The NEW waiting to exchange thread...

ThriftyGinger

I am going to see my conveyancer tomorrow to sign some paperwork so we should get there soon! I hope. My help to buy ISA is still open and I forgot to mention it on the phone to him the other day... not the best, I know. I suspect we'll be ready after Christmas at this rate.

Drawingaline

DairyQueen said:

At last! Exchanged today.

Buyer offered third week of July. We are a chain of two as he has nowhere to sell and we have a second property in which we can live until we complete on our new home.

Huge problem manifested third week of September. We were due to exchange on the sale and had offered on a property the same week. Buyer's mortgage offer collapsed. Our EA's MB stepped-in and finally, FINALLY 3 months later we have pulled it off. It has taken us the best part of this year to prepare the property for sale (ready in March - just as lockdown hit), market it (under offer 3 weeks after listing in late June) and transact the sale. In 40 years of property ownership this has been the longest drag from offer to exchange. Incredible given such a small chain but our solicitor advises that this is not unusual this year.

Now hoping to exchange on our new home in January and complete sometime in early Feb.

The process has never been easy but it seems to be more stressful now than in prior decades. One thing we have noticed is that buyers are far more fickle and pull-out of deals even up to the day of exchange.

We also had a complete chain end of July. All ready to go for beginning of Nov when our buyer pulled out. New buyer found in 48hrs, they have a mortgage offer all but one sear h is back and they still haven't raised enquiries! Our mortgage offer expires at the end of Jan with no hope of extending it, and all removal companies needing three weeks advance notice. Honestly can't see it happening now. So fed up of it all. 

Slithery

Drawingaline said:
they have a mortgage offer all but one sear h is back and they still haven't raised enquiries!

Why would you raise enquiries before all of the searches were back?

mm1985

DairyQueen said:

At last! Exchanged today.

Buyer offered third week of July. We are a chain of two as he has nowhere to sell and we have a second property in which we can live until we complete on our new home.

Huge problem manifested third week of September. We were due to exchange on the sale and had offered on a property the same week. Buyer's mortgage offer collapsed. Our EA's MB stepped-in and finally, FINALLY 3 months later we have pulled it off. It has taken us the best part of this year to prepare the property for sale (ready in March - just as lockdown hit), market it (under offer 3 weeks after listing in late June) and transact the sale. In 40 years of property ownership this has been the longest drag from offer to exchange. Incredible given such a small chain but our solicitor advises that this is not unusual this year.

Now hoping to exchange on our new home in January and complete sometime in early Feb.

The process has never been easy but it seems to be more stressful now than in prior decades. One thing we have noticed is that buyers are far more fickle and pull-out of deals even up to the day of exchange.

Can’t wait to get to the point of exchange. Should have happened before Christmas but our buyers one search outstanding (was returned today) and now our solicitor is not doing any exchanges until the new year due to the number of completions they have to do before Christmas.

we had our house on the market at the beginning of the year too, took it off the market due to lockdown in uncertainty...went back on in august, sold in sept and really hoping to exchange and complete in January now that paperwork is all complete. Fingers crossed we don’t enter another lockdown 

Navigaor31

Slithery said:

Drawingaline said:
they have a mortgage offer all but one sear h is back and they still haven't raised enquiries!

Why would you raise enquiries before all of the searches were back?

To get ahead of the game I guess? 
Our solicitor has raised a bunch of enquiries and had them answered by the sellers solicitor already. 

Our final search is due back Friday, aslong as there is nothing off the back of that specific search, we are pretty much set up for completion.

FlashBuy

ThriftyGinger said:

I am going to see my conveyancer tomorrow to sign some paperwork so we should get there soon! I hope. My help to buy ISA is still open and I forgot to mention it on the phone to him the other day... not the best, I know. I suspect we'll be ready after Christmas at this rate.

It took me 2 weeks to sort out my HTB ISA, but I was also in s rush to complete this month. I started closing first thing after last topup on 2 December.

oniongirl

fleur8 said:

I’m still waiting to exchange. It won’t be before Christmas clearly. The co-freeholder is delaying my purchase for whatever reason. It should put me off but I won’t let her do that to me. I can only imagine it’s because she doesn’t like change or she’s jealous that our flat is more than twice the size of hers. I have every right to purchase the flat and live there and I will. 

If it makes you feel better, we're still waiting too! When I see your name pop up I think "Oh good, at least fleur8 is also still waiting". We're now receiving every-other-day updates from our sellers' estate agent telling us that he's spoken to these people and those people and, basically, that nothing has changed and we're still waiting for some document or other further up the chain, but don't worry because he's told everyone about our buyer not being able to extend their mortgage offer past the 21st Jan.

DoN'T WoRrY eVeRyOnE.

stuartwatford

Still waiting but edging closer, chain of 7 and final queries on one property apparently being looked at today. EAs trying to get proposed completion date in early January with exchange pre-xmas. It will take a miracle for an exchange pre-xmas so I'm not holding out much hope. Moments of calm and then moments of frustration and impatience. 

mm1985

I’ve just been asked by sellers EA to email solicitors to get a pre exchange confirmation to completing on 14th Jan...I feel like my solicitor will either not answer or respond with something like “parties are not yet ready to exchange” (buyers solicitor was only in receipt of local authority searches yesterday) so wondering is I should just wait until Monday when all completions will have taken place and my solicitor will hopefully have a little more time on her hands 

joe90mitch

If we're bottom of our chain and we know that our sellers have been asked for authorisation to exchange by their solicitor, does that mean our solicitor has started the exchange process? Or is it possible that their solicitor just knows the chain above them is ready so wants authorisation?

We told our solicitor at the start of the week that we were happy to exchange any time between then and completion (this Friday). Then we heard the above from our sellers today. I've tried emailing and ringing our solicitor but can't get through. I guess we need to start the exchange, but no idea if she's started it/will be doing it today. Would it be enough that on Monday and Tuesday we confirmed we're happy to exchange or do they chase it on the day?

It's like chipping away at an iceberg, isn't it...