The all new buyers/sellers waiting room (continued) thread

[sweetpickle2]

New thread!

Hi all. Thought I would jump on this thread. Looking for advice, reassurance and general support.
October 23 we put the house on the market, decided we would all move to South Africa (husband is officially over the rain in the UK). We received a cheeky offer from a "cash buyer" EA assured it was a great buyer and we should be done in 12 weeks easily. We accepted. Moving countries needs a bit of planning and is a bit time sensitive. December came and all seemed to be running smoothly, completion date of the 10th January was spoken about but we had still not exchanged. I had booked international movers and flights for our dog (stupid I know, I was assured and being hopeful it was all good). Just as we were about to exchange before xmas break, our EA mentioned that the buyer needed to port her equity loan (lifetime mortgage) over to our property and it shouldn't be an issue. As a first time seller, I was going on the advice of others (lesson learnt). Movers picked all our things up to ship over on the 3rd Jan, dog and husband flew over to SA on the 17th Jan and I stayed behind with our daughter to wait for exchange and completion. Every day the lenders conveyancer came back with something new, so many questions and enquiries. We answered everything quickly and smoothly but every day another enquiry came. Our estate owns an unadopted road that we have a maintenance plan in place and an indemnity on. The road has never been owned by anyone for 2 centuries and there had never been issues with access. Unfortunately after 6 months of this sale, the lender refused to port the EL and the sale fell through. At this time, I had flown over to SA because I was in an absolute state, I might as well be in a state with some sunshine. Very quickly, I put the house back on the market with a new EA (I felt like I had been misled by previous EA, the cash buyer wasn't a cash buyer and all my trust was lost) very quickly we received a cash offer (EA requested proof of funds) with no chain and we are now 1 week down from the MOS, survey booked for Friday and I am hoping that because we have all the information in place from previous failed sale, we can get this wrapped up quickly. Even though we have had many houses bought and sold in our little estate for the last 4 years and there has never been a issue with the unadopted road (it is only about 5meters of road that is the issue) I am still anxious and nervous something will go wrong, I have some serious PTSD over this.
Anyone been in a similar position, any advice or info on timeliness? I did suggest my new seller buy all the checks from previous seller but no news on that yet.
I never want to sell a house again! The impact this has had on my family just hasn't been worth it. In hindsight,I should have waited for exchange at least before moving over, however it would have been 6-8 weeks from exchange to completion to arrange pet travel and movers. Big lesson has been learnt.

I can't imagine going through all this stress in a long chain - it nearly broke me and I was in a chain of three parties buying two properties - buyers buying mine, and me buying an onward property whose vendor had already bought their onward purchase. Even then it took over four months.

@Riskingitall24 I feel for you all - it is just so hard that nothing is guaranteed until the point of exchange, and at that point most people are then keen to get in within a couple of weeks. It's unbelievably stressful to have so much hanging in the balance. It sounds like you were extremely unlucky to have been dealing with a lifetime equity loan (shudder) and horrendous that this was kept from you by the buyer and that the EA hadn't asked for proof of funds. I am now thinking back and don't think my EA asked for that information - I was buying with a mortgage but wasn't asked what kind of mortgage. Equity-release loans (if that's what it was) are horrendous. Best of luck with this new set of buyers - fingers crossed all goes smoothly!

@Riskingitall24 sounds incredibly stressful and a mistake that your agent did not check the funds were there. Will keep everything crossed for Friday and going forwards….

My buyers had their survey done today. It was a level 2 rather than a level 3. I swear she was way more thorough than the guy who did the previous L3 survey. She didn’t give anything away during the survey, but at the end said she had not seen anything unusual for this type of house. I was very grateful for that comment, just need to wait for the buyers to get her survey and keep everything crossed for now and relax. Easier said than done as I am constantly over analysing the move, where I might put furniture, what I need to do still, schools etc etc etc. I keep thinking I am doing my best not to stress, but this has been going on since putting my home on the market in September now and even when all is well, there is that low level of stress and worry under the surface (not mentioning when it peaks when buyers don’t exchange as anticipated and go silent on the agents!)
I will be so glad to get in the new place, relax properly and turn this low level worrying off when the move eventually happens…

Dilemma!
Just seen that two doors up from property I had offer accepted on (long chain of five so far with no sign of the end) is up for sale (back to market) and £15k less than what I’ve bought at. It’s got one bathroom not two but needs less work overall and I have to say I’m intrigued only if I hear there’s no chain! But then I’d feel awful if I did like it and offered on it as then I would have broken the chain I’m in and my EA would be annoyed as my vendor is buying one of his properties 🤦🏼‍♀️ so I’m a bit stuck.

do I even go look at it? Or do I wait with this chain?!

Given your preferred completion date and the never ending chain, I'd go and look, @runningmom. What have you got to lose?

Thanks…. I just don’t want to be that person that pulls out the chain and ruins it for everyone else. Obviously I don’t even know why this house is back on the market so over thinking already, but it’s intriguing. It’s the same style but one less toilet which does put me off. I’ve only waited 6-8 weeks for chain so far but it is frustrating me that I appear to be the only one in a rush!

Scratch the itch. It might be shit, but at least you've checked.

If it's the same style, then a second loo should be possible, as I imagine it has the space?

Ultimately, you can't just hang on for the chain to complete indefinitely. Especially when it appears there's no sense of urgency from the others in it.

@runningmom , from what you say your current chain is not complete anyway, and (rightly or wrongly), you are not committed to the purchase until you have exchanged contracts. Would everyone else in the chain consider your situation if they found another house they liked better, or would they put their own interests first? It's brutal, but I agree with @NoWordForFluffy that you should probably view the other property if it's weighing on your mind, if only to eliminate it.

But I would want to try to understand why the previous sale fell through - something alarming in the survey might make it look less of a bargain, for example, or the sellers might have driven the previous buyers mad by delaying things, and you'd be back in the same boat. That £15K reduction between selling attempts is a bit of a red flag.

@ClematisBlue49 its offers over £240k and the one I’ve bought a few doors down I’ve paid 255 (was on at 265). I’m a single mom so it would make a difference but I think it’s also a dick move to pull out.
i might go and look anyway and express an interest…particularly if this chain doesn’t move for another few weeks.
Would you even tell any of the other EAs you’re looking? For all I know top of the chain could be desperately looking or they could be unbothered and going slowly looking for a specific area?!
argh…,house moving!

It's a nightmare, isn't it, @runningmom , especially when everyone else seems to be in much less of a hurry...

Do you think it would motivate your EA to chase things harder if they knew you were looking at another place? The problem is if you tell them and then decide against pursuing it, you've achieved nothing, and it looks like you were making an empty threat, unless you decide to start looking again in earnest. I'd be inclined not to say anything unless / until you view it and decide you want to buy it.

@ClematisBlue49 thabks, good advice. I’m thinking the 15k id potentially save might then go on knocking through and dividing a bedroom and putting a shower room in so maybe false economy? I might view it if I learn it’s chain free and have it as a back up if there’s no movement on top of the chain.
Its hard because nobody should be pushed into buying something they don’t want but also if you’re top of the chain with 5 sales waiting on you, then there’s pressure there for you to make a decision or go into rental perhaps.
This move is post separation so there’s more at stake for me and my children then if we were just moving house as a family for a nicer one.

Hello all! So myself and our vendor are totally ready to go, everything has been signed, sealed and delivered. Our buyer however, as has been the theme of this whole process, is slow and difficult. They won't clarify where they're at and what they have left to do, we just keep hearing from their solicitor that they're awaiting 'further information'. They also rejected the two completion dates we suggested (3 April and then 10 April), as they're not ready to discuss dates.

I've gone through all emotions with this process and have arrived at a 'I give up' stage! Our estate agent is useless and just gives non-answers with a tone. Our solicitor is really trying to push for answers for us, but doesn't seem to get much at all from our buyer's solicitor.

They're in no hurry whatsoever as the lady buying our house is planning to move in with her son initially. Whereas we want to move this month because we move onto the standard variable rate on our existing mortgage from May.

We have cleared everything we don't want from our shed, loft and cupboards, but won't start packing until we exchange. What a painful process this is.

When did everyone first receive paperwork from their solicitor regarding the house they are purchasing? And what paperwork do you expect to receive for your onward purchase?

it’s been a while since we last did this process and I’ve forgotten what to expect (aside from delays and frustration) much like you forget what a newborn is like once you hit the tween years :)

So, some positive developments today at last...

We have agreed to exchange contracts in a week's time, and complete the following week. I'm so relieved after two previous failed sales and frustrating delays with this one. I would celebrate this evening but I know it could still go wrong up to the point of exchange... plus packers are coming to box up books, ornaments and kitchen stuff tomorrow and I need to have a clear head!

Will be moving into my renovation (which has taken 15 months - long saga 🤐) on Monday if all goes to plan. I'm at the point where I don't trust anyone or anything until I can see it happening in front of me, but I think there is finally light at the end of the tunnel and not just another oncoming train...

...and now a load more queries have come through...😥.

Updates:
property I was thinking about viewing (as long chain I’m in has no signs of closing), is back on market the EA believes because buyers had waited 12 weeks already and vendors not had offer accepted on anything so I think that’s jumping from frying pan into the fire so not going to view it.

Enquiries from buyer on my property feature heavily on the fact we have a conservatory (too small to have needed planning permission) and they want FENSA certs for doors…argh we don’t have any and company now dissolved. I’m guessing we get advice from solicitor and maybe get indemnity insurance?! Other queries are quite standard about things that when you Google them don’t require certification or what they’re asking. But it’s such a process isn’t it?!!!!!

and still our chain lingers with no sign of the top finding anything!

Hi - posting as I'm feeling so worried.

After years of searching and the timing never being right for one reason and another, we finally had an offer accepted on a house we loved at first sight.

Our offer was accepted in Jan and the sellers still haven't found anything they like yet. We're under time pressure as have to be out of our private rental in august and my son starts school in sept so I need to appeal for one's in the new area in April and have him settled before.

We've started the search again just incase but everything we've seen seems to have gone up by about £20k just in the past few months.

Feeling a bit deflated.

@trampoline123 , sorry to hear that. It's such a worrying process, especially when you have a fixed deadline. I'd say it's a good idea to keep looking - you never know, you might find a lovely chain-free property that is affordable. Otherwise, would it be possible to get a short term rental / Air BnB (if your current purchase drags on) if you know you are going to be moving to that area?

I like @ClematisBlue49 's idea, @trampoline123 - think of plan B and plan C that would enable you to still make the move happen, and it might help you feel less anxious. I had to do the same when I was made redundant in Feb, scrambling to find a new job in a very small window of time so we could still progress with the purchase. It was very stressful and I couldn't sleep due to anxiety sometimes, but having backup plans formulated helped me a lot.

@trampoline123 so annoying! Are there motivated buyers and are they actively looking or are they being really slow?! Have they said they’d move into rental to allow sale to go through? Have they done anything to appease you at all? Can the EA speak to them honestly about your predicament?
im waiting for top of chain to find somewhere and I’m not sure if they are aware of the five/six families waiting for them and therefore trying the best they can or whether they don’t really care and are taking their sweet time! But then I think if I pull out I’ve not gained anything unless I find something equally as good empty!

A plan B would be so much easier without have 2 young ones and one starting school in sept.

They don't have anywhere they could go temporarily, I asked on Tuesday.

We made our position very clear when we offered so it shouldn't come as a surprise.

They've seen a few places but nothing good enough. I have a feeling she's very attached to the house and will want everyone of her boxes ticking and less likely to compromise in her search.

@runningmom were the doors replaced at some point? FENSA doesn't apply to new builds or conservatories, only replacements. This came up in our enquiries. We actually rang FENSA and they told us this!

@runningmom

@MrsCharlieD thanks. It’s a minefield!!!! We have had new windows/bi folds to outside and from kitchen to conservatory and don’t have any certificates!
Also, they want building regs/certs as the garage is bricked up at front and used as a shed. It was like this when we bought it. I don’t think you need building regs as is not joined to house.
Im sure it will all be fine but dreading when the survey gets done!!

@runningmom you can go on the FENSA website and put your address details and you should be able to find the certificate.