Advice needed (house buying - not exchanged as yet!)

amykf91

Hi guys (new thread as I realised my previous thread actually made no sense!)

On 1 November 2016 we accepted an offer on our property, and on 7 November 2016 had our offer accepted on a property we wanted to purchase.

It is now 3 February 2017 and still no movement for a completion date (contracts have been signed but not exchanged). I am informed that our buyers (who are first time buyers) are pulling out today if there is no completion date provided. The people we are buying from are awaiting a redemption figure from Target Services as they used the Help to Buy Scheme when purchasing the property in 2012, and apparently this is the thing that is holding matters up.

I'm not sure if there is anything we can do in order to speed things up? It's all become a little stressful!

Thanks,
A very frustrated and desperate stuck-in-the-middle home owner!

G_M

amykf91 wrote: »

I'm not sure if there is anything we can do in order to speed things up?

Ring up Target Services and give your name as your seller. Answer their security questions (check the morher's maiden name before you ring).

Then ask what the delay is and ask if they can expedite the redemption figure.

tykesi

Why the need for a second thread on the same issue?

OP's original thread from yesterday:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5596572

amykf91

I've mentioned at the top that I re-posted as it made no sense. I can't find how to delete it.

Cakeguts

No you can't do anything. Sometimes the legal part of buying a house takes a lot longer than you would want it to. The last house we bought had just us and the seller. We were paying cash and it took 5 months from offer to completion because something came up. Your buyers are being totally unrealistic about this. If they can't wait until the legal aspect is sorted out then they aren't very keen on buying your house and could come up with another excuse later. I suspect that they are using this as an excuse to pull out.

G_M

amykf91 wrote: »

I've mentioned at the top that I re-posted as it made no sense. I can't find how to delete it.

For future reference, you could either

* edit your orignal post (using the 'edit' button), or

* simply add a new post in the same thread clarifying whatever it was that made no sense (I've not looked as I too hate duplicate threads.....)

Hoploz

Your buyer is being impatient. These things take time. However, if you really think they are going to pull out then your two options are

1) to put your house back on the market
2) to break the chain, continuing with your sale before your purchase. Your buyer might be happy if you agree to exchange now but with a later than usual completion date, for example a month away, in the hope that your purchase might catch up and complete at the same time, but accepting the risk that it might not.

nodtomc

In defence of your buyers, at 12 weeks with no end date in sight in the near future, I completely understand why they're becoming impatient. Yes, "these things take time", but you can't always expect people to put their life on hold and wait potentially months for your situation to resolve itself. How long does one wait before it's too long? That's subjective. They've already waited 3 months, and with no end date in sight how do they know they're not going to be waiting another 3 months? Then at that point, they pull out having been ready to move for 6 months, and start the process all over again.

Everyone has a different opinion of how long is too long. They may be at that point, and there's not much you can do if they genuinely want to pull out. Maybe they're hoping you'll apply some pressure to your vendor to get things moving.