The NEW waiting to exchange thread...

Pineapple2

I am new to the forum and also very new to all of this as we are buying our first home which is why I joined as feeling so stressed with it all. 

I know in the end this will be worth it but finding our solicitor very difficult to deal with. I am also having the estate agent contact me for updates as our solicitor doesn’t respond.

Really hoping we can complete this month as the seller is keen to know when we will want to complete but until the solicitor gets back to us who knows?! Our solicitor pre-warned us we could have delays because of the stamp duty deadline but it’s a little frustrating.

Hope someone gets some good news this week and not feel like another week has gone by with no movement 

esubbs

Our solicitor and estate agent have been chasing again today. Buyers solicitors still not responding, buyers estate agent has said there are enquiries outstanding on both our buyers sale our buyer's buyer's sale. Our buyer's solicitor is still refusing to respond to ours, we accepted the offer on the basis that the rest of the chain was at point of exchange and last update we had (two weeks ago) was that all searches, enquiries etc were satisfied and they were just waiting for a management pack at the bottom of the chain. So this constant lack of information followed by misinformation is driving me potty! 
Estate agent is now chasing the buyer to clarify what enquiries are outstanding andwhat their expected timescale is but I'm not holding out much hope for a clear answer. 

TheScone

Got our searches report today so that’s all bottomed off - also got responses for our enquiries, but I’m not sure if our sol has gone back with a further request for an indemnity policy from one of their replies. It’s because there is an alleyway that allows access the back of the house but it isn’t part of the land, I’m really not fussed about getting a policy for it because it only leads alongside the house and behind next door on the other side, so it doesn’t get used by the public as there is nothing back there - yes it leads to a side gate to the back garden but if for some random reason this got blocked off it wouldn’t really matter - I’m not sure how much we’ll be using it anyway, we can just access the garden through the house. Not sure how they can get an indemnity policy for it, but I’m just going along with it. 

We look to be ready to exchange in the next week or so if that enquiry gets sorted, but if we want to put in our notice at our rental it needs to be this Friday… I know it’s a big no-no on here but I’m seriously considering just putting the notice in anyway. We have no chain either side, we are FTB buying a vacant house as the seller has moved in with a partner. They’ve also had all new carpets, internal doors, painted and got new tiling and an oven in the kitchen so I can’t see a situation where they will pull out - they have obviously put some money into a bit of renovation to sell and the house is empty of furniture etc. 

If the worst did happen, we could move in with family and put our furniture in storage, lick our wounds, save some more money and start again. There isn’t a situation where we would become homeless so I suppose it’s just weighing the risk of having to move in with family to start again against the likelihood of that happening… 

birdmadgirl8

TheScone said:

A new week begins!

We're supposed to be working towards exchanging this week, but I'm not sure how doable that is. My sol apparently had the searches back early last week when I chased, but I haven't seen anything about them myself yet so hoping that won't hold anything up (will we need to read and sign anything for these?), and then we just have like 4 enquiries with the sellers solicitors which should be simple answers. I called my solicitors this morning to get an update and see if exchanging this week is doable, but they just said they would take a look at my file and call me back.

Really want to try and get it done this week so we can put our notice in - we have until Friday. Otherwise we will have to pay an extra months rent for November when I'm very doubtful we will still be here! My solicitor said a few weeks ago that exchanging before the 8th would be "very doable and easy" but with the above I'm not so sure?

Solicitors will draw your attention to anything they think could cause you problems from searches, so sometimes they'll ask you to take a position in it. You shouldn't need to sign them though. If you haven't had the contract pack, you will need to sign that. Hopefully they've sent it to you already (my previous solicitor did that well in advance). I know it's taken some of us ages to get search enquiries dealt with, but you never know your luck. 

birdmadgirl8

Hebblethwaite said:

Thank you for this. I haven't actually had a copy of the draft contract (now nearing five months since my offer was accepted) - I think my solicitor was waiting for the grant of probate. My survey definitely answers a lot of the questions, but things like types of lock (which I'll need to know to set up joint buildings/contents insurance) are still a mystery! Maybe if I just go for a pure buildings insurance policy, I will need less information? It will be more expensive to have two separate policies though.

Yes, those were questions I answered for my buyer - such technical lock questions! My agent just sent the questions over and I answered. If it helps, I took out a Sainsburys Bank policy and the questions were much more basic.

birdmadgirl8

Newdrake88 said:

I’m losing the will… my vendors solicitor still hasn’t sent over the replies to enquiries 😩 my buyer was hoping for this Friday (8th) completion but this is looking unlikely

My vendor has said he has answered all enquiries so the solicitor is literally just sitting on them and they are really not happy

So frustrating but what can I do 😞

This was situation with our previous sellers' solicitor too. All you can do is make sure agents are on it. Feeling your pain.

birdmadgirl8

Moneybear

And secondly
"Please note that the Flood Search reveals that a moderate to high risk of surface water (pluvial) flooding has

been identified in the area where the property is located."  I have no idea what this means in reality. I assume they will have to tell the lender so they might not want to lend. The vendor has said they aren't aware of any flooding. Home insurance seems to be a reasonable cost for B+C so I feel dumb not understanding the impact. 

@Moneybear I think you've had advice on rail issues, so I'll tackle standing water. We had this raised and SW often comes up in searches. We checked it out and there's no issue in the area, so told our solicitor it's not a concern. That was the end of it. As I understand it, it's rare for lenders to be concerned about standing water, so I wouldn't worry ( not that I'm an expert).

birdmadgirl8

@MrsBrush With you on that! It's so hard to secure dates, I'd be trying to make them work. Also, can't help but have sympathy with anyone struggling with slow conveyancers. We chose carefully, but had no control over solicitor leaving and decline in service - we were committed by then. It does sound really stressful for you though.

birdmadgirl8

KittleSkittle said:

Can I have a quiet scream, please?

Thought everything was now finally set for a straightforward exchange this week, and completion on Friday. Funds were transferred Friday just gone (cash purchase) using the details provided by the conveyancer. Solicitor now saying the funds are there, but they have ended up in an unallocated account (not sure whose mistake this is?) and can we provide screenshots of the transaction. Which we can’t, because the transfer wasn’t done online but in person at the bank?

I knew it was too early to start feeling positive and looking forward to the future!!

Argh! You can scream loudly if you like. That sounds really annoying. I'm sure they'll work out out, but you don't need the stress.

birdmadgirl8

TheScone said:

Got our searches report today so that’s all bottomed off - also got responses for our enquiries, but I’m not sure if our sol has gone back with a further request for an indemnity policy from one of their replies. It’s because there is an alleyway that allows access the back of the house but it isn’t part of the land, I’m really not fussed about getting a policy for it because it only leads alongside the house and behind next door on the other side, so it doesn’t get used by the public as there is nothing back there - yes it leads to a side gate to the back garden but if for some random reason this got blocked off it wouldn’t really matter - I’m not sure how much we’ll be using it anyway, we can just access the garden through the house. Not sure how they can get an indemnity policy for it, but I’m just going along with it. 

We look to be ready to exchange in the next week or so if that enquiry gets sorted, but if we want to put in our notice at our rental it needs to be this Friday… I know it’s a big no-no on here but I’m seriously considering just putting the notice in anyway. We have no chain either side, we are FTB buying a vacant house as the seller has moved in with a partner. They’ve also had all new carpets, internal doors, painted and got new tiling and an oven in the kitchen so I can’t see a situation where they will pull out - they have obviously put some money into a bit of renovation to sell and the house is empty of furniture etc. 

If the worst did happen, we could move in with family and put our furniture in storage, lick our wounds, save some more money and start again. There isn’t a situation where we would become homeless so I suppose it’s just weighing the risk of having to move in with family to start again against the likelihood of that happening… 

Sounds like it's worth the risk, as you've got a back up plan. As for the indemnity. If it's not an issue for reselling in future, or with lenders, could you say you're not bothered and ask sol to leave it? That might speed things up a bit.