Timescales for selling & buying...

HopeAndDriftWood

Last Tuesday, we accepted an offer on our flat - and we had an offer accepted on Wednesday. The house we are buying was near to exchange a few weeks ago, so all their paperwork should be ready to go. We sent all our paperwork last Friday, all the TA forms, titles, etc; and our mortgage offer came through yesterday.

So far, our solicitor hasn't started anything. We spoke to her on Monday and she said she hoped to get started "soon", and we've talked to her assistant this morning who has said the file hasn't been started yet but they don't need anything else from us.

Our buyer made their offer on the basis that they could be in within 8 weeks. Our seller has already vacated their house, and there's no onward chain. 

I'm due in December, and the house does need some work, so we're keen to be in ASAP... 

Should I be chasing more? Should we be able to get a timescale for everything?

(I should say our flat was purchased by my husband in 2010, so it's been a while, and I've never bought before)

babyblade41

Usual time scales are roughly 12-14 weeks depending on many things so take that as an average, for leaseholds maybe longer 

ele_91

It’s been 1 week. FYI we wanted a quick process when we accepted an offer on our house last October from a FTB and had an offer accepted on a chain free house, we’re hoping to complete this month! I honestly don’t think you can expect any timescale as there is so much that can go wrong or cause a delay. 

A leasehold will take longer. Have you applied for a mortgage yet? Filled out the paperwork for the sale? Booked a survey?

HopeAndDriftWood

babyblade41 said:

Usual time scales are roughly 12-14 weeks depending on many things so take that as an average, for leaseholds maybe longer 

Our buyer won't wait that long - they need to be in in 8 weeks. The solicitors advised that would be fine, but I can't see any movement... 

ele_91 said:

It’s been 1 week. FYI we wanted a quick process when we accepted an offer on our house last October from a FTB and had an offer accepted on a chain free house, we’re hoping to complete this month! I honestly don’t think you can expect any timescale as there is so much that can go wrong or cause a delay. 

A leasehold will take longer. Have you applied for a mortgage yet? Filled out the paperwork for the sale? Booked a survey?

Yeah, sorry, I should have been clearer above. We have our mortgage offer (the actual offer, not the AIP), and we gave all our paperwork for the sale including the lease details, accounts, building insurances etc and the fixtures and fittings forms etc to the solicitors last Friday. 

The house has a survey from the previous buyer that we've been offered via the seller's estate agent, so we should get that when the solicitors request paperwork. We might also get our own, but we are going to read that one first. 

I do absolutely appreciate that it's only been a week, but everyone in the chain is conditional on this moving fast, hence us going out of our way to get our mortgage done, paperwork done, in a few days. Our buyer has done the same, and our seller has no chain, so it's just waiting on the solicitors to process everything. 

I'm nervous about if 8 weeks is totally unrealistic - I'd have rathered the solicitors told us that when we enquired because we're going to incur costs without a hope of the sale going through otherwise. The buyer has been really, really clear all along... And it's noted on the memorandum of sales too. 

[Deleted User]

SaucySecrets said:

babyblade41 said:

Usual time scales are roughly 12-14 weeks depending on many things so take that as an average, for leaseholds maybe longer 

Our buyer won't wait that long - they need to be in in 8 weeks. The solicitors advised that would be fine, but I can't see any movement... 

ele_91 said:

It’s been 1 week. FYI we wanted a quick process when we accepted an offer on our house last October from a FTB and had an offer accepted on a chain free house, we’re hoping to complete this month! I honestly don’t think you can expect any timescale as there is so much that can go wrong or cause a delay. 

A leasehold will take longer. Have you applied for a mortgage yet? Filled out the paperwork for the sale? Booked a survey?

Yeah, sorry, I should have been clearer above. We have our mortgage offer (the actual offer, not the AIP), and we gave all our paperwork for the sale including the lease details, accounts, building insurances etc and the fixtures and fittings forms etc to the solicitors last Friday. 

The house has a survey from the previous buyer that we've been offered via the seller's estate agent, so we should get that when the solicitors request paperwork. We might also get our own, but we are going to read that one first. 

I do absolutely appreciate that it's only been a week, but everyone in the chain is conditional on this moving fast, hence us going out of our way to get our mortgage done, paperwork done, in a few days. Our buyer has done the same, and our seller has no chain, so it's just waiting on the solicitors to process everything. 

I'm nervous about if 8 weeks is totally unrealistic - I'd have rathered the solicitors told us that when we enquired because we're going to incur costs without a hope of the sale going through otherwise. The buyer has been really, really clear all along... And it's noted on the memorandum of sales too. 

We have just gone from offer to exchange in just over 7 weeks so it is doable. And that was for a 3 house chain.

You do sound like you are a fair way through the process so I wouldn’t assume it wasn’t possible, however, anything can happen obviously.

The solicitors can move very quickly on it once they have their ducks in a row. We went from not having searches back and enquiries remaining etc etc to being told we really needed to exchange that week and our solicitors turned it round for us to exchange within a couple of days.

TBG01

Our buyer has done the same, and our seller has no chain, so it's just waiting on the solicitors to process everything

It's really not. If you think it's as simple as pushing a few buttons now and you're all done, well sorry but you're in for a shock.

HopeAndDriftWood

Edenbridge said:

8 weeks seems overly optimistic,not impossible but simply no margin for minor hiccups throughout the process.

Has the management pack been ordered for your flat yet? In my own experience this is where delays can frequently occur.

Yeah, we've got the management pack, but thanks! 

I am worried about the short timescale. I wouldn't have agreed to it, but the solicitors reassured my husband that it is, so it's all in motion now... 

TBG01 said:

Our buyer has done the same, and our seller has no chain, so it's just waiting on the solicitors to process everything

It's really not. If you think it's as simple as pushing a few buttons now and you're all done, well sorry but you're in for a shock.

No, I don't think it's that simple - just that it's over to them. I don't think there's anything else we can do, our side. I do appreciate that they have a lot to do, and that it's not easy work - I didn't intend any offence. 

We've just heard from the solicitors, anyway, they are aware of the timescales involved and are happy with everything we've sent over. Our buyer has ordered searches and been told they'll take 5 working days, and the solicitor is going to request the information from the other property and check that those searches are still in date, but they've been told around 5 working days if we need new searches, too. 

I think this is going to be a stressful 8 weeks, but hopefully we can do it.

babyblade41

I've done one in a week .. but that was exceptional, no mortgages , I was just buying, house empty, no surveys and no searches ..so it is doable in 8 but that is only if nothing goes wrong 

Waunakee

We recently sold a leasehold flat (holiday home) to chain free buyers who wanted to complete within a similar timescale to yourselves.

We were warned that whilst in theory it was possible there was simply no wriggle room.

Both sets of solicitors worked tirelessly to try to make this happen but inevitably we hit a few bumps along the way,the most annoying being the length of time for the Management Company to complete the LPE1 satisfactorily.

We finally completed at around the 12 week mark.The delays were all due to factors outside of either parties control.

Weathergirl_76

I’m about 6 weeks into mine, I have cash buyers in no chain, and my purchase has no chain. The property is freehold but has 2 allocated spaces. The delay at present is for my purchase property. The management pack is missing and my conveyancer can’t proceed until he has that.  The management company is run by the residents, so I don’t understand what the delay is. I think leaseholds take a little longer generally.  I hope you will be moving on time, good luck 

Sazzy1253

We had no chain on either side, we were FTB moving into a vacant house. searches were done very quickly and our enquires etc were all done very quickly…and it took 11 weeks which was very fast compared to others.