Messaging house vendor

Windofchange

We're about two months into buying a house, and except for a couple of reasonably quick enquiries outstanding on our side, will be ready to proceed with exchanging contracts in the next couple of weeks according to our solicitor. I've mailed the estate agent twice for an update on the chain (us, our seller, her seller and a new build at the top), but she hasn't got back to me. Maybe she is in lock down, but there is always that niggling doubt the she's trying to stall / hide something. The house we are buying and the house that our vendor is buying are through the same estate agency, so they must have some idea of what is going on? 

What is the etiquette around putting a little note through our sellers door with an e-mail address or phone number for us, and a bit of a spiel of we are still 100% committed to buying your house regardless of the current Corona virus stuff? We are buying locally, so can walk there in 20 mins tonight, but not sure if that is a sensible thing to do? I am finding all the formalities through solicitors a bit impersonal, and we don't seem to be getting any answers anyway when we ask. 

need_an_answer

i'm not a huge fan of passing any details to the vendor in respect of contact.

Personally I  would say if you've anything that needs confirming do that via the estate agents.

It occasionally happens that vendors share emails/contact numbers when everything is going smoothly then as things sometimes get sticky it all starts to fall apart and you can get a vendor or indeed a purchaser recontacting eachother in a situation you would rather have wished that you stayed well clear of!

I have always found the estate agent to be good middle ground between vendor and buyer and they don't give personal details out.

Windofchange

Ok, probably need to send the estate agent a third mail in as many weeks then!? 

SuperHan

Have you tried calling the estate agent? When purchasing our property, we were on the phone to the EA pretty much every other day - I don't think we emailed them once.

need_an_answer

Windofchange said:

Ok, probably need to send the estate agent a third mail in as many weeks then!? 

I would be inclined to pick up the phone and call the agent.
If its anything like the agents around me at the moment many are not doing viewings and whilst on perhaps a reduced staff they are motivated to get things already in the pipeline progressing simply because if the sale falls thorough because of uncertain times they wont get paid.

At least if you call you will be able to hopefully speak to someone rather than sending an email which may not be being viewed.

KiwiCoop

If I wasn't getting any answers I'd have no issue rapping their door.  Even if you get hold of the agent how do you know they're not just telling you what you want to hear?  If you're polite, no reasonable person should have an issue with it.  Just stand six feet back...

Windofchange

It's a fair point - I'll try getting her on the phone next week. I'm not actually too wound up about the whole COVID stuff, it's more just that I want an update anyway as we are getting toward the point of no return! 

pinkteapot

EAs are almost universally hopeless with emails - they never reply. Phone them.

Windofchange

pinkteapot said:

EAs are almost universally hopeless with emails - they never reply. Phone them.

Consider my lesson learned. She certainly wasn't hopeless when setting up our viewings and responding to our two offers <sigh>.

AdrianC

Windofchange said:

We're about two months into buying a house, and except for a couple of reasonably quick enquiries outstanding on our side, will be ready to proceed with exchanging contracts in the next couple of weeks according to our solicitor.

That's quick.

I've mailed the estate agent twice for an update on the chain (us, our seller, her seller and a new build at the top), but she hasn't got back to me.

Let the solicitors deal with it.

The house we are buying and the house that our vendor is buying are through the same estate agency, so they must have some idea of what is going on?

So...
You -> (EA) -> A -> (EA) -> B -> (Diff EA) -> New Build?

Bet I know where the delay is... Do you have any idea how near completion that new build is?

What is the etiquette around putting a little note through our sellers door with an e-mail address or phone number for us, and a bit of a spiel of we are still 100% committed to buying your house regardless of the current Corona virus stuff?

Let the solicitors deal with it.

I am finding all the formalities through solicitors a bit impersonal

Good! It should be impersonal.

Thrugelmir

New build at the top will be dictating events. When's the expected completion date? A question for the EA to find out the answer to.