Exchange and complete same day - insanity?!

[isthesolution]

We are (hopefully!) very close to moving. It's been a long process - the chain goes our buyer (nothing to sell, no finance) - us - house we are buying - house they are buying (empty)

I've asked for exchange on our sale 2 weeks before completion but a lot of research I've done says people exchange and complete on the same day?! The thought of that terrifies me - what if someone pulls out, on the day, when everything is packed and ready to move?!

The purchase bit doesn't bother me so much - if that all fell through you could air BnB / rent / stay with family. But the sale part - selling my furniture (downsizing), paying removal people, dismantling everything, packing boxes etc - how do people get past the fear of something going wrong if they do that before exchange?! I just feel so so nervous!

Well I've been told by the solicitor and estate agents this is very common and happens in 4/5 sales. Our buyer is insisting on exchange and completion on the same day. We are 10 days away from proposed completion and I'm mostly terrified rather than excited!

We also exchanged and completed on the same day. FTB moving from a rental.

We exchanged and completed on the same day 5 years ago. It was fucking awful. We had all of our stuff packed up in the van, and we still didn’t know for sure if we’d be moving that day. Then they said they would need to charge us by the hour for waiting around, so they went to help on another job- with all of our stuff. So there was a moment where we were stood in our empty old house, all our worldly possessions elsewhere and no idea if it would be going through that day. It did with 20 minutes left in the working day. I swear to god it was one of the most stressful days of my life- up there with labour hahah. I have no idea in hindsight why we agreed to it. I certainly would be pushing for a gap next time! Would not recommend!!!

We have done this, the house we were buying was a probate sale and there was no chain.

@Blingismything Similar. We did both on the same day. It was no chain, the house had been vacated and there was some kind of loan secured on the house by the deceased owner, the sellers solicitor didnt give many details. It was annoying but we didn't have much choice really. Our solicitor said it was 'not usual but it happens'.

We’ve exchanged and completed same day several times, and planned to do so. Never on a house we were planning on moving straight in to though - that would seem a super stressful way of moving!!

Remember your buyer has no more rights to "insist" that you exchange and complete on the same day than you have to "insist" you don't. Don't be bullied into doing something if it is a bad choice for you.

I've done it. I was chain free. They weren't. Very convenient for me. I just let the rent run longer. Very stressful for them and I think I'd have got the house in a cleaner condition if we had had a gap. But they wanted it same day.

I've done it twice, both times with no chain though.

The only time I'd consider it is if you didn't have to move out of the house you're currently living in. It's too short notice to arrange movers etc, and it runs too many risks of it not happening on that specific day.

We did exchange and complete on the same day once, but we were FTB, and we bought the house we were living in from our landlady. Every other sale or purchase I've been involved in has been at least a fortnight between the two.

I’ve done this. It was recommended by my solicitor. Someone in the chain was dicking around, stalling, delaying completion, not answering enquiries. It went on and on and our mortgage offer was about to expire. They recommended exchange and complete on the same day in case the person messed around anymore after we exchanged and were legally bound to buy it with our mortgage then falling through. It all went off without a hitch but the day before we just sat surrounded by boxes going “maybe it’s our last night here, maybe not!” By that point you just have to laugh and roll with the punches.

I’ve no idea if perhaps there’s a regional element to this, but I would say in 1000s of transactions over nearly thirty years, I’ve had a simultaneous exchange/complete less than a dozen times.

to suggest it happens in 80% of cases is frankly bollocks.

Yes I don’t believe the 80% percentage at all ( assuming the property is in England as don’t know about other places)

Same.