Don't know what to do with house move

[princesconsuelabananahammock]

Really need some help making a decision.
Basically we reserved a new build 3 weeks ago with a small builder and everything is moving as it should (after a very stressful selling period may I add).
Now the house company are trying to get us to move in before Xmas. The 16th December is the cut off date so they really want us to exchange end of November and complete first week in December.
We have a small chain as first time buyers are buying our buyers house but we still think this will be near impossible.

We originally said no and that we'd find a house some where else (there are no other houses fitting what we want/need though just not telling them that).
They are adding lots of extras to entice us such as flooring and hammonds fitted wardrobes. All super tempting but I just don't see how it could be possible even if all the chain agree even though we'd all agreed on January prior to this.

Has anyone any experience in this happening to them or has anyone gone from accepting an offer to fully completing within 6/7 weeks?

I just can't see how it would work

In the past, before email (or at least before email was common) so when all documents were sent by post, and before searches could be done electronically. And you had to go in person to the solicitor to sign the contracts etc. I bought my first house, and moved twice. Each time it was all complete in exactly 6 weeks.

My house is being sold now. It sold originally last October and fell through in January (we were close to exchanging after 3 months when the buyer pulled out because their son decided he wasn't coming with them). It sold again in January and fell through in May (over 3 months) over a technical issue, that my solicitor hadn't spotted. AND It sold again in August and still isn't through due to solicitor incompetence. Luckily these buyers are still keen and we hope to exchange in November - 3 months from sale.

Really it should be very easy to do it all in 6 weeks from offer these days but in practice I very much doubt it unless you get a couple of good solicitors/conveyancers and they seem to be very thin on the ground IME.

OP, as long as you're making progress the builder will wait. They are probably putting pressure on as they want to complete in time for their accounting period at the end of the year. There are lots of threads where buyers are stressed because the developer insists on a 28 day exchange period, but it rarely happens within this timeframe. They are not going to complete any sooner with a new buyer and would rather have progression with you than having to re-market and take a chance that the next person coming along is someone with cash in the bank and no mortgage.

Thank you both for replies.
It's all the things that can go wrong with paperwork etc that I'm worried about as 6 weeks isn't a long time, especially if there was a problem somewhere in the chain.
The builders are being really pushy and I'm not sure if they'll wait. When we reserved, we signed a form and it stated last week in November to exchange. They are pointing this out all the time and saying we must agree to that date or it'll have to be free for other buyers instead.
I hate the way they're treating us about this but don't want to lose the house and plot as they're perfect.

6-7 weeks is good going now. It did used to be quicker in the past but that was before it took ages to deal with compliance/AML procedures which both the law firm and lender will need to sort out. If your buyer is ready and willing to move quickly then there's nothing to stop being quick though.

Agree with a PP that so long as you show the developer that you are doing your best, they'll probably wait. Good buyers aren't exactly two to a penny at the moment!

Thanks. We finally decided to say we'll give it a go and try to complete before Xmas for certain extras. Our buyers are happy with this, but their buyers (first time buyers) are very nervous about moving so quickly and are refusing at the moment. Might be out if our hands 😣

It's not impossible but it depends how long searches and so forth are taking in your area.

Get your EA working on progressing the chain. If the EAs talk to each other they can often resolve minor worries with nervous FTBs.

You won't be able to hurry the conveyancer though, they are often the real obstacle.

Hope it happens for you. 🤞

I managed it with a Purchase last year. Offer accepted early Nov, moved in 35 days later.

However, I paid extra to have the Conveyancing dealt with by a Senior Partner, with clear instructions from the outset that the purchase was dependent on achieving that date.

It was the Searches that nearly derailed the process. However a few chasing phone calls to the Council resolved the issues.

Yes, we've done this; we went from having our offer accepted to moving in five weeks later. Everyone in our chain was very motivated to get the sale through quickly, which definitely helped. If you find a good solicitor and you're happy to make lots of phone calls to chase everyone then it can definitely be achieved.