Renting, but in process of buying house. Best proceedure to leave rental property?

pinkteapot

Just one comment - even if the seller is out before completion, you won't get the keys until completion day as that's the day he/she gets all your money.

However, if they do move out early you should at least get the keys nice and early on completion day (as soon as all the solicitors have confirmed that funds have been received). We didn't get our keys till 4:45pm as the seller was only moving round the corner so thought he could move out of a 4-bed house using a hired transit van. Took them all bl&&dy day! If we'd been moving in that day we'd have been sat outside with our removal truck from about lunchtime. Most removal companies charge you extra if you're not finished by a cut-off time (e.g. 6pm) because this sort of thing happens a lot - sellers take ages to get out so you can't get in.

Also, just to clarify the order that things happen in, everyone in the chain agrees a completion date and then contracts are exchanged. The contract has the completion date written on it so the negotiation of completion date happens in the few days before contracts are exchanged. You agree a completion date, then contracts are exchanged at which point it's GO, GO, GO on all the moving arrangements.