Completion Date???

beej71

Hi

Just wondering if someone could offer some advice to a first time buyer.....

Currently buying a two bed flat and are well underway. We have signed the mortgage deeds and our contracts and given notice on our rented property. This would mean an ideal move out date of 12th July.

All was fine until this weekend when I had the estate agent calling to tell me that the vendor we are buying from wishes to exchange and complete this Friday!!!! She is buying a property from a probate sale and is getting pressure to sort that asap or apparently they will sell to someone else and she will lose out on that. We already waited for 6 weeks whilst he original purchase fell through until she found this place she is buying. She now needs to move straight away but this will cost us £900 in rent. There is the added complication that her mortgage offer runs out this friday so if she has to delay to sort the mortgage she feels she will lose the place she is buying.

So really I was wondering if anyone else had been in a similar situation? Does anyone know what my rights are? can I demand compensation for the 4 week overlap, given that I will be paying rent and mortgage.

I have kind of accepted that I will have to agree otherwise it seems the whole deal will fall through unless the top of the chain are bluffing?

And I also thought that all this sort of communication should go through the conveyancer as I don't want to agree to any sort of date without it going through them. Feels like we are being bullied to be honest as the whole sale has been dictated by her so far and now suddenly we are supposed to drop everything and move within 4 days when we haven't even exchanged or talked about dates yet. I am new to all this and don't know where I stand or what to do really so any advice gratefully appreciated

Many thanks in advance

R_P_W

If you have not exchanged I don't think you can demand compensation for anything.

Why have you given notice in your rental if you have not exchanged yet?

beej71

I gave notice because even though we haven't exchanged we were told that the vendor would be keen to move at the end of June/beginning of July so I didn't want to hold the process up. Thought i'd give notice ans chance it. We were told exchange would be this week. But now they have pushed for the completion date this week and even though I have given notice it obviously isn't short enough. We would have to forego a month's rent if we moved this week.

pinkcheshirecat

Ask them for the £900?

[Deleted User]

Has it occurred to you that you haven't lost anything?

You were prepared to move later and pay extra rent, its unfortunate that you now didn't need to pay the extra rent but you haven't actually lost anything according to the original understanding.

As you haven't exchanged, compensation doesn't arise.

Personally, I think you should be glad the seller found another place to buy, not be grumbling about the six weeks you had to wait while they found the alternative property. You might not have been able to buy the property at all.

Guest101

R_P_W wrote: »

If you have not exchanged I don't think you can demand compensation for anything.

Why have you given notice in your rental if you have not exchanged yet?

??? thats bad advice, ofcourse he can. I'd get the £900 + moving costs.

- its called negotiating. once he HAS EXCHANGED HE CANNOT DO ANYTHING.

Guest101

deannatrois wrote: »

Has it occurred to you that you haven't lost anything?

You were prepared to move later and pay extra rent, its unfortunate that you now didn't need to pay the extra rent but you haven't actually lost anything according to the original understanding.

As you haven't exchanged, compensation doesn't arise.

Personally, I think you should be glad the seller found another place to buy, not be grumbling about the six weeks you had to wait while they found the alternative property. You might not have been able to buy the property at all.

What? what is the matter with people??!! if the vendor wants to complete in 4 days id say compensation is fine for he buyer.

hazyjo

It is never advisable to hand in notice on a rental before exchanging.

Are you even in a position to complete?! What does your solicitor say?

If your vendor wants to complete earlier than initially planned, by all means say that it doesn't suit you as you've paid £X amount of rent. Maybe they will offer to contribute, or you could ask for, an amount that allows for the overlap. Am sure they would rather that than risk losing you and starting over again! Then they really would lose the property they're going for...

Interested to hear what your solicitor has to say...

Jx

egoode

Personally I would look at it as a good thing as you can take a bit of time making sure you get internet, phone, etc connected before you move and have a few days giving the flat a good clean without all your stuff in it. When I finally complete my purchase I was always planning on having at least a 2 week overlap with my rental and completion of the sale.

beej71

Thanks for all your replies, very helpful. No exhchange or completion date has been discussed up until yesterday and I am now given 4 days to organise a whole house move and costs on top of that, with no time available to take off work, no notice to give to utilities etc and then having to pay a month's mortgage on top of my month's rent. I've now been told if I don't agree to it the vendor will put it back on the market and sell to someone else as she believes it has gone up in value since our offer was accepted. She may be bluffing but i've basically been bullied into submission so have no choice....

In answer to this....

deannatrois wrote: »

Has it occurred to you that you haven't lost anything?

You were prepared to move later and pay extra rent, its unfortunate that you now didn't need to pay the extra rent but you haven't actually lost anything according to the original understanding.

As you haven't exchanged, compensation doesn't arise.

Personally, I think you should be glad the seller found another place to buy, not be grumbling about the six weeks you had to wait while they found the alternative property. You might not have been able to buy the property at all.

I'll be paying 4 weeks rent and 4 weeks mortgage = £1850 for the overlap period rather than £925. So how am I not losing anything?

Personally i think the seller should be glad we were willing to wait the 6 six weeks whilst she found somewhere else, but I can understand your opinion as well. And I'm not grumbling about that I simply stated that we were happy to wait for 6 weeks and now all of sudden we have to move within 4 days.

Many thanks

R_P_W

Guest101 wrote: »

??? thats bad advice, ofcourse he can. I'd get the £900 + moving costs.

- its called negotiating. once he HAS EXCHANGED HE CANNOT DO ANYTHING.

Thanks for the lesson....much appreciated.

I didn't say he couldn't ask, I said he couldn't demand it.