Moving in less than 2 weeks and still not exchanged

[rebl]

I'm going ever so slightly mad with stress. The whole chain, including our nightmare vendors, are saying that they are AIMING for the 27th November for completion but they also said they were AIMING for exchange on Friday and that came and went with no contact from further up the chain. I'm getting very very worried about this. I have 2 young children (3.5yrs twins), one with special needs who isn't coping at all with the impending move and has become very very aggressive (biting, punching, pushing, pinching etc) and one who is now just crying at everything and is a struggle to get her to leave the house in case her toys have gone when we get back. I've promised her that her toys won't go and tried to explain to her but she's just 3.5yrs and doesn't understand and is just screaming with shear panic everytime we leave.

I've got no choice but to start packing with the proposed date being less than 2 weeks away so I can't hide the fact from them. But then I've not even been able to book the removal men and storage because the completion date isn't set in stone because we've not exchanged. So I'm worried that I'm not even going to be able to get anyone to move us when it comes to it.

I can't arrange the childcare needed for the move until exchange because once booked then I can't cancel or change the dates without loosing all my money. The same goes for the cats and the cattery.

I don't know what to do. I've tried to collapse the chain and they didn't let it collapse so I believe the awkward people do want to sell but I just wonder when they want to move. I feel like we are just being told what they think we want to hear, not the truth. As for our buyers, they're still being relaxed as ever but they came this weekend and measured up and they're clearly so excited and their solicitor has told them 27th for completion. We've not exchanged on our sale yet as the solicitor doesn't want to without exchanging on the purchase but we can't loose these buyers.

What a total stress and mess.

Nothing to report today other than an email from our solicitor which says that the vendor still hasn't heard from her vendors (Mr and Mrs Swine flu) so she's going via the estate agent now to get through direct to Mr and Mrs Swine flu. She says in the email that we are completing on 4th Dec but in reality that means nothing does it. DH is now saying book the removal company, we'll have to risk loosing the money. I don't know, its a lot of money to loose. I want something a lot more concrete.

Message withdrawn

Thing is it is not just the movers but parking suspension (£££ in SW London anyway), calling all the service providers to gie metre readings, changing insurance details. So much admin to be done, all of which actually requires a DATE!

Rebl - it looks as though we are going to do this exchange and complete as licensees. They then have a stop date by which time they have to complete. Will let you know more when it goes through. It might be worth speaking to your solicitor about it although it sounds as though it most appropriate when there is something specific holding up completion rather than general vendor incompetence slowness

Susie - I'll speak to the solicitor about this licence thing, sounds like it might be the answer.

I rang our top 2 removal firms today as instructed by dh and I can't book either of them . They're both involved in the clear up in Cockermouth and surrounding areas and dealing with massive insurance claims. They don't even have storage space now either.

So now I'm going to have to go with a large national one I think.