paying - which is completely overpriced - so I think he wants more money.

I fucking hate this whole process.

Violetroselily that's horrendous!! No words of wisdom to offer I'm afraid - just some sympathy from someone else waiting on crap solicitors and EA who say they will do something but dont .

BeauticianNotMagician81 I too thought LA had the same timescale but apparently not! Still waiting for buyers buyer to sort their shit out. Buyer and me have been waiting to exchange for two weeks now - still want to complete on 4th October but obv can't book any removals etc until we've exchanged!! So frustrating!

@violetroselily so sorry to hear this. What a mess.

Do you have options or is it all out of your hands now?

@blobby10 @hawkmoth thanks both. My solicitor spoke to the EA this afternoon to tell them what's actually outstanding and tk make it clear that it isnt me thats held anything up. I just can't believe the bare faced cheek of the agent to tell me that it's my fault - I have been telling them for months that the vendor has been taking the piss.

I'm 99% sure he just wants more money - which I won't be paying - so I'm going to book some other viewings this week.

Hi joining as have just got an offer in on our house. We've put multiple offers on a house we want but no confirmation yet. Never been in a chain before so a bit terrified!

@Violetroselily how horrible

Wow @Violetroselily that takes the piss - I'd definitely be looking at other places tbh.

Welcome @Preggosaurus9 !

I am yet again waiting for vendor's solicitor to answer enquiries which seems to be permanent at this stage. Starting to think this house will fall through at one of the last hurdles. There are a couple major 'enquiries' which we can't proceed without answers to, so the ball is in their court. What we're looking for is quite specific though so no others on market we could go and view at the moment.

some of these stories are horrific :(, I am sending everyone on the thread a big bucket of luck!

I wanted to ask your opinions about something. We have found the most amazing house. It's got loads of land which we want, a beautiful cottage and it's in a village that was on our target list.

However, i just met up with someone who told me that this village is potentially going to be impacted by the Oxford/Cambridge expressway. I've just had a google and although they've identified a corridor (and this village is in it), they haven't identified exactly what they are doing and how and there's massive environmental pushback.

We love the house, really love it - do you think we'd be mad to buy it under the circumstances?

I think it would be a massive risk both in terms of quality of life and the value of the house falling.

@CaptainCocoPop I agree with @Hawkmoth !

Longer answer with possible outcomes:

1. House is right in the path of the road. Is subject to CPO and knocked down. You'd probably get your money back (not always 100% though) but I imagine it would be horribly sad.

2. Road is close, but not CPO. Noise, pollution, house prices fall.

3. You get away with it and road is far enough away to not affect you.

How long until the proposals are firmed up?

Hi haven't posted in ages 😖 we appear to be at final stage before exchange finally which really needs to happen ASAP as everyone wants to complete on 27th!! We can't move on this date as one of our little ones is being adopted and the whole plan has been made around us moving 😖!

I do seriously wonder what we pay the solicitors for? I have done so much chasing for last three weeks and I was assured everything had been received that was needed then got a call Thursday last week to say that they have been unable to see some of the files I sent them on our online portal and then told me I hadn't sent fensa certs boiler paperwork and answers to bylaws. I was sat on computer telling him the exact time and date it was uploaded and he said there must be a glitch as he couldn't see them!! Anyway sent them via email now and it's finally sorted so house sale is all sorted just waiting for sellers solicitors to send back answers to our questions then good to go!! Can't believe I could be moving in 16 days and have a five bed house to pack and 5 kids to sort!! Have told hubby we are staying in a hotel the night before as I want everything ready the night before 😂

We've sent everything we've ever had that may or may not be useful in enquiries so hopefully there won't be anything lost.

The portals are obviously designed to allow more admin/ non-solicitor time but it's not profitable unless they actually work!

Has anyone got experience with their homebuyers report flagging a concern because of a crack in the property and they've asked for a structural engineer report?

How much did this cost?

Thanks.

@lornz our mortgage valuation showed previous movement/cracking in walls and advised we get a building survey. Building survey said all they can see is chimney at a dangerous slant, no cracking in walls in the house but possibly in the loft. A structural engineer charges about £500-800 and the repairing the cracking will cost based on where it is and how bad it is. If base of house then it may need underpinning which is thousands. DH is in the trade.

We have just decided to take the risk and get a structural engineer in once moved and then do our loft extension and the chimney.

Thanks @Hawkmoth and @Dinosauraddict

Problem is they have missed all their timelines and keep saying they will identify a route but haven't yet. I think it looks like it's meant to be next year now.

If you look at the corridor, it's absolutely massive and includes virtually the whole area we are looking in!

Can I join in?

FTB in N London, shockingly expensive properties! We were due to exchange on a lovely flat in March but vendors pulled out a week prior which was beyond frustrating. On maternity leave now so have had a laborious process of having mortgage re approved etc.

Now sale agreed on a beautiful maisonette. Very excited but concerned about buying a leasehold (not many options around here) and the fact that the vendors did an extensive renovation so need to get a detailed surgery and make sure it was properly done.

Any advice for a nervous FTB?!

How usual is it for buyers to want to view property again prior to exchange? Reasons given are to 'measure up'? Thanks