What would you do differently next time you sell and buy a home at the same time?

[CoconutSty]

Or what do you wish you'd known before you started the process? New to this and need ALL the tips!!

Make sure you have a good amount of time between Exchange & Completion, about 3-4 weeks is ideal. So you have time to organise a good removals company and can pay the deposit as soon as you have Exchanged.

Also, keep on top of everything. Make sure the relevant surveys etc are booked in good time both on the house you’re buying and the one you’re selling.

Make sure you have paperwork relating to any building works you have had done such as planning permission and building regs approval. If electrics havent been checked or re-newed within the past 10 years get them checked and a safety certificate issued. Any gas appliance services up to date. Have you got enough loft insulation in place and as many energy saving light bulbs as possible as this will affect the EPC rating.

Assuming you are in England/Wales:

Don’t get your hopes up before you exchange.

Don’t pack before you exchange. But get removals quotes before you exchange (we left it until we exchanged - as we had agreed 3 weeks between exchange and completion - and then discovered everyone else on the planet was moving and only one could even come out and quote).

Get a local solicitor not a chain one so you can follow up with a real human being not get passed from pillar to post in a call centre.

Be very very clear in who in the chain is doing what, eg who is moving into a caravan, who has a first time buyer, etc. But bear in mind that someone who says they’ll move into a caravan /rented further up the chain will probably change their mind.

Invest in gin/wine/cake etc

Oh and be clear on what deposit will actually be moving up the chain on exchange, as it’s not like you are the first time buyer with 10% or 20% sitting in the bank. Make sure whatever is agreed is in the contracts, and not “oh actually it’s only 5% deposit” when everyone is ready to exchange.

Don't do both at the same time if you can possibly avoid it. Have bought three houses but sold before buying both times - houses #2 and #3. More expensive because of renting but much less stressful.

Insist on at least two weeks and ideally four between exchange and completion.

Have all paperwork ready - keep a file for 'house' and shove everything house-related into it. Makes it much easier to find those FENSA certificates when the time comes!

Never take anyone at their word. People are unpredictable and do stupid things.

Be polite, but make your presence known with solicitors and agents.

Brilliant stuff, thanks everyone! Feels like this is a total minefield with all parties out to trip you up. Absolutely dreading it, but hoping all these insights will help! I hear keeping things moving with solicitors can be awful - any tips on how to speed this bit up?

Our chain has just fallen apart. My advice would be don’t trust what your buyer says their position is. And don’t get excited until exchange.

Oh no!! That's the worst! 😔 Unbelievably stressful. Really hope it's not left you out of pocket.

Agree with the PP's about a decent interval between E&C. It gives you a sense of security and allows you to prepare things properly without a lot of frantic rush and worry. When we moved into a NB property we arranged a gap of several months, very worthwhile. When we sold a probate property we had E&C within 24hrs as there was nothing else to arrange but I would have hated this for our move.

1. Push for 2 weeks+ between E&C so you can pack and organise only once E has happened
2. Arrange viewing right before Exchange with owners and ascertain everything works as expected - test integrated appliances etc etc. You're not necessarily looking to knock them down and cause chaos with the chain but you are wanting to check that what they have said is true. (My sellers declared everything worked - integrated dishwasher and washing machine were both broken beyond repair, and solar panels kaput which was £2k to fix!)
3. Consider buying/selling house insurance which can protect you if chain falls apart when it's not your choice/fault
4. Consider if you might want to store your stuff rather than move straight in so you have an empty period in the new house for thorough clean / new carpets / messy works.
5. Do regular&manageable clear-outs from when you accept the offer on your house - it'll stand you in good stead even if it falls apart and gives you time to recycle / sell / whatever any old stuff you have rather than a panicked trip to the landfill tip.

When packing label your boxes with the room name of where they are going, have a good sort out and don’t take stuff you don’t need with you

Definitely all of this, plus do your best to not get excited until you have actually exchanged.

Our sale has just fallen through after accepting the offer 6 months ago. It’s been horribly stressful. The collapse has been down to useless solicitors on both sides. So do your research on not just the practice but also the individual solicitors, and make sure your estate agents are good. Best of luck

Don’t complete on a Friday. We did it Thursday, out of our old house at 12, and I remember sitting waiting in a park for the call that the money had moved up the chain. We’d driven past the new place at about half 12 and the sellers were still loading the vans and yelling at each other. It took until 3pm and it wasn’t a massive chain. I’d have felt even more stressed if it was a Friday knowing that everything shuts at 5pm.

If you have children make sure they’re in childcare for completion day, and ideally the day after. Prioritise getting their room sorted asap once you’re in. Use a removals company, and if they have wardrobe boxes then go for those - so much easier than trying to pack your clothes in cases or regular boxes.

Pay for (ideally packing and) moving. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO MOVE YOURSELF.
Start decluttering before you actually go on sale.
Trust your gut on buyers. I was very dubious about our first one - and she fucked about and then withdrew.

Hire the packing service. It’s a lifesaver!
we exchanged and completed on the same day, and that was very stressful, unavoidable for us but if you can avoid I would.
get good solicitors and a good estate agent, that makes the world of difference.

People told us not to complete on a Friday but both of our house buyings have completed on a Friday and it’s been fine. Our first we got the keys at 3pm, was a fairly long chain. The second time we were in the house by midday ish.

Completing on a Friday is fine as long as nothing goes wrong. Which it normally doesn’t of course but it’s still good advice to Complete on a Thursday if everyone agrees.

Oh no 😔 This is what worries me most - all the faffing and waiting for solicitors to do their thing. Presumably there's not much you can do if other people in the chain are dragging their heels?

If you have decent estate agents and solicitors then people can’t and don’t drag their heels. Our last sale and purchase was completed in less than 6 weeks. Our buyer was the bottom of the chain and our vendor was the top, so it was a small chain. But it was still a chain. I called our solicitor every day, and everyone kept things moving very well.

Ask your solicitor to tell the seller that they need to be out on the day of completion, with all their stuff gone. It is surprising how often sellers seem not to understand this (or pretend they don't).

When instructing a solicitor, ask about their work pattern and cover arrangements for any leave. You don't want the chain to fall apart because your solicitor's lying on a beach somewhere.

Remember that you need buildings insurance from the day of exchange, not completion. Ask your existing provider - most companies have a special short term arrangement for this that lets you cover two properties short-term, and avoids you then having to pay a cancellation charge on your existing policy.

@saffy2 Six weeks, that's amazing! What did you say to the solicitors every day? Was it just a quick five-minute check-in type thing?

@MissLucyEyelesbarrow That's a great tip about asking current provider for cover after exchange - had no idea that was a thing, thanks! And the solicitor holiday cover too - great idea!

Yes just a quick check in and I think showed that I was not going to sit back and let it slide. Our buyers had impressed the 6 week time frame, and so that gave me a good way because everytime things seemed to be taking awhile (and some stuff did so it just goes to show it can be done quickly even with delays!) I pushed and said our buyer will pull out etc. our solicitors were really good, and so was our estate agent. I went with my estate agents advice on which solicitor and I have recommended them loads since. 👍🏼

Not differently but we completed on a Wednesday this time, Thursday the time before. Don't do it on a Friday. Everything may go smoothly but if it doesn't you could be scuppered till Monday. Make sure seller (and you) have house empty and clean by noon on completion day.