12 December completion date looking dodgy!

cayennepepper

My Vendor's solicitor also made a mistake the day before exchange which delayed the exchange date by 5 days. I was furious but there was nothing I could do because we had not exchanged yet and anything can happen up until then. Until the home buying and selling system changes, these will be allowed to happen again and again unfortunately.

PompeyPete

Cissi wrote: »

As others have said, anything could happen until exchange, including the vendor changing their mind about selling in the first place. This is why everyone is surprised that you exchanged on the sale before the chain above you was ready to exchange. I'm surprised that your solicitor didn't advise you against this! The general advice is also to not give notice on a rented property before exchange has taken place - unless you're prepared to live with the risk of being homeless for a while.

I knew all the acceptable risks. What I don't find acceptable is a solicitor noticing that a bit of paper is missing right at the moment everyone is ready to exchange. The house in question is only 6 years old. So is it not reasonable to expect a competent professional to have the NHBC Certificate high on his/her tick list of documents that need to be produced?

angrypirate

PompeyPete wrote: »

No, I thought my opening posting was as clear as I could make it!
If this missing NHBC Certificate had been discovered after we'd exchanged contracts with our vendors and we'd agreed a completion date, then the problem [for us] of a missing NHBC Certificate further up the chain wouldn't exist!

Sorry. Mis-read your initial post and thought you had already exchanged. Suggest you start working on a contingency plan for putting things in storage and temporary accomodation. I spent about 4 weeks of "we'll exchange this Friday" with the solicitor when I bought before it actually happened and all of the chain exchanged on the same day.

loubel

PompeyPete wrote: »

But there has been a basic error made a solicitor [not our solicitor] very late in the day by not ensuring that an NHBC Certificate has been produced much earlier in process. Surely noticing the omission when all were ready to exchange contracts is negligent on the solicitors part?

How do you know this is what happened? Perhaps they asked for it right away and have only just been told there isn't one. Either way, your losses are the result of you choosing to break the chain and exchange on your sale before your purchase was ready. The speed of your seller's solicitor is between them and the seller and you are highly unlikely to persuade your seller that they should pay for your costs because you believe their solicitor to be at fault. Sorry it's not what you want to hear.

PompeyPete

loubel wrote: »

How do you know this is what happened? Perhaps they asked for it right away and have only just been told there isn't one. Either way, your losses are the result of you choosing to break the chain and exchange on your sale before your purchase was ready. The speed of your seller's solicitor is between them and the seller and you are highly unlikely to persuade your seller that they should pay for your costs because you believe their solicitor to be at fault. Sorry it's not what you want to hear.

There is an NHBC Certificate!
But the solicitor never told the client he/she needed it, and when requested [last week] the client basically said "What NHBC Certificate, we've never had it?!".
The Developer (Westbury Homes) were then hastened, and they passed the request on to NHBC to produce the bit of paper. But why should they jump because of someone else's oversight?

Dan-Dan

PompeyPete wrote: »

I knew all the acceptable risks. What I don't find acceptable is a solicitor noticing that a bit of paper is missing right at the moment everyone is ready to exchange. The house in question is only 6 years old. So is it not reasonable to expect a competent professional to have the NHBC Certificate high on his/her tick list of documents that need to be produced?

But everyone wasnt ready to exchange , because things like this crop up through most chains , thats why you need to mutually agree above and below at the very least

The fact you have made a massive balls up , is clouding your judgement

pawpurrs

These things happen all the time, and i am sure this will get sorted maybe in time for the 12th, but in all homesty i feel there is no way you can try and recover any costs in this, as if you had exchanged together as is normal you would not have to move twice, and you may have to be more accomadating to others in the chain if they want to be in this side of xmas.

PompeyPete

Dan-Dan wrote: »

But everyone wasnt ready to exchange , because things like this crop up through most chains , thats why you need to mutually agree above and below at the very least

The fact you have made a massive balls up , is clouding your judgement

It's certainly looking something like that.
But on the positive side, we made a verbal commitment to our buyers that they'd move in before Xmas, and we've achieved that.

Tbh, selling is far more important to us as we currently live in a Conservation Area with several listed buildings.
Management and Estate charges are going sky high, and too many of the properties on our lovely estate are now buy-to-let or owned by an Housing Association. So the sense of community and pride in our environment is zilch.

If we now get asked to exchange and complete before Xmas, then having made one move on 12 December we won't be prepared to move again until at least 6 January, and we'll simply remain camping at our daughter's place.
So, someone else can take a bit of the pain because of a professional oversight!

I'll complete the story as and when.

Tantalus86

PompeyPete wrote: »

It's certainly looking something like that.
But on the positive side, we made a verbal commitment to our buyers that they'd move in before Xmas, and we've achieved that.

If we now get asked to exchange and complete before Xmas, then having made one move on 12 December we won't be prepared to move again until at least 6 January, and we'll simply remain camping at our daughter's place.
So, someone else can take a bit of the pain because of a professional oversight!

I'll complete the story as and when.

And why should the others in the chain have to suffer because of your mistake? I'm sure they would all love to complete before christmas but all of a sudden you're dragging your heels and demanding a new year completion (breaking another verbal committment with your vendor if all wanted to complete on the 12th), not because of a solicitor balls up but because of your own.

I'm sorry that you made a mistake and exchanged before the others (did your solicitor not warn you!?), but please don't take it out on the others that want to move before christmas.

Ivana_Tinkle

Whatever you do, DON'T make a big song and dance to your vendor about how you have to complete by the 12th or you'll be homeless. In fact, if you haven't already, don't tell them you've already exchanged on your sale, as it's a perfect situation for them to gazump you. I'm sure it won't happen - most people are essentially honest - but don't go putting ideas into anyone's head!