The NEW waiting to exchange thread...

happy_2008

05/09/20 - Offer accepted on our House Open Day

15/09/20 - Offer made on new property

30/11/20 - Exchange of Contracts on small chain

04/12/20 - Completion of properties

Bad_Accountant

AIP Sept 2019 (Halifax)
... about 20-odd viewings including complete horrors :rotfl:
18/10/2019 Offer accepted on property, £5k below asking price
26/10/2019 Mortgage application via broker done (changed to Barclays for best rate)
04/11/2019 Underwriters approve
05/11/2019 EA confirms that our vendors have found a chain-free property to move into - chain of three complete :shocked:
06/11/2019 valuation
08/11/2019 mortgage approved, solicitor instructed
Good grief - so after all this ...[saga of seller's conveyancers being appallingly slow. Absolute pile of clowns. etc. who made a simple transaction take FAR longer than necessary. Never use Muve conveyancers!]

25/03/2020 pulled out of sale due to my OH's job being on the rocks with COVID. Much wailing and gnashing of teeth
[Lockdown, working from home, you know the drill]Early September got 15% deposit together
Re-offered on former house as it was still on market, offer accepted, solicitor instructed!
Sellers say they're moving in with family once they sell so we are buying CHAIN FREE
26/10/2020 mortgage approved .... again ... a year after we first got it approved!

30/10/2020 - engaged surveyor for homebuyer's report for a truly obscene price ... but they were the only decent ones without a six-week wait. If something's badly wrong I want to know ASAP!

12/11/2020 - Survey booked for 20/11/2020. As long as that's all OK solicitor says we should be able to exchange on the 4th and complete on the 11th December. Might own a house this time next month.
17/11/2020 - searches and queries back. No obvious problems!
20/11/2020 - Homebuyer's report survey done,
23/11/2020 - draft contract and deeds through from solicitor
24/11/2020 - Homebuyer's report back, no showstopping issues! Hooray!

28/11/2020 - returned all signed documents. Sellers conveyancers are now saying they don't want to exchange on a Friday because they're usually very busy Fridays and it might not go through ... eyeroll
30/11/2020 - life savings safely transferred to solicitor. Planning to exchange this week - as early as tomorrow if the two conveyancers respond quickly. Quite positive now.

1/12/2020 - WE HAVE EXCHANGED!!

It took 13 months from offer to exchange (with a little pandemic in the middle)

Just got to avoid death or severe injury, job loss, bankruptcy or (further...) global economic collapse before Friday 11th

It still hasn't sunk in tbh! Thanks to everyone who shares their timelines/experience, it's been a big help.

badger09

happy_2008 said:

05/09/20 - Offer accepted on our House Open Day

15/09/20 - Offer made on new property

30/11/20 - Exchange of Contracts on small chain

04/12/20 - Completion of properties

Wow, no wonder you are happy_2008

@Bad_Accountant fantastic news. Really please for you. Hope move goes well.

happy_2008

badger09 said:

happy_2008 said:

05/09/20 - Offer accepted on our House Open Day

15/09/20 - Offer made on new property

30/11/20 - Exchange of Contracts on small chain

04/12/20 - Completion of properties

Wow, no wonder you are happy_2008

@Bad_Accountant fantastic news. Really please for you. Hope move goes well.

I think we are lucky that our buyers were FTB and my seller was moving in with his daughter so no chain either. Either way i'm glad its all over with, i proposed the exchange/completion more than a week ago but managed to get the exchange done yesterday

Caramac

We have finally exchanged on our sale six weeks after original proposed completion date. I still won’t believe it until we complete.

Drawingaline

Call from EA today. Buyers mortgage is still going through, no physical valuation happening though, desktop has been done apparently. Last search not due back until 21st Dec which is hugely annoying. I think we will have to look at extending our mortgage offer can't see enquiries being answered in the three weeks we will have once Xmas is factored in. Was really hoping to avoid that, they made such a fuss about my income last time.

Lorenzo94

I am expecting to exchange by this Thursday as I have completion on Friday. I have sent the signed papers today with Royal Mail special next day delivery guaranteed by 1 pm, but it looks like that the parcel is stuck at the post office? What the hell? I really hope that they get the papers by Thursday!
Anyone is having issues with Royal Mail delaying their letters?

stuartwatford

After feeling like progress was being made and discussing potential completion dates, everything has slowed right down, still no confirmation of two outstanding items being resolved further up the chain. After reaching out to the EAs end of last week and this week, there is no update but just that they have simply mentioned they have left VMs and chasing up the chain. 

Mrsemmawright2010

stuartwatford said:

After feeling like progress was being made and discussing potential completion dates, everything has slowed right down, still no confirmation of two outstanding items being resolved further up the chain. After reaching out to the EAs end of last week and this week, there is no update but just that they have simply mentioned they have left VMs and chasing up the chain. 

I feel your pain.  We were supposed to exchange on Monday and discovered that there are two outstanding issues that no one had told me about....EA says he has left voicemails, solicitor just isn't even bothering to respond to my email as too busy and meanwhile i've lost me removal deposit!!
And i still don't know when i'm exchanging, let alone completing! Agghhh!

gab3x

I am hoping we can exchange today. Literally all the enquiries are sorted. All parties in our small chain (3 parties) have signed contracts and have financing in place. Gave instruction to solicitor yesterday to go ahead.

Can this now drag out?

We will complete in 5 weeks' time as our sellers couldn't move to their family home due to tier difference.