The all new buyers/sellers waiting room (continued x3) thread!

[fromtheshires]

As @movingtoplan has finally flown the nest, I have taken the torch and started a new thread as there are less than 80 replies remaining on the current thread before its full!

We've had lots of completions, exchanges, offers accepted, maddening conveyancing teams, strange requests, and worries to last a lifetime. Welcome welcome.

Catch up here: Previous Thread

Good luck to you, whatever stage you're at in the process.

My update is our onward purchase was completed months ago but due to buyers pulling out we had to start again with a buyer and they are just in the final stages of conveyancing and we are talking dates! I really hope I am not on the next thread.

Where are you looking @rosemarycait96 ?

@BirthdayRainbow Bristol (Eastern part of the city ideally), our budget is small for the area though so fingers crossed we'll find something

I was hoping you were looking where I am and you'd want to buy mine! Funny that where you are looking is where one my dc lives!

Stupid FTB question...but when you get ready for exchange, do you physically have to go in the bank to transfer the money to the solicitor?

Hello!@fromtheshires I’ve literally just joined to ask you this (although have been reading this thread on the forum to keep me sane for ages)…

We are about 4 months into our purchase and about to complete (so I thought) as all enquiries resolved but our solicitor had to approve something with our lender. Now we’ve been waiting nearly 3 weeks with solicitors apparently chasing the lender constantly and still no sign of a response.

@fromtheshires I saw you had a similar issue and managed to get it resolved quickly? Can I ask how?? Me and the sellers are going out of our minds now…

Welcome to the thread!

So our lender only communicates via fax or post. Usually faxes now are actually emails you send to a fax number and they display as emails. I guess thats to stop any tom dick and harry emailing the inboxes clogging them up.

It was very long winded so I hope you have a lot of time on your hands 😂

After weeks of no update I rang the lender ourselves and asked for all the different fax numbers and escalation fax numbers. I was told the reply time was 2 working days.

I then emailed all the contact numbers to my solicitor who copied me in on the emails. After two days I called the lender to see if they had been received. They said not. I then got the solicitor to email again. After two more days ring up and the circle goes back round for ages.

Eventually I had a decent person on the lenders end who said once the solicitors have sent their request to wait 30 minutes, then get the solicitors to call them and tell then the time it was sent and they will manually pull it out.

This seemed to do the trick and it eventually got sorted.

Basically solicitors fire and forget so you have to be on top of the lenders and solicitors and chase both ends

We're about 3 weeks into our sale/purchase and enquires on both sides have been ordered but not completed.

Our purchase vendor has chosen an online only solicitor which makes me a little nervous. One of the foret questions the EA asked after pit offer was accepted was 'will you be ordering a survery?'I guess they just want to establish a tomeline but also another reason tp be a bit nervous about what we'll find? It's a grade 2 listed cottage so not expected tp be in tip top condition.

Out council is currently stating 12 days for searches. We have a mortgage app tomorrow, wish us luck!

*sorry about typos, I can't edit!

I've been talking to H about how much we can reduce our price, and we basically can't. As the agent put the house back on the market for the amount it was SSTC I feel that people will offer below that (hopefully not 200K), because everyone want's a deal. Realistically we could possible afford to drop about 10k (5k each), so basically nothing. I'm therefore thinking we should get the agent to change the listing to offers over and then if people offer the asking price, they'll think they've got a deal.
What strategies have you used?
H said maybe we take it off for a while and then put it back on at the original asking price, but I think it has to be off for three months before Rightmove forgets the history doesn't it?

Argh solicitor not rung me back yet after leaving a message. Agent not able to get answers. My vendors only signed yesterday and their solicitor suggesting I go round to see if they’ve rectified issues 😔 I mean just send photos! I feel like I’m the only one doing anything here and pushing to get an exchange date.

Heading for the end of another week with promises of exchange not fulfilled, one party up chain going on holiday and a mortgage extension hurtling towards expiry. I’ve done everything I can and it’s more hot air from people further up the chain. Between charges, contract problems, we’re on holiday etc etc delaying things, now it’s “oh the removers aren’t available that day”. I despair.

Some positive news for us today, solicitors finally received draft contracts (a full month after offer accepted) so they can start checks and we are booking in our survey (using an independent surveyor who costs a little more but can do fairly quickly). Just googled how long searches will take though - which was a mistake as apparently my area (wirral) currently has the longest waits in the country, an average of 63 days?!! Let's see...

Other great bit of news for us is that our sellers are happy to accept indemnity insurance for the missing building regs.... can't tell you what a load off my mind that is!

Hope your solicitor gets back to you soon @runningmom

We've another viewing on Saturday, she has cash but will need a mortgage.

@Marshmallowbrain Most banks will only allow you transfer £20k a day out of a personal bank account therefore you have to do what's called a CHAPS payment which can take 24 hours (or more) to reach its destination account. You have to do this in person at your bank.

The NatWest charge £23 to do this. You need to take ID with you and they may ask where the money is from and why you're sending such a large amount of money.

Thank you for this! And the long explanation ha ha it was helpful. I can’t believe the lender only communicates via fax!? What age do we live in? Glad you did manage to get it sorted and it was good news.

Unfortunately for us it’s all gone significantly down hill today… the lender finally responded and have said they aren’t happy with the lease for the septic tank and it’s needs to be extinguished before we can complete. This could takes ages and will need agreement from the landowner….

The vendors are not going to be happy at all. I can only hope they don’t pull out whilst all this is dealt with but they would have the same issue with any buyer I think! I have to say I would not wish to go through this process ever again in my lifetime… this house will be our only and last at this rate 😩

They say fax, but it's really email sent to a fax number. It's all very backwards still. Just use email! Im sure they have their reasons though.

Im glad they got back to you but its super shit its bad news. I get their reasoning though as if you have a house without septic drainage it will not be able to be sold as a house. I guess you could look at buying out the lease but I imagine it would be ££££. I cant even suggest another lender as I imagine they would all be the same.

Update for us: We have bottomed out a completion date today so we just need to get an exchange date sorted out but i imagine it will be in the next week or so as our buyers need to give their LL notice. Movers booked (after giving them a heart attack because I forgot to say August when I gave them the date 😂) and I have a pre exchange viewing booked next week!

How are people finding the market in their area currently? We have put our house on the market 3 weeks ago, in Manchester, and have only had 1 viewing. Estate agent said it is quiet at the top end of the market (where we are) but this seems iffy to me. Wondering whether we have put our on too high or if this is generally the case?

Great news @fromtheshires , sounds like you will be graduating the thread soon!

I've had two viewings and they were in ten days plus one who booked then changed their mind. I'm hoping from this weekend it will pick up as the election will be done. I'm probably on a bit high but happy to take an offer and have stated that.

Hopefully but i am acutely aware of what happened on our last exchange day so not counting my chickens yet 😂🙈

Solicitor rang before close of day. She’s waiting on below and above to formally agree to the 19th (have told their agents that’s fine) via their solicitors. Enquiries have come through from my vendor and all ok. Just got to hope we can get to exchange beforehand! I’ll need to pay my removals two days before so I guess we need to exchange at least two days before that?? Solicitor said we could exchange as close as need be to the 19th but that’s scary!!

I know this is a really stupid post in the grand scheme of things (and a very middle class problem), but I can't mow my lawn :( I had a really lovely ride on mower that I sold because we were about to exchange and complete, and the buyer had their own, so I had to buy another, and it's so hard to use and I can't get it started, last time I did it (two weeks ago), my dad came over and got it started but my parents are off on hols tomorrow, so the garden will look like a field. Also, my cleaner only comes every other week, so I'm going have to clean the whole thing after work :/

I'm really upset about my mower - I loved my old one :(

Hi everyone!

Joining as a FTB from Scotland. We had an offer accepted on a beautiful house a couple of weeks ago. Feel so lucky that we got it!

The sellers are still to find somewhere to move to which is making it a bit of an anxious wait. I keep convincing myself they won’t find anywhere and will end up pulling out.

Has anyone been in this situation? We’re not entirely sure how to set an entry date, and to make things more complicated I’m newly pregnant (due early March if everything goes okay) so eventually really will be under a bit of a deadline 😅

Last minute flurry of activity and potentially exchange tomorrow and complete in 10 days time. A bit miffed as I can’t arrange a pre exchange inspection - do you think I could ask for a look round early next week? Just to make sure they haven’t gutted the place since I last viewed?

Surely you need to check before exchange?