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Original poster

Anyone moved into rented to keep their sale?

26 replies

paddingtonbear1 · 15/04/2023 09:08

We have cash buyers who are keen to move asap. The problem is, we haven't found anywhere yet! Estate agents asked if we'd consider going into rented but at the moment we're not keen. Has anyone else done this to keep their sale and did it work out OK? We have pets as well which we know a lot of landlords don't like!

OP posts:
byronicheroine · 15/04/2023 09:09

We're just considering this very thing. Hard isn't it. I think we'll do it, doesn't feel risky like it did last summer with prices increasing.

NellyBarney · 15/04/2023 09:26

Yes, we did. I think if you accept an offer, you need to vacate ASAP or the buyer will move on. Renting is a very good option, as it gives you time to find something you truly like. You also might want to make renovations, like new bath room, kitchen, boiler or rewiring, or just new carpets, so having a rental until any essential renovations are completed is incredibly useful. Many landlords will accept pets for a slightly increased monthly rent as they no longer can ask for a higher deposit. Alternatively, we considered a caravan or Airb&b.

Greensleevevssnotnose · 15/04/2023 09:33

I moved into an air b&b with my cat put my stuff in storage

RidingMyBike · 15/04/2023 09:34

We did, but because the move was a work relocation and we needed to be in New City by a certain date.

It's been expensive and obviously we've had to move twice but it has had benefits - our eventual purchase was a house that needed a lot of work so we lived in the rental whilst that happened.

It was difficult to find somewhere to rent - rental market very competitive at the moment. That meant we couldn't get less than a 12 month tenancy without a break clause. We'd originally wanted a break clause after six months but as it turned out it took 18 months to sell, then buy, then renovate so this didn't matter in the end.

It did help our sale go through quickly as the house was already empty. And then put us in an excellent position to buy as we were chain-free.

MinnesotaMuffin · 15/04/2023 09:49

Yes, we did this - although it was several years ago. Similar to now, the market was quite slow and prices weren’t rising noticeably. Our house took a very long time to sell so it was important to keep our buyer when we finally got an offer.

It worked out as it put us in a better position when we did find somewhere we wanted to buy. We had already lost out on another house we liked to a couple who were chain free which got us thinking about renting too.

We found an unfinished rental only a few streets away from the house we were selling with very decent storage in the loft so we could keep a lot of stuff in the moving boxes while we waited to move into the place we were buying. This made the move into rented easier too and we didn’t need such a big removal van - a smaller one made a couple of trips. The landlady agreed to a six month let - we were clear with the letting agents that we only wanted a short rental period. Initially the landlady wasn’t keen but then came back to the letting agency to say she would go with a six month let and then renew for a further six months if necessary, as she hadn’t found any other tenants. The rent was high though - in line with the mortgage payments we were going to be making on the house we were buying.

We weren’t moving away to a different location, just needed to buy a bigger house in the same town and I’m not sure if it would have been as straightforward to rent in between moves if we were planning to move far or had to move for jobs or if we’d had to do packing for a move twice. We didn’t have any pets.

Of course we did “lose” six months to rent and now that we are a bit closer to paying off the mortgage I am glad we didn’t rent for longer than was absolutely necessary. It would have been very difficult financially if we’d had an overlapping month of mortgage payment and rent so plan carefully to avoid that.

Overall it was the right decision for us and the experience was as straightforward as we could have hoped. I would not have wanted to rent for more than six months though.

WickedSerious · 15/04/2023 09:54

Friends of ours had to rent when their solicitor messed up,they'd found a place they wanted but thanks to him pissing off on holiday their move was delayed.
They only needed a place for three weeks and they couldn't find a landlord who wasn't insisting on a six or twelve month contract so they put their furniture into storage and rented a holiday cottage.

absolutelyknackeredcow · 15/04/2023 10:01

We did - our onward sale (further up) hit a snag and we didn't want to lose our first time buyers who had paid asking price.
It worked well - as we were doing building work on the onward purchase and stayed at the rented house for a few months while that had been completed.
We had two children - and we significantly downsized the rental so we didn't have to pay loads of rent. It was fine - we put stuff in storage and have nice memories of us in our rental.

absolutelyknackeredcow · 15/04/2023 10:05

Also if our onward chain had fallen through - we were in an outstanding position to buy another house

Candleabra · 15/04/2023 10:06

We did. I didn’t want to lose the buyers.

Toddlerteaplease · 15/04/2023 10:07

My parents are doing this. But moving in with my sister. They've sold their house STC. But haven't even looked at any other houses yet.

Luredbyapomegranate · 15/04/2023 10:11

Yes. It’s a pain initially but it means you are chain free and can take your time, so I’d recommend.

skyglass · 15/04/2023 10:12

We did, for only a month (was supposed to be 2-3) we were buying a new build which we didn't disclose at the start (as we didn't know at that stage) so didn't want to mess him around, also felt very stressed about wanting to get the sale through and not lose it. Easier for us though in that we could get housing through DH's work so it was very flexible, didn't have to worry about contracts etc.

mrsbyers · 15/04/2023 10:15

You need to consider impact on any mortgage , if you don’t transfer to a new purchase then redemption penalties will possibly apply and you’ll have to start again on a new deal at possibly higher rates

Gettingonabitnow · 15/04/2023 10:17

DONT DO IT! we did similar, we broke the chain and moved in with family to keep our buyer. It was the most stressful experience of my life, not the living with family members, but basically being in limbo desperately trying to find somewhere to buy and push it through. The estate agent will want you to go into rented as once you’ve sold they’ll get their commission. Honestly don’t do it - there will always be another buyer and odds on the current one will wait. Good luck x

mondaytosunday · 15/04/2023 11:37

I went into Airbnb for what was to be two weeks (my daughter snd two dogs) but in the end turned out to be three airbnbs and two hotels (dogs eventually stayed with friends) for 8 weeks as the house I was buying fell through.
Hard to get short term lets (six months) as most landlords want at least a year. Weigh up storage fees, moving costs and of course the rent against trying to find another buyer. I probably would move to rental again though.

sleepyscientist · 15/04/2023 11:39

We did this (well moved in with my parents) to keep the chain together when our seller was a nightmare. We did it on the condition we reduced our offer by 15k

Scottishrock · 15/04/2023 11:46

It’s quite difficult to find a rental at the moment especially with pets, make sure you have found one and signed contract before you exchange. We moved in with family and it put us in a better negotiating position as chain free buyers but did mean we were very keen to push our purchase through! We looked at renting but once any landlord got wind we were looking for a stopgap they tended to opt for someone else to move in.

gogohmm · 15/04/2023 11:55

Yes, meant we then had no chain when we bought

gogohmm · 15/04/2023 11:57

My tip is to rent a smaller place but ensure it has a decent garage for storage

GetYourActTogether1 · 15/04/2023 12:00

Not me but I bought a flat two years ago and said I’d pay full price if the owners moved by X day even if they weren’t ready to move into another purchased property. They moved into rented accommodation on the agreed date.

Sundaefraise · 15/04/2023 12:04

I think I would do this at the moment. Prices aren't rising so there is less of a worry about stepping off the housing ladder. Also because the market is cooling there is no guarantee you will get a comparable offer if these buyers get fed up of waiting. In a best case scenario you could sell at a higher point and buy later when the market has dropped further.

Gilmoregirly · 15/04/2023 12:05

Yes we did as the house we were going to buy fell through and we didn’t want to lose our buyers. However finding a 6 month rental was so hard as all landlords wanted a year. Agree with tip above find a small house with a garage. In this climate I wouldn’t lose a buyer.

RM2013 · 15/04/2023 12:34

We considered doing this as there was a massive hold up with our purchase but we were ready on the sale and didn’t want to lose our buyers who were FTB and the market was starting to drop. We’d actually booked an appointment to view a rental as considered pulling out of purchase but at the last minute the solicitors who were holding things up got their act together and sorted things out

Karmatime · 15/04/2023 12:41

We are in the middle of doing this. Our sale completed in March and we are now 3 months into a rental contract. We have a 6 month break clause so only committed until July. It’s worked out well so far, interest on the house proceeds helps towards the rent now and we moved 250 miles away so house hunting is much easier as we are on the spot.
I think we were just really lucky with finding a decent rental property, it’s big enough for all our stuff so no storage costs.

MrsBlondie · 15/04/2023 14:30

People at top of our chain tried to do this.
Be warned the rental market is insane right now. They couldn't find anything and all wanted 12 month contracts.
We can only "port" our mortgage for 6 months so after that the rate goes up.