What if completion doesn't happen on due day

G_M

GET YOURSELF A BOOK!

Or start using google and find out how buying property works.

You are spending £00s of £000s of pounds and don't know what you're doing.

The mind boggles!

:eek:

ps. 1 minutes google:

http://www.home.co.uk/guides/buying/

https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/money-timeline-when-buying-property-england-wales--n-ireland

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/mortgages/buying-a-home-timeline

davidjcb1

I have been trusting the solicitor I guess in hope they are doing what they get paid for

I sent 2 emails last night, so I expect to get a reply today or Monday, if I don't by Monday afternoon I will call them. All I need to know is when exchange of contract takes place and that the 16th March is on that contract as completion date.

Pixie5740

If you haven't exchanged yet then all bets are off for now. Until you actually exchange, locking in the completion date, nobody can say for certain if you'll complete 16th March. As G_M says, you need to do some reading on buying and selling property.

The second hit after Googling "buying property Northern Ireland"

http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/sm/buying-a-home-step-by-step-guide

fezster

Give your solicitor a call and ask them when contracts are being exchanged. Don't hang about - you have a vested interest in completing by 31st March, but it's doubtful your seller does, and your solicitor almost certainly won't really care either. You have to push these things, and if that means getting on the phone to chase them up, so be it.

It's also worth keeping in touch with the estate agent, who can liaise with the seller, and let you know of any potential issues which could hold things up, earlier on.

TBagpuss

Bear in mind that your solicitor or conveyancer will have lots of othr people also wanting to compltee befor ethe end of the month, due to the stamp duty rules, or to complete then because it is Easter and there is a long bank holiday to get settled in.

The solicitor will do his or her best, but if you haven't yet completed you may do better to bug the agents and get them to chase the seller - unless the seller is also buying and will be affectedby the new rules they are unlikely to care about the specifc date so it is them, rather than your solicitor, you need to be putting the pressure on.

Once you exchange, he completion date is fixed and if the sellers were to fail to complete on time you would be entitled to sue them to be put back in the position you would have been in had the contract been complied with - so you would be entitled to recover any extra stamp duty.

However, if you have not yet exchanged, the sellers are not under any obligation to exchange

kingstreet

Each solicitor asks his client for preferred completion dates. These are discussed between the solicitors and a compromise target date provisionally agreed.

Once both solicitors have everything they need, (have you handed over your deposit and signed your contract?) they will usually ask their client if they are happy to exchange contracts with completion set for the agreed date.

If the parties agree, one solicitor releases their contract to the other for a period of time and the other solicitor comes back and agrees that contracts have been exchanged.

The agreed completion date is then legally binding.

MacMickster

Your solicitor is working for you. If you have questions about the process you should just be picking up the phone and speaking to him/her.

Email is not a great medium for an urgent conversation, nor is an internet forum where those responding don't know whether contracts have been exchanged - because you don't know yourself.

davidjcb1

So
No contracts have been exchanged. My solicitor is pressing for this to happen and I will continue to press this week coming.
I have signed my side agreeing to 16th and the other side can't see it being a problem, but it's not binding until he gets to his solicitor and signs also

I will chase it up as this coming week progresses

I have been gave a request to transfer my deposit funds and provide proof of identity.

kingstreet

davidjcb1 wrote: »

I have been gave a request to transfer my deposit funds and provide proof of identity.

No exchange until after that then.

pathtofreedom

Other things to consider are, you will want to make sure you have at least buildings, if not buildings and contents insurance from the date of exchange. As even though it isn't 100% yours then, if it does burn down, flood or whatever, you are still tied to buying it. So you don't want to be tied to buying a hole in the ground with no way of fixing it.

You can exchange and complete on the same day depending on your situation and what the chain is like. Some people leave a week or more between those depending on different situations.

So you need to understand your exchange date, and completion date so you understand what you're agreeing to, and what insurances and responsibilities you have. If you need a mortgage for example, you need to make sure you're offers not about to run out before then, as you don't want to exchange, then have to reapply for the mortgage which would stop you completing and you'd be liable for different costs and interest.

The solicitor is working for you true enough, but you have to understand what they are doing for you, and all the documents your signing, as you'll be the one out of pocket if something goes a different way to what you're imagining.