Completion date negotiation...help!

Chuckles79

Hi, can anyone offer advice...

We are selling our flat to a first time buyer who is renting. We are buying a house and there are several properties in the chain above us. Everyone is ready to exchange, but we need to agree a completion date. Everyone in the chain above us wants to complete as soon as possible and so do we.

However, our purchaser doesn't want to overlap paying rent and mortgage, so has suggested completion date of 1st Nov. I am due to give birth on 27th Oct and really don't want to be moving within the last 4 weeks of pregnancy (when i should be resting/nesting, not going through major stress of house move). What's more, our mortgage offer expires on 28th Sep so we would have to get a new (more expensive) mortgage deal.

Apparently, someone further up the chain is threatening to pull out if we don't complete by 20th Sep.

What is normal protocol, when completion dates can't be agreed? My husband thinks we should offer to compensate our purchaser for his overlapping rent, but I'm really not happy about this. We accepted his offer at the end of March, so it's not exactly like we're trying to rush things through. I'm really getting stressed out, not good for baby!

Any advice appreciated? Thanks.

littlesparkles

Interested to hear replies...

Lavendyr

Your first time buyer doesn't realise how good they have it!

We just bought our first house and overlapped our purchase with our rental by more than a month. In the grand scheme of buying a house it's a tiny sunk cost and it's actually worked wonderfully for us as we've had plenty of time to move things over.

In your shoes I'd point out the facts to your FTB (you're preggers, someone up the chain will pull out if don't complete sooner) and explain that the chain *will* collapse if they can't be a bit more flexible. Sounds like they are in the best position to be flexible (not knowing anything about their personal circumstances).

However, if they won't go for it, then your hubby's suggestion sounds practical. Not ideal, no, and you may end up grinding your teeth a bit about it, but it's better than the stress and again, a small price to pay in the grand scheme of things.

happy-chappy_2

You could see if the rest of the chain will cover their rent too.. as in split it between you all - especially if they all want to complete quickly.

hcb42

If I was up chain there is no way I would pay for someone else's rent...this is just normal stuff, deadline them and see what happens!

DVardysShadow

Well, he is FTB, so he has paid for his survey and he will have to pay for his solicitor and his mortgage probably. So he may stand to lose much more than his rent for an overlap if the chain collapses.

You will have met him, I have not - if he is likely to be moved by losing all his outlay so far, I would be telling him he exchanges immediately and completes by 8 October for which he gets a week's rent - so that is half his gap covered, or the deal is off and under no circumstances would the offer be revived.

Even if I involved the rest of the chain, I would not cover more than half his rent for the month.

However, I am critical of you OP as much as your buyer for not realising he was in rented and understanding the rental notice requirements and not knowing from the outset when his notice dates would be.

Fire_Fox

You don't need normal protocol: just point out your due date, the likelihood of the baby coming a couple of weeks early, and the nightmare that will cause for everyone if it clashes with completion. The stress/ money aspects are all your own individual problems to resolve but giving birth is entirely out of your control. Broken record technique.

You are not going to complete by 20th September now, did you mean exchange?

picardygirl

Lavendyr wrote: »

In your shoes I'd point out the facts to your FTB (you're preggers, someone up the chain will pull out if don't complete sooner) and explain that the chain *will* collapse if they can't be a bit more flexible. Sounds like they are in the best position to be flexible (not knowing anything about their personal circumstances).

However, if they won't go for it, then your hubby's suggestion sounds practical. Not ideal, no, and you may end up grinding your teeth a bit about it, but it's better than the stress and again, a small price to pay in the grand scheme of things.

Agree with above! Also point out that your mortgage offer expires 28th September too! Sounds like that may need it explaining that they cannot call all the shots ..... well they can if they are prepared to let the chain collapse!

Good luck, hope you get it sorted asap, i know how stressing it can be.

Chuckles79

Fire_Fox wrote: »

You are not going to complete by 20th September now, did you mean exchange?

Hi Fire Fox. I did mean complete. If we can exchange today/tomorrow, I've been told we can complete by 20th but only if everyone agrees!