How long is too long to wait for vendor to find a house?

wateva

Hi,

Need some advice although I understand the response will vary but just looking to seek opinions. We made an offer mid April for full asking price. We were assured vendor is actively looking for properties but 12 weeks on and she still has not found anywhere. We have suggested renting which was refused, offered 1k extra to allow us to exchange and complete before our mortgage expires in August but vendor doesn't want to place herself in a vulnerable position by doing so. I must add she is in her 60's.
She is looking in another borough that is about 45mins-1hour away and is struggling to find properties. EA assures me she is looking day and night and has family looking out too.

Question is how long would you wait it out? Bear in mind I am pregnant and due in two weeks and our current house is literally a couple of weeks away from exchange and completion and we don't want to lose our buyer's either

jackomdj

I would start looking elsewhere. If you find somewhere you can withdraw your offer, if you don't you may find that it still hasn't progressed.

We were In a similar position to you, the house two doors away from our original offer came down in price and we decided to go with that one. Surprisingly as soon as we withdrew our offer they said they had found somewhere. We stayed with the new house (nicer house, better position in road, plus they were emigrating so less chance if it going wrong) five years later and the people who we almost bought from are still there!

Hoploz

It's a tricky one.
If you find an alternative you could find yourself in the same position again. Even if a seller has found, there can still be hiccups eg their seller withdraws, and they have to start looking for another ...

Just keep your eyes peeled and meanwhile come up with a plan ASAP re your sale. Your baby could come any day and tbh you don't want to be moving for a good few weeks do you?

If you genuinely want to keep ŷour buyer you may need to move into rented for a 6 month term. However I would add that your buyer has taken a risk here. They should not have incurred any costs before the chain was complete.