1 week between exchange and completion

mm1985

Our jobs are not at risk and we do not mix with any other household or go out unless absolutely necessary. Our children are obviously not at school and we are not part of any childcare bubble so I would say we are doing everything we can to keep risk levels to the absolute minimum. 

I am inclined to go with a slightly longer gap and hopefully exchange today or tomorrow as this gives us time to put our affairs in order and prepare our children a little. At the moment the uncertainty is too much to deal with on top of everything else

GDB2222

pinkteapot said:

GDB2222 said:

If one of the people in the chain loses their job, their mortgage application is cancelled. That strikes me as a bigger issue than having to isolate. 

Also possible. Again, like the potential self-isolation, my advice to OP would be to not worry about everyone else in the chain and just think about their position. If there is a chance of their job going in the next week and they are getting a mortgage that relies on the job then yes, consider refusing a week between exchange and completion. Again, it's all about balancing risk. Even in normal times someone could lose their job unexpectedly and has to take a view on how likely that is between exchange and completion. Right now, likelihood of imminent job loss varies massively between different people depending on the job they do. 

Actually, you can be affected by others in the chain. For example, if your buyer's buyer defaults, your buyer won't be able to complete. So, you'll be able to keep their deposit. But, also, you'll lose your deposit, as you won't be able to complete on your purchase, either. If you are trading up, you'll lose more than you gain.

But, that's just the beginning of it. Your seller will lose their deposit, too, which is more than your deposit, and they can look to you to compensate them for the difference. So, you're liable for much more than the deposit you've put down on your purchase.

All this gets passed up and down the chain, and it lands on the people who have just lost their job, who of course have no money to pay it. So, eventually it gets distributed amongst the other people in the chain who do have a bit of money. 

I have no idea how this works out so well in normal times. I don't keep hearing of tremendous problems. However, at the moment, with so much uncertainty about jobs, there seem to be good grounds for heightened precautions. Simultaneous exchange and completion is inconvenient, but it's a sensible precaution to take.

macman

To state the obvious, the smaller the gap between exchange and completion, the lower the risk. If you are not in a situation where you have to move in/out on the day of completion, then same-day exchange and completion is by far the best option., which is why many conveyancers will strongly recommend it.  If that is not possible, then minimise it. My wife has a family property due to complete a sale tomorrow, exchange was done 11 days ago. We negotiated it down from 21 days and feel that 12 days was an acceptable compromise.

The traditional 4 weeks seems to have gone out the window now.