Exchange today: this is bs right?

cloo

Meant to be exchanging today and we have a hold up that wehave to get a signed lease extension form back from our freeholder’s uselesssolicitors. The person who has been dealing is ill and my solicitor is trying to get anundertaking to say it will be sent (which I understand is a sort of bindingagreement) so we can exchange. She's been at it all morning and no luck so far, for all I know they're playing for time and covering up that they don't know what's going on or something.

We are planning to complete on 30 April, so I assumed nobiggie if we exchange on Monday, still got over 5 working days to complete. Theagent is now giving me a line about the top of the chain (our vendors arebuying a probate property) needs to exchange today otherwise they can’tcomplete until August (though in the first conversation this was the end of May…hmmmm) because ‘they have to move everything out of the house to places aroundthe country’. This is surely cr*p to try to hurry things up right? Whatpossible reason could there be for them not just moving the stuff outanyway, as presumably the house is empty.Is there some weird rule about probate that could means they’re only allowed tomove everything this weekend if they have exchanged? I find it a bit suss thiswasn’t mentioned before!

kingstreet

You exchange contracts when everyone in the chain has everything needed in place and a completion date has been agreed between all the parties in the chain.

Until then, an exchange date is a target and will be subject to change.

Vacant possession has to be provided on completion. What people do with their property until then is their decision.

cloo

Meant to be exchanging today and we have a hold up that wehave to get a signed lease extension form back from our freeholder’s uselesssolicitors. The person dealing is ill and my solicitor is trying to get anundertaking to say it will be sent (which I understand is a sort of bindingagreement) so we can exchange.

We are planning to complete on 30 April, so I assumed nobiggie if we exchange on Monday, still got over 5 working days to complete. Theagent is now giving me a line about the top of the chain (our vendors arebuying a probate property) needs to exchange today otherwise they can’tcomplete until August (though in the first conversation this was the end of May…hmmmm) because ‘they have to move everything out of the house to places aroundthe country’. This is surely cr*p to try to hurry things up right? Whatpossible reason could there be for them not just moving the stuff outanyway, as presumably the house is empty.Is there some weird rule about probate that could means they’re only allowed tomove everything this weekend if they have exchanged? I find it a bit suss thiswasn’t mentioned before!
I suspect if we don't exchange today, miraculously the agent will say the top of the chain have agreed they can sort things out

jbainbridge

Sounds like rubbish - they can remove items from the house whenever they want.

eddddy

In similar situations, I have done the following...

Phone the relevant EA (i.e. the one at the top of the chain in your case), on the pretext of personally apologising for the delay, and assuring them I was doing everything possible to get it resolved.

... and miraculously being told a completely different story by that EA - usually that there is no problem at all.

cloo

I don't actually know who's at the top of the chain, but maybe I'll find out. I'm just praying that the next call is from my solicitor, not our agent saying that everyone's blowing their top!

Apparently the buyer is 'on the verge of pulling out', but aren't they always? If the agent still insists on that I can tell him there's no reason to believe we can't complete by the 30th, it's just someone is ill and nothing can be done about that. If the buyer's concern is that completion will be delayed, I'll remind them that these third solicitors will be out of the picture after exchange, and they have been the sole source of delay; it would be ridiculous of the buyer not to at least wait until the beginning of next week. OK, if they somehow don't get the papers over by Thursday, they can walk away, but we just need until Monday if the lease stuff can't be sorted today.

I also just wish that, if they can't give the undertaking, the solicitors would just say so! AFAIK, they haven't said they can't do it today; knowing my solicitor, she's not going to bother us with vague promises (which I am OK with her doing), only if she actually gets something definite from them.

cloo

Our solicitor has spoken to the vendor's solicitor, who, lo and behold! says he's not aware of any pressure to exchange today, so in other words, the top of chain agents are just talking rubbish to try and get the sale through.

Spoken to my agent and he's said 'top of the chain is where most of the pressure is coming from, really'. In other words, our buyer isn't threatening to walk either.

Nothing for it but hope that paperwork arrives with my solicitor on Monday. I've been all upbeat with my agent and reminded him we have plenty of time to complete, and once exchange is over, the lousy leasehold solicitors will be out of the picture, and can't delay anything else!

rosie383

Sounds like good news. Hope it goes smoothly next week!

cloo

Thanks, I'm feeling much more relaxed now... hoping for no more contact today, as that'll mean everyone can wait. We could exchange today if we agreed to risk it without confirmation that all is agreed with the lease extension, but my solicitor advises against as it risks us breaking the contract if anything goes wrong with it, or the freeholder (however unlikely) were to turn around and say they won't grant it to us, so I'll stick by her advice.