Seller getting everything her way

[AchillesLastStand]

I’m a FTB so I don’t know if this is normal on a property purchase, but it seems that our seller is getting everything she wants and we have no say in what happens.

Short story, we accepted on a house in mid-May on a chain free purchase from someone who is divorcing. She said she had somewhere to go and moving for her wouldn’t be a problem. This week we’re ready to exchange contracts and have transferred our deposit only to find out the seller doesn’t want to move out until the middle of September. We originally asked for a completion date of 19 August and was told she wants 13 September. We asked her to compromise and do 27 August but she said no due to prior commitments.

I don’t know what these prior commitments are but we also have circumstances which determine our moving day. We are renting hence us waiting to move out at the end of August. I have a 7 year old that will have to move schools due this house move. It means him starting the school year and my OH having to take time off work to get him to school due to me not driving. I usually walk him to school. It’s really inconvenient for us. I’m feeling really fed up right now and feel as though my needs don’t count.

I have asked our solicitor if we can exchange today so she can’t use the time to push the date back any further.

That's negotiation for you. You clearly have no concerns about her needs, just as she feels about yours. The balance of power lies with her so long as you are willing to buy the house. If you start pushing back hard (say, make her reduce the purchase price to pay for your storage and temporary accommodation), at penalty of walking away because you need a roof over your head and would need to enter into a new rental agreement, she may agree with you to avoid losing the sale. Or ... she may secretly be wanting this (as it is a divorce sale) and happily allow you to pull the plug. If this is a real sticking point, you need to start getting really furious with the agent, but do always keep at the back of your mind that you could lose the house.

I know, I don’t want to lose the house. In fact the estate agent who works for her told me to call her bluff today and said that I should say I t’s the 27 August or she loses the house sale. I’m not prepared to do that. We need to move to this house. I think the agent is fed up with her as well.

She definitely wants to sell, and has inherited a property from her grandmother that’s she’s going to live in, and yesterday I found out via her solicitor that’s she’s planning to move into a new build later in the year. Is she wants us to wait for the new build property then I probably will have to call her bluff. In the meantime we’re stuck renting and losing money.

It shouldn't be too much of an issue to extend your rental for an extra month, but if I was you I'd start making noise about the extra costs and how your offer was based on moving during the summer holidays. I'd definitely push for them to exchange so it can't be pushed back further and threaten to pull out if they're reluctant.
My seller supposedly had no chain and was moving in with a partner until I wanted to exchange and suddenly it became part of the chain for them buying a new build. I said if they didn't exchange by x date with completion by y date, I was walking away knowing full well she could move into her partner's house until they could sort the new build stuff out.

Oh I forgot to add she going off on holiday next week so exchange won’t happen then if it doesn’t happen today.

The problem is what if you wait til September then find out she was lying and needs more time etc to wait for the other house.

I would call her bluff and then decide what you want to do.

This is why I’m trying to get her to exchange now. So we have a legal date for completion. If she won’t do that then I’ll have to call her bluff.

Ours did similar and then said that they’d always said it would be the later date. It made some things tricky. As FTB you are in a strong position so I would push for it.

Call her bluff, she is walking all over you.

She pays your rental costs etc. That should focus her mind…

Tell her that if you don't move by the end of August then you will have to find another rental property and it will be six months before completion. Also ask your moving company about storage costs and check out if there is a suitable hotel to move to for a couple of weeks, but don't mention that to her.

you negotiated on the basis of no chain - which should mean no extra delays, once you have all the paperwork, so I think it seems like your seller is playing games.
I think you should tell the agent your offer will be reduced if there is any more delay, to cover your additional rental
In london, prices seem to be going down. there is the final stamp duty change in september and the end of furlough, so i think maybe activity will slow down a little? So your seller should want to tie it up in my view - but then everyone has their own situation, so..

She's got you over a barrel because she knows you need the house for school. I also suspect she doesn't want to interrupt her holiday plans.

All you've really got is that she pays all costs incurred relating to the delay. You'll need evidence of those costs.

I don’t see why her being on hol means she can’t exchange.

Her solicitors should already have her signed docs etc. Is she going somewhere with no internet, signal or telephones?

She was on the phone to the estate agent this morning setting out her terms, but she’s not willing to answer her phone to her solicitor to exchange contracts. She knows we have a child who needs to start his new school but she couldn’t care less. She’s not willing to compromise on anything. On Monday the fight begins again.

It's a power thing. Who has the most power and who has the most to lose. In my case, our buyer held all the cards (or so we thought). We allowed them to knock us down prior to exchange (and they've dragged the process out). Only now do we find they need to be out of their rental place imminently, so they're as desperate (maybe even more so!) than us to complete. Ah well. It's a bit like a game of poker. We didn't dare call their bluff in case they pulled out... we really need this sale to go through. In your shoes, it depends on how desperate you are for the property and if you think it's worth calling her bluff. Good luck to you!

I suspect of she needs to not leave until September possibly she want to retain that address to get her kids in to a certain school too.

There is no reason she can't exchange next week even if she is on holiday provided she gives her solicitors instructions to do so.

Given your school situation I would say Aug 27 or you walk away, and then rent really close to the new school while you find somewhere else.

With talk of a new build on the horizon, this could go on for months and months.

Well I spoke to the estate agent today who spoke to the vendor this morning and she has agreed on 13th September for a completion date but I’ve insisted which must exchange contracts next week preferably on Monday and she agreed. We are only moving three miles down the road to the neighbouring village but it means my OH will has to drive my son to school at the start of term which is far from ideal but I really don’t have much choice. Our landlord who is also my OH’s employer has been really understanding and is letting us rent here for the extra weeks and will only charge us for the weeks we’re here.

This is a step forward to where we were yesterday. The problem is it’s a seller’s market and if we withdraw our offer she’ll probably easily get another one, and there is literally nothing else on the market for us to buy. The vendor is a midwife and I’m trying to be understanding in terms of her work commitments, but she will have to exchange next week. I need the certainty. The estate agent made it clear that she wasn’t stalling for this new build to be ready and has somewhere to go. We’ll see what happens next week.

Can you do the school run by bike sometimes, or is it narrow windy lanes?

I haven’t been a bike for thirty years! For OH is planning to get a bike to cycle to work though. It’s mainly quiet country roads.

I don't quite understand this situation. Have I missed something here?
It's very standard to complete four weeks after the exchange day.
Exchange dates are a movable feast really and you can't rely on it actually happening in the timeframe you may specify when you first make the offer.
It doesn't seem as though she's trying to delay the exchange date?
Most people want four weeks or so after exchange, as it gives them time to organise their move have their holiday etc.
I wouldn't start packing up my home etc until after exchange as anything can happen until that time, including the buyers pulling out of the sale. I don't think she's done anything amiss here tbh.

@MadinMarch

I don't quite understand this situation. Have I missed something here? It's very standard to complete four weeks after the exchange day. Exchange dates are a movable feast really and you can't rely on it actually happening in the timeframe you may specify when you first make the offer. It doesn't seem as though she's trying to delay the exchange date? Most people want four weeks or so after exchange, as it gives them time to organise their move have their holiday etc. I wouldn't start packing up my home etc until after exchange as anything can happen until that time, including the buyers pulling out of the sale. I don't think she's done anything amiss here tbh.

What’s amiss is that the seller has put back the proposed completion dates to a month later than the OP wanted, and later than had been talked about.

It isn’t about the gap between exchange and completion, though given the fact that the vendor is messing around, exchange ASAP is best… but they need to agree the completion date as part of the exchange.

@ShingleBeach
I think it does depend on what stage the August completion date was first mooted, and whether there was an explicit agreement that this should happen even if it meant exchanging and completing very quickly, or even on the same day.
When an offer is newly accepted there's often a discussion about a timescale to move, but this is more a date to try to work towards rather than a date set in stone, as there are so many issues that can affect a sale and hold it up,however committed the buyers and sellers to meeting propsed timescales.
In this case, it's quite possible that the seller believed the exchange would happen in July and she'd still have four weeks before completion. It doesn't necessarily mean that she wants everything her own way, as stated in the OP.