Should I be checking up on buyer's progress?

Bil2

Hi-

I accepted an offer on my apartment last week. On Friday, the estate agent told me that the buyer is having a meeting with a mortgage advisor today (she already had an agreement in principle). The estate agent also told me that the buyer is in the process of finding a conveyancer.

Should I be checking up on how the buyer is progressing or should I just wait to hear from the estate agent? Things have been quiet since the last time I spoke to the agent on Fri morning and I'm anxious as I have no idea what's going on! I presume that everything is going to plan, but I feel very much in the dark.

Do others feel this way when they are selling?

Debt_Free_Chick

Bil2 wrote:

Things have been quiet since the last time I spoke to the agent on Fri morning and I'm anxious as I have no idea what's going on!

Not a lot, I suspect. Conveyancers don't work at the weekend, neither do most mortgage advisers. Your buyer is only seeing the mortgage adviser today .... I wouldn't expect the adviser to issue a report and recommendations much before the end of the week.

The conveyancer will need to issue terms of business and check ID before they can start work - again, no real progress before the end of the week.

You need to chill out as you've got many more weeks of this - possibly 2 months or more! Progress happens by the week, not the hour

You shouldn't need to check with your EA, they should tell you when progress is made. Why not ask the EA to give you a progress report, by telephone, every week - or earlier, if something significant happens?

Mrs_pbradley936

You will be a nervous wreck in a few weeks if you expect to be updated every other day! Relax these things take time.

Bil2

I guess that I am panicking a little unneccesarily! I'm just so worried that something will go wrong and that the sale will fall through. We really need to sell up and move! Our place is a new build, so we've never been in this situation before. I'm not used to not knowing exactly what is going on!

At the moment everything is just verbal and it doesn't feel real. Is it strange that the buyer has put in an offer but hasn't had (or yet asked for) a second viewing?

I think I'll feel more settled once the buyer has started to spend money on the buying process (e.g. organising a valuation for her mortgage company, organised a survey etc). I know that the buyer still has the right to pull out after these stages, but at least I will then know that she is serious about our property.

Mrs_pbradley936

Are you buying another place? Or perhaps moving in with lover or back to parents? I only ask because if you have to be involved in a chain we will have to give you a good talking to on here!

NastyMatt

Way too soon to be chasing and asking where they are at. they should have instructed their solicitor to start the searches and at this point they will have had to pay for those (about £166).

The seraches take about a month so it's all fairly slow until they happen. Yes you can get the mortgage.. get a survey etc

if you are worried have a word with your solicitor, they should be communicating with the buyer's solicitor but in all honesty I'd wait at least another 2 weeks.

When buying buying/selling a house no news is definitely good news. I hope this never happens but if something is wrong you know with in minutes.

Bil2

pbradley936 wrote:

Are you buying another place? Or perhaps moving in with lover or back to parents? I only ask because if you have to be involved in a chain we will have to give you a good talking to on here!

We're looking for a place to buy, but will be happy to move into rented accommodation if she is ready to move before we are (the stress of commuting and the cost of commuting is a nightmare!... we just want to move asap!).

lilyann1

It is stressful buying and selling I have found this out after doing it for 7 months now from when our offer was accepted and through a nightmare of senarios,things have fallen through 3 times and we still do not know where we are at.
Do not get into a chain if you can help it.

We bought a new build 14 years ago and did a part exchange then so it was so simple.
Now I have been involved in this chain of 4 then 5 then 6 people,it has been one long nightmare.Once we move I am never moving again.

I would say it is too early to chase.
The EA's will have it on their records system to chase for updates every couple of weeks ,then weekly nearer exchange.
I would give it a week or so then call your agent for an update.
You may even hear before that,if her mortgage company wants a valuation ,they will want to arrange an appointment to do that,so you'll know.

Bil2

Thanks for all your advice. I'll wait until Friday before calling the EA to see how things are going.

JennyW_2

Bil2 wrote:

Hi-

Things have been quiet since the last time I spoke to the agent on Fri morning and I'm anxious as I have no idea what's going on! I presume that everything is going to plan, but I feel very much in the dark.

Do others feel this way when they are selling?

you could have weeks and months of feeling like this I'm afraid. It's the nature of the house moving game. My EA used to ring me every 2 weeks with an update/progress report although most of the weeks, there was nothing to report back because things were going soooooooooooo slow.

I dont wish to appear negative but your buyer could pull out at any stage up to exchange, regardless of not whether they've spent money. You just have to try and go with the flow and what will be will be.

NastyMatt

Not wanting to sound negative but obviously I am (!!) you can't trust what the EA is saying. It took my vendor 11 days to agree the completion date (from me signing the papers) and in this time I had assurences from the EA that "she has told her solicitor" "you are just about to exchange" "the soliciotrs are speaking to each other right now" etc etc etc only to find out absolutely none of this had/was happening.