The all new buyers/sellers waiting room (x 7!) thread

[JoyfulSpring]

Starting a new thread so we can continue the conversation...

Same here. I've had to ask the solicitors if a few things in the searches are big red flags or something they have not flagged for a reason. But, I mean... Just by reading it, at least one thing seemed very concerning. Why not bother to explain in the report that it's actually not as bad as it looks on the search? I don't want to think they missed it, because that would be quite bad. Even worse than the bad stuff they've been doing so far. I refuse to believe it.

So, we're still with a few outstanding bits to sort, still awaiting the contract. No dates agreed. But nobody seems concerned that we won't make it. So OK, I won't be either!

@WimbyAce since October. Issues are at the bottom of the chain, the same people who were jumping around insisting on moving quickly

Good luck to all aiming to exchange this week and to those who are completing.

Reviewing the posts from over the weekend. Re electrical certs, I would say that these come under survey-type activities, i.e. the buyer pays. It's not a legal requirement to service your boiler or get electrical tests. Many people only get their boiler checked out if there's a problem or it's getting old. So whilst I'd be quite happy to have those tests carried out, I wouldn't expect to pay for them.

Re fixtures and fittings. I think if you are going to charge for leaving them, you should do so without conditions and be sure they are in good working order. There's a reason you are offering to leave them and that's because you don't have a need for them. Often, these are bulky items that are a pain to get rid of. So worth considering whether it isn't just easier to leave them without charge. Personally, I'd only request a fee if I'd bought it in the last year or two and I definitely wouldn't use it as a bargaining chip.

Another sleepless night last night!!
We need to change the house buying process in the uk, it's so stressful when there's no need for it to be!!
Does anyone get the feeling you're a pest to your sols?
Baring in mind I haven't contacted mine in over 2 weeks as there was no need (searches ordered 4 weeks ago and surveys being carried out last week so nothing to contact my sols for)
I've just sent an email asking for an "update" and I just received an email to say "looking through your file, will get back to you if we need assistance" 😳

To be fair there are some dreadful conveyancers out there that just try and pass the buck of evidence rather than getting stuck in and sorting missing stuff from the start.

There probably ought to be rules on the matters that regularly red flag on surveys too. Legal requirement for a gas safe check in past 12m, boiler check in past 12m, electrical installation check (in past 10 years plus any new work). It makes sense these things are made a legal requirement on such a high ticket purchase and it would mean they are covered from the outset not causing enquiries and push back on what's not actually all that expensive in the scheme of things.

These indemnity policies seem a bit of a "scam" but again if lenders need this stuff then there isn't much option. It ought to be a requirement of sale to ensure they are in place (either by buyers or by sellers) and then it will affect everyone equally over the years and, again, save time on the file talking about it as its an understood rule.

Then time can be spent on individual property oddities and hopefully it will be quicker!

I have been told off by mine 😆because I had the audacity to chase after 2 days' radio silence and phone not being picked up all day. Seriously, how dare I?

Honestly, I'll keep chasing when needed (as already explained to my solicitor) because at the moment I don't feel in any way confident that they are keeping me a priority nor that they are doing their best to meet the Stamp Duty deadline.

I'd keep asking for regular updates if I were you, as it will all become a rush at one point and receiving the documents in batches is surely better than what they did with us - dump all of them on us only when they couldn't bear to receive my chasers. Literally, they just sent the searches in the same form they had been stored on their laptop for three months. We could have checked them and therefore made our enquiries about them months ago.

To be fair, I used to work in a deadline driven role.

I would literally get NO work done if I fielded chasing phone calls from everyone I was working on in the final month.

Although I had a rule that I would always take a phone call from a client and, if in a meeting, always call back immediately after - I could only follow that rule 11 months on the year. On the final month it was, genuinely, impossible to do. My secretary had to field calls. I just worked - like a trojan!

I know it's difficult to know if they are working on your file or not. And it's stressful.

What I would say is if you get asked for something reply in full with everything requested. A reply that is quick but doesn't cover everything will only take longer in the end.

@HavenSprings told off, that did make me laugh. This is serious business and serious money.
I also don't think I've been a nuisance with my communications, prior to not receiving an update for 2 weeks, I think I contacted them a week before that.
He's just emailed me some enquiries to be responded to, I replied back in 2 minutes 🤣
No I've accepted that we won't complete before stamp tax duty rise as well. I best make the most of my small mortgage whilst I can I suppose.

It made me laugh too, honestly! I'm pretty sure the solicitor has been separately 'told off' by the management team as well, as the following day, after I had given up on those (but the team knew I asked to get them because I didn't understand the hold-up), the searches were dumped on me as if by magic!

@Feelingstrange2 I have a job with multiple deadlines, so when I get requests for info that I don't still have I let it go for a day or two, hoping in the meantime to get the info requested. But if I get a chaser it takes me literally 10 seconds to write 'No news as yet, will follow up shortly'. I think less than that is just poor customer service.

Also, I literally only took up the phone one day in my now 5 months of conveyancing, but I agree that people who constantly call are not doing the solicitors nor themselves any favours. That's why I chase via email unless super urgent.

Ah ok, was worried you were our seller for a min!

Is it not solicitor job to check searches and make enquiries though? We haven't seen ours she has just sent off the enquiries.

It is! What they did is create a title report and send it to us before the searches. On this report, there was one mention to something appearing in the searches that we couldn't understand, of course, as we hadn't received the original document. When I asked about it, the solicitor said the searches would be sent in due time.

They eventually sent them last week after the whole telling-off-each-other situation and with no further comments, although I've picked at least two things that I personally think should have been flagged either in the original report or via email. So now I'm awaiting comments. Why have these not been flagged? And can they please tell me if there's something else they think it's worth flag up to me? I honestly don't know at this point. I'm just hoping they will confirm the only thing seriously worth of notice was the one they added to the report, and not that they have missed the rest.

Either way, and I checked on here months ago, you are still due to receive the original searches documents.

I need to rant. Sorry.

Can't clear house because we haven't exchanged yet, despite buyer wanting a 31 March deadline. The estate agent says the house looks better with the remaining furniture left it in it, so I dare not empty it and then find exchange falls through and I have to rent new furniture.

I am away for five days from Saturday.

I can't even remove the hoovers because I don't know whether the cleaning lady will be coming in again before completion (she is a fortnightly fixture.) I can't give her a firm finishing date, or the guy who does the garden once a fortnight.

I am also just about to release my first house clearance date of Wednesday. Still holding on for a second date on 21st.

So that's me and three other people: cleaning lady, gardener and house clearance guy who are just waiting, waiting, waiting because the buyer didn't sort out his house equity transfer early enough.

I have red-labelled everything that needs to stay but when you get down to having to label dusters and cleaning fluids to stay it is ridiculous and time-consuming. But even when I'm not away, it's an 150-mile round trip to the house. It is so much effort and I am fed up after seven months of managing it. I have to go down once a week if the cleaning lady or estate agent hasn't been in to fulfil the insurance requirement.

I JUST WANT TO EXCHANGE. I am stamping my foot hard and feeling like a thwarted toddler today.

No exchange for us again despite supposed to be completing on Friday! My solicitor has requested the funds from the mortgage people but that's all that's happened today as far as I know. I'm waiting on a call back to see what's going on 😭 I've had enough

We need a FFS! 'React' button for all these non-exchange posts.

@Abra1t it's beyond frustrating, isn't it?! I've just been told it should be tomorrow for us. All paperwork is in place, mortgage funds requested for my buyer and us. My buyer has to transfer their deposit and we can exchange. I'm pretty sure our seller has all paperwork ready as they're buying a new build. Their estate agent isn't the best at communicating anything useful!

Honestly the whole process is bonkers !! How long have you been on the moving train ?

I'm crossing all fingers for those pending to exchange "which I am one" if it ever happens.

Which at this point I'm doubtful tbh

@NormallyAwkward, I am crossing everything for you! Thanks for the empathy. It helps to offload here.

@Abra1t thank you! Finger's crossed for you too.
I've need to offload on here, I don't expect replies but it does good to let it all out to everyone in the same boat.

And a "shall we all go medieval on the none responsive solicitors" button too ?

Date question but how long does exchange seem to take in a chain ? I don't know why I thought it was instant 🙃

@hotandpermi since November short compared to some but we are not dependent on a sale and our sellers were chain free when we agreed Sale. So even once we have got our new house and moved we need to start all over again today to get our current one sold 🙄

Oh god that's a bloody long time 4 months for them to be patting around with enquiries?! Tell me you're nearly at the point of exchanging ?

I foolishly thought we would be done in 8 weeks but even when ours dragged on I didn't chase. Probably to our detriment- seems you have to chase everyone nearly daily at the end to get anything done. Esp with the march deadline I think they might just be focusing on who yells the loudest to stop the phone from ringing.

At the moment even the smallest of chains is a complete nightmare!!

My advice is not to ask generally for an 'update', but to be as specific as possible in your questions. Ask whether x has responded to y. Ask whether the vendors have sent that document they were asked for. Ask if your buyer has got their mortgage offer in place. Etc. Etc. Asking for a general update gives them an easy get out.

Also, ask your EA to get updates. They can quite often get a bit more detail than the solicitor as solicitors tend to be more transactional.

I now have no idea what’s going on. EA called me today to say everyone ready to exchange end of the week.. that’s great but I’ve not seen my contract let alone signed anything, insurances are not in place and I haven’t paid the deposit over yet.
I have emailed my solicitor but didn’t get chance until late in the day.

Stress is really taking hold now, work is full throttle. I had to ask for a glass of water in a shop at lunchtime today, I came over really dizzy which is very unlike me.

Ahhh no are you top of the chain ? How long has this been doing on for you ?