The NEW waiting to exchange thread...

HomeownerDreamer

Simultaneous exchange and completion on Friday! Mortgage funds are due to arrive tomorrow in anticipation. FTB terrified of something going wrong at the last minute. Anyone any idea how it works on the day and how quickly it can be done?

PERMOTIO

HomeownerDreamer said:

Simultaneous exchange and completion on Friday! Mortgage funds are due to arrive tomorrow in anticipation. FTB terrified of something going wrong at the last minute. Anyone any idea how it works on the day and how quickly it can be done?

I was in your shoes this time last week! I received an email at 10 am saying we had exchanged, and an hour later a call to say that the keys were ready to be picked up. Didn't have to do a lot - solicitors handled everything.

HomeownerDreamer

PERMOTIO said:

HomeownerDreamer said:

Simultaneous exchange and completion on Friday! Mortgage funds are due to arrive tomorrow in anticipation. FTB terrified of something going wrong at the last minute. Anyone any idea how it works on the day and how quickly it can be done?

I was in your shoes this time last week! I received an email at 10 am saying we had exchanged, and an hour later a call to say that the keys were ready to be picked up. Didn't have to do a lot - solicitors handled everything.

Thank you, that's reassuring, hope mine goes that smoothly too. Congrats on your new home!

Tabitharocks

Hello!
FTB here! So my timeline is as follows:-

• Offer accepted on property- 3rd July
• Solicitors instructed- 3rd July
• Full Mortgage approved- 19th August

My (online) solicitors sent a request for draft contracts on the 24th August and still haven't received them as of today.  Unfortunately, my solicitors are VERY difficult to get hold of and eventually they confirmed last week that they still haven't received draft contracts and that I should chase! Ive phoned the EA who spoke to the solicitor who has said they are waiting for a change of name deed from LR before sending drafts.  Basically, the owners of the property have divorced and it should be in a sole name.  
How long should we be waiting for draft contracts?  Im getting a bit angsty now as I am having to chase a lot and am worried that this whole process is taking so long.  Basically, I have the deposit, I have the mortgage and I'm chain free! Also... the property is vacant and has been for months and was sold to me as chain free... so I'm a little panicked about the delay...
Another thing.... when I put the offer in I was told it has a very short lease... (I've bought it as a share of the freehold).  Ive checked the LR and the lease is under 34 years! I have been promised that the current owner will be renewing it for up to 999 years on sale.  When should I get confirmation of this? 
Am I being too panicky?  How long should this whole process take?  Any reassuring words would be grateful.  

DeanWozz

Now been 15 weeks since my offer was accepted on a “chain free” bungalow. We initially looked around the property and we were told that they had already had an offer they would accept but we’re willing to wait for us and see if we were to make one (we were first time buyers and more attractive for them). So we made an offer on the same day and it got accepted so it was all happy days. 7 weeks later and I’d not heard much from the sellers side of things but I was ready to complete (had my mortgage offer in place, Had the deposit etc). So I called my solicitors and they called the sellers who informed them that they had not started the searches on the flat they were purchasing yet! Nightmare! What they’d been doing all that time I’ll never know. When we originally looked around the property we were told that when we were complete we could move in as the sellers had somewhere to go. This turned out to be untrue in the end as they decided that they wanted to tie in their purchase of the flat and that it was leasehold and owned by a management company. We were also told there was a long list of enquiries that needed to be looked at before anything could get going. Fast forward until now and I still haven’t been told anything substantial by either my solicitor or estate agent even though I’m calling 3 times a week. Has anyone had anything similar before regarding leasehold properties and the enquiries that need to be made before you can buy? I’ve been informed that the solicitors dealing with the flat are the ones holding everything up. So any advice on getting them to get a hurry on? 

Sorry for the long post guys.
cheers

uppercaseesteban

I just need to blow off some steam here. If anyone has advice I would appreciate it. Agreed a date with vendors of the 18th September for completion. We signed the contracts last Wednesday (02/09), we asked to be kept up to date when the vendors had also signed. Emailed Friday with closing ISA documents asked if they had signed and how do we send solicitors the deposit money? no reply. Emailed solicitor Monday for an update, no reply. Phoned Tuesday and solicitor was in a meeting, Emailed and phoned today with no reply. A week has now passed, called the estate agent today who has informed me the vendors solicitors have not received the signed contracts from our solicitor. Called solicitors and they are not picking up or replying to my email asking why a week has gone past and the vendors solicitors still don't have our signed contract in hand to sign. Maddening. 

Tiglet2

uppercaseesteban said:

I just need to blow off some steam here. If anyone has advice I would appreciate it. Agreed a date with vendors of the 18th September for completion. We signed the contracts last Wednesday (02/09), we asked to be kept up to date when the vendors had also signed. Emailed Friday with closing ISA documents asked if they had signed and how do we send solicitors the deposit money? no reply. Emailed solicitor Monday for an update, no reply. Phoned Tuesday and solicitor was in a meeting, Emailed and phoned today with no reply. A week has now passed, called the estate agent today who has informed me the vendors solicitors have not received the signed contracts from our solicitor. Called solicitors and they are not picking up or replying to my email asking why a week has gone past and the vendors solicitors still don't have our signed contract in hand to sign. Maddening. 

There are two contracts - mirror images - one you sign and one the vendor signs. When you “exchange”, the solicitors read out the contents of the signed contracts on the telephone to check that all the details are the same. Then both solicitors post each other their copy of the signed contract (hence the expression “exchange of contracts”)

Your solicitor won’t know when the vendor signs their contract, however it is usual that the selling solicitor has the signed contract back from the seller much earlier in the transaction than the buyer, so it is possible that the vendor’s solicitor already holds a signed contract but both solicitors are not ready to exchange them yet.

Your deposit is only needed in time for exchange and your solicitor will let you know when it is time to send it. If they are not replying then they are not quite ready to do the exchange. You will also have to give your authority to exchange so they do have to contact you when everyone is ready to proceed. 

zv13424

Feel like I have a similar story here.. was told last week we would exchange this week.. still waiting on solicitor to ask for deposits. Repeatedly emailed and no reply. 

All feels very slow and uncommunicative at this point!

Vendors getting impatient, we’re getting impatient because we need to give notice to our Rental landlord. 

(I’m also due to change jobs in 6 weeks.. so could do without the additional mortgage worries if we don’t complete before then)

bearclaws

Joining in on the solicitor rant. My mortgage offer is ready to be issued but my solicitors need to apply to my lender’s panel, they assured me this would be happening 2 weeks ago and I found out this week that it hasn’t happened. Called and emailed
over and over, finally told earlier this week by the secretary that the application to the panel has gone in but heard nothing since. Haven’t heard back from searches or enquires that were sent off over 3 weeks ago. In the middle of renegotiating the final offer price due to survey and now my mortgage broker tells me she’s going on annual leave next week. Feel like I’m getting no contact from anyone despite me chasing. This process is maddening! I hate that it’s all out of our hands! 

uppercaseesteban

Tiglet2 said:

uppercaseesteban said:

I just need to blow off some steam here. If anyone has advice I would appreciate it. Agreed a date with vendors of the 18th September for completion. We signed the contracts last Wednesday (02/09), we asked to be kept up to date when the vendors had also signed. Emailed Friday with closing ISA documents asked if they had signed and how do we send solicitors the deposit money? no reply. Emailed solicitor Monday for an update, no reply. Phoned Tuesday and solicitor was in a meeting, Emailed and phoned today with no reply. A week has now passed, called the estate agent today who has informed me the vendors solicitors have not received the signed contracts from our solicitor. Called solicitors and they are not picking up or replying to my email asking why a week has gone past and the vendors solicitors still don't have our signed contract in hand to sign. Maddening. 

There are two contracts - mirror images - one you sign and one the vendor signs. When you “exchange”, the solicitors read out the contents of the signed contracts on the telephone to check that all the details are the same. Then both solicitors post each other their copy of the signed contract (hence the expression “exchange of contracts”)

Your solicitor won’t know when the vendor signs their contract, however it is usual that the selling solicitor has the signed contract back from the seller much earlier in the transaction than the buyer, so it is possible that the vendor’s solicitor already holds a signed contract but both solicitors are not ready to exchange them yet.

Your deposit is only needed in time for exchange and your solicitor will let you know when it is time to send it. If they are not replying then they are not quite ready to do the exchange. You will also have to give your authority to exchange so they do have to contact you when everyone is ready to proceed. 

Thanks for this, you are explaining stuff to me that I thought I knew, the whole process is rather grey so I appreciate you setting me straight. Finally got back in touch with our solicitors. They are confident we are still on track for completion next week. No reason really given for the lack of communication with us, no reason given for the delay in communicating with the vendors solicitors or providing them with our copy of the signed contract just a hands up 'yeah you are right it should have been sent already but we are really busy focusing on completions due to happen tomorrow'. Our expectations should have been set when we signed not after waiting for 8 days to find out how snowed under they are.