First time buyers

[BibBobb]

DH and I are ftb, we've found a house and had an offer accepted a fortnight ago.
Found out today that the vendor doesn't have an offer accepted on a property so we've put a stop to mortgage application, conveyancer etc until she's found a property.

Before I ask my question, I totally understand that it's only been 2 weeks since our offer was accepted. I just wondered what's the reasonable amount of time we wait for her to find a property before we start looking again? We can't sit and wait forever for her to find somewhere but how long is reasonable?

Thanks

The market is quite tricky at the moment with not loads coming on and chances are they weren't able to start viewings until they had an offer from you.

Do you have any hard deadlines they need to meet at all e.g. starting a new job? If so I'd communicate those with them as early as possible.

You could also ask the estate agent if the vendor could let you know their planned timeline.

You can't hang around forever, but a bit of flexibility will be much appreciated!

Where I live the market has gone so crazy that they are only allowing people who have sold (as in had offers on) their houses to view other properties. It must mean there are lots of people in your situation. Can you be flexible or are you needing to proceed quickly?

We're currently rented so no immediate dire need to move, just that we've waited such a long time to be in a position to buy and now we've found somewhere we're eager to get in.

If you don’t have a work/school related deadline I’d not be too pushy at this stage but I would want assurance from the agent that the vendor is actively looking (going on viewings/making enquiries etc) she won’t have been able to view anything until she had an offer on hers in this market so it’s not an unusual situation and I’d not be pushing too hard at this stage.

It’s very frustrating when this happens, I agree. I’d speak to the estate agent as others have suggested and ask if the vendors are actively viewing properties and what their time lines are. It’s worth setting a line in the sand now for when you’d like completion to be (perhaps to fit in with an end of tenancy) I’d suggest this needs to be 3 months out at least as conveyancing etc is so busy. And ask for a review date in 2 and 4 weeks. If no progress after the 4 id be tempted to find something else if there are others you’d consider on the market

You can only view once you’re proceedable where I live so the seller has only had 2 weeks and the market has slowed.
I think you’re being way too eager worrying about this now- it’s been 12 days discounting Sundays when EAs are shut. What’s the market like where you are?

If you’re in rented and you’ve found a house you love I don’t see the immediate rush

checking I specifically said there's no immediate rush for us to move. I just wondered how long we could expect to be waiting. As a ftb I've not done this before and we're excited to be living in our own home.

The vendors agent has confirmed she's actively looking so hopefully she'll find something soon and then we can get things moving.

I agreed my onward purchase two weeks after I agreed my own, my seller was fine about it. I still let my conveyancer work on it so there was less faffing.

Agree with PP, as long as they’re actively looking / viewing it should be fine.

Do you know where they are looking to buy and what the market is like in that area? The hardest part of this whole process for us has been finding somewhere to move to and in the end we are likely to break our chain and sell as we know our buyer is under time pressure and don't want to move them and our purchase is lagging behind.

In your position I wouldn't stop looking at other suitable places that come up...so much uncertainty really as they may struggle to find somewhere, the place they find may be in a long chain of its own etc.

How long is a piece of string basically...
If they found a house tomorrow the whole process could take 3 months easily, then you have to factor how long the chain is.
You could ask if they would consider moving in to rented if they find nothing on the market within the next 3 months?

The market is shite at the moment. There's absolutely nothing coming on where we are. If it was my perfect house I'd give them at least three months, but I'd probably be willing to wait longer for them to find somewhere if necessary. I'd keep an eye on the market though, and go and view anything I considered perfect on paper. Depends how tied to the house you feel though, I guess.

I gave up after 10 weeks for my seller to find somewhere. I planned my move two years ago and we need to be in for my daughter starting a new school. Plus of course I wanted to make the stamp duty holiday. I felt the EA misled me by saying the seller would go in to rental, and after I had the survey only then told me she would not. So I'm down £2300, but I started looking after two months waiting, spurred on by the EA sending me another listing and my solicitor saying she had not heard from the other side in a month, despite chasing. I made sure the next house I offered on was chain free.
I'd keep half an eye on listings. You never know, you may find a better property with no ongoing chain.

We waited 6 months for our vendors (a couple of years ago)! They were extremely fussy and there was nothing else we liked come on the market in those months, so we stayed with it.

Incredibly frustrating but our only choices were to wait, or look at somewhere further away from where we wanted to be.

I feel guilty but we're going to look at another property over the weekend. It ticks lots of our boxes plus is chain free. Feel bad that we might pull out of the other purchase but then we've got to think of ourselves I guess.
Won't go into too much detail but we're really keen to move from where we are now for reasons other than just 'we want to buy our own home'.

Despite high prices & quick sales, market is so shit for sellers right now.
We’ve put our house on the market today. Found 3 houses we wanted to view - not “allowed” to view until we’ve sold.
So we’re going to be in the same position as your buyer probably.
If there’s nothing on the market we like when we sell who knows what we will do seeing as properties are selling in a matter of days here.
Minefield.

2 weeks in a completely ridiculously short time give before pulling out.

If the other property suits you better so be it, that’s the English system, but why did you view the fist property and put an offer on it?!

Did you make your offer conditional on a quick move?

You seem like you don’t really know what you’re doing - maybe get some advice from friends about the house buying process.

Yeah, probably don’t say you’re pulling out because they haven’t found anywhere.
The EA may be reluctant to show you around anymore properties if you don’t get accepted on the new one.
Also with chain free, things may take longer due to probate and maybe distance if it’s relatives selling for a deceased family member.

A lot of estate agents won't allow viewings and almost none will accept offers until you have sold your property. So they have potentially only been able to do viewings since you put your offer in.

The looking at a different is a different issue. Technically nothing to stop you pulling out but morally if you are going to do it as soon as you can. Sometimes surveys may mean renegotiating but if you are going to pull out for any reason let them know as soon as.

it's all shit how it works. we had ours valued by quite a few estate agents back in jan. we decided to hold off putting it on the market as we go on Rightmove all the time and had seen nothing for months that was suitable. they tell you you can't view until yours is sold. ( although we have viewed a fair few without ours being up for sale) our house will sell very fast and if we had put it up in Jan whoever wanted to buy ours would still be waiting as we still haven't seen anything we want to buy and would most likely have pulled put by now.

Market is currently diabolical for everyone. Sellers aren't finding anywhere to move to. Not because they're being difficult but because there just isn't much housing stock and/or the prices have gone mad.

I'm a first time buyer but not buying a typical starter home - in my experience there is a real shortage of realistically priced 4 bed homes.

You could be waiting many weeks. If you like the house then I'd be inclined to wait.

If you really want the house you have offered on, do be prepared to wait.

The other option is to ask your vendor if they would be prepared to move to rented in order to keep your sale if their search is not successful after a set period.

However, if you are keen to get going no harm in having a look at chain free. But not with the same EA you have the accepted offer through! And as a PP said, beware if they are still waiting for probate!

I was with you until you said you were already wiring other properties.

I have just sold my house and had four incidents of first time buyer pull out for ridiculous reasons after being sale agreed. On one occasion their parents told them it was too expensive! (It wasn’t - the parents weren’t from the area).

You should never bid on a house unless you know the status of the seller and are comfortable with it. Two weeks is no time at all, they will have to put the house back on the market and find a whole new set of viewers and bidders. People will also assume now something triggered in a survey because the house had to go back on the market.

It’s a dreadful process - and I can’t describe to you the anger I felt at all the people who messed me around,