Buying and selling-how would you make it better

gazter

As an outsider, the sheer lack of pace is what i find frustrating. I presume a lot of it is about the legal teams being absolutely thorough and ensuring they dont miss a thing.

Maybe someone could talk us through why it takes so long.

lessonlearned

gazter wrote: »

As an outsider, the sheer lack of pace is what i find frustrating. I presume a lot of it is about the legal teams being absolutely thorough and ensuring they dont miss a thing.

Maybe someone could talk us through why it takes so long.

I used to find that generally it was the local searches that often held things up. They still can be slow but also the lenders are so nitpicking these days that the mortgage offer can also be very slow.

The solicitors should be extremely nit-picking and go over everything with a fine tooth-comb. A central information register might help speed up some of the solicitors work.

gazter

shortchanged wrote: »

I would make gazumping and gazundering illegal.

I wouldnt have thought that was necessary. Just make the buyer/seller liable for actual costs incurred as a result of breaking an agreement.

Buyer puts in offer, seller accepts offer. From that point on each side is liable for the costs of the other if the agreement falls by lack of mutual consent.

Remedied by small claims track...

Hermoine

Having wasted 4.5 months and quite a lot of money on a buyer who took ages to go through the process and then dipped out on the day of exchange claiming it was because her Dad now couldnt give her some of the money she needed for the deposit, I really do think a system where the deposit is paid earlier in the process would make a lot of sense.

[Deleted User]

Definitely something to put an end to gazumping - such as with the Scottish system.

With leasehold flats I think potential buyers should be able to see the terms of lease before putting in offers, rather than having to wait for a conveyancer to go through it. If there's something in there that would totally put me off, I want to know about it before I get too far down the line and before I spend too much money on the place.

lauraland

hazyjo wrote: »

Must surely be bills to pay in Scotland too as solicitors have to put forward offers, etc, plus, in a rising market it can be soul destroying as it's often like sealed bids where you don't know you've got it until all the bids have been received, pondered over, and decided on. Can't say I'm a huge fan.

Jx

I have only bought the one property in Scotland so Im definately no expert, although I think the cost of forwarding offers is included within the overall conveyancing fee, and there doesn't seem to be a great difference in conveyancing costs between Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Yeah I agree the offers over system has it flaws with its sealed bids, not that I had to go through that, although I also hate the bidding wars that can ensue between buyers elsewhere in the country - surely there must be a happy medium somewhere?

JennyW_2

lots of great ideas.....deposits up front , communication via email, central system holding information which all solicitors could access - it's endless isn't it, however we still seem to be on a journey of stress taking months to complete

Everytime I move I always say "never again", but when I do, I find that nothing's changed and just feel like "here we go again" and all the usual "will they pull out, change their mind, find something else"...... sigh.......

I'm currently in a chain of 5 and it's so odd that none of us know what the other is feeling or thinking. I'm wondering what no.1 in the chain is up to and likewise, they're probably thinking the same.

lessonlearned

Luckily I have never been in a long chain.

Years of working as an EA has put me off chains.......

This time I am in rented between moves - deliberately. I know temporary renting is not for everyone but it's working well for me.

I always exchange contact details with our vendor or purchaser so that we can keep in touch, and keep things moving along. Basically I get the other party to "progress chase" the sale from their end and I do the same my end. Double the pressure on EA's and Solicitors to get cracking.

With the house we are buying Vendor has already said she would love to meet us in person. The property is a listed building and she has researched it's history and wants to share it with us, plus she and her husband have done all the renovation works and they are happy to talk us through what they have done. How nice is that.

Communication between all parties is the key to keeping things on track. A weekly update should be the minimum.

googler

hazyjo wrote: »

Must surely be bills to pay in Scotland too as solicitors have to put forward offers, etc, plus, in a rising market it can be soul destroying as it's often like sealed bids where you don't know you've got it until all the bids have been received, pondered over, and decided on. Can't say I'm a huge fan.

Jx

The vast majority of solicitors, when acting for buyers, won't charge individually for making offers, and effectively only charge the buyers for one successful offer. Many make a selling point of this.

In a closing date scenario, which you describe as 'sealed bids', all bids are submitted shortly before a set date and time, and usually the result is determined within an hour or so of that time. I honestly don't see what the problem is.

googler

lessonlearned wrote: »

I was an EA in Scotland for 5 years and in England for about 25 so have seen both sides of the coin.

The Scottish system is weighted heavily in favour of the Vendor. The poor old purchaser has to have the property surveyed before going to sealed bids. Repeat this process several times on failed bids and you have spent a lot of money. On the plus side once the offer has been accepted, the deal is done and there can be no retractions.

I'm afraid you're seriously out of touch with the Scottish system.

Was your experience in Scotland over 25 years ago?