Completion date issues

charleneann09

My buyer has been texting my husband for over a month telling us to sign the house over to him, even whilst their enquiries were ongoing. Last week we were told by the solicitors we could exchange. 
Our new property is not ready we are still awaiting searches which are due back 8th March so we are not ready to move yet.
On Tuesday the buyers decided their mortgage offer runs out at the start of March so wanted to move then. 
Yesterday they decided they must move in on the 22nd February.
I have 3 children and are relocating 2 hours away from where we currently live and have suggested a date of the 21st March for completion and we will have to stay with the in laws for a few weeks. 

I don't really believe their mortgage runs out at the start of March as they received their offer from Halifax on 8th January and it is valid for 3 months so surely it can't run out at the start of March can it?
I've asked our estate agent for the date it runs out and he said allegedly it's the start of March. We called their mortgage broker who said don't worry they can get an extension.
Noone has confirmed a date it runs out. I'm getting annoyed with the buyers trying to get us out am I allowed to ask for a copy of their mortgage offer form to check they are telling the truth and also ask for a copy of confirmation their extension has been denied. 
I know for a fact they haven't applied for am extension they are just being difficult. But am I allowed to see these documents before I decide if I need to inconvenience my children?
I wouldn't mind moving earlier if these documents confirm it needs to happen but I refuse to move earlier just because they are being difficult.

user1977

You're allowed to see them if the buyers are willing to show them to you. It would be a bit of a weird question though and they certainly don't have to show you anything.

You could look at getting search insurance if that's the only hold-up for your purchase.

Mahsroh

Exactly as their broker has told you, they should be able to get an extension easily enough... it's pretty common practice. 

To me is sounds like they're just desperate to Complete and are using the Mortgage expiry as an easy excuse to try and move things forward faster

You can either:

1. Hold you nerve and maintain that you can't complete until your onward purchase is ready to proceed. or;
2. Accept completing the sale earlier and move in with relatives. 

If you go with option 1 you run the risk that they'll pull out, but if they're desperate to move this wouldn't be in their interests as they'd have to start again from the beginning because of a maximum 1 month worth of delay. May be worth try to ascertain WHY they're so desperate? Have they simply got itchy feet, or are there issues with their current property (eg. a rental that they've given notice on). 

Attempting to obtain copies of their Mortgage offer is futile though. They'll either accept waiting a bit longer or they won't.

penners324

Ignore the buyer. Nlock him number if needed. You tell your solicitors when you're ready to exchange.

Your buyer with either pull out or will just wait.

No need to speak to your buyer, their solicitor or broker. In fact they shouldn't be speaking to you about the mortgage offer terms anyway.

lisyloo

I personally don’t think that vetting their reasons and declaring you don’t trust them is the way to go.

if it’s highly inconvenient for you then this is a matter for negotiation.
try to understand their reasons by all means, but asking for proof says “we don’t believe/trust you”
and anyway is their mortgage more important than your children?

this Is a matter for negotiation.

is there any way to expedite the searches?
if not then by all means be reasonable but if they are being totally unreasonable then are they the kind of people who might lower their offer at the last minute?

personally I don’t think their reasons (can’t be bothered to extend) compete very well with your family upheaval
The estate agent should be working for you.
I don’t see any reason not to ask whether they can extend.

greensalad

It does sound like they are making things up to pressure you. 

I wouldn't bet on your searches being back and everything being fine from that point. What happens if there are additional enquiries off the searches?

I would ask your buyer to be patient. 

eddddy

You should be letting your estate agent deal with this - it's part of what you pay them for (assuming they get paid on completion).

Tell your estate agent where you are in the process (i.e. waiting for searches) and you're doing things as fast as possible, and you're really keen for the sale/purchase to happen.

Then it's up to the estate agent to contact your buyer and 'calm them down' and manage their expectations.



But one 'spanner in the works' is that 31st March is likely to be 'quarter-end' or 'year-end' for your estate agent. So the estate agent might put pressure on you to complete (and maybe invent reasons for you to complete) before 31st March.

Your sale might help the estate agent hit their quarterly/annual targets, so they get a bigger bonus, and maybe can afford the holiday they want in Florida. 

But you shouldn't be pressured into doing things like moving into temp accommodation, just so your estate agent can have a holiday in Florida!



But on the other hand, you don't want to annoy your buyer to the extent that they walk away.

lisyloo

This highlights an important point.
Your estate agent might just be making this up.

canaldumidi

No point trying to understnd why. Your buyer want to move, soon, for whatever reason, and are making themselves a pest.

Best to simply ignore them or as suggested, block their number.

If and when your onward purchase is ready according to your solicitor, you can discuss /agree an Exchange date and Completion date, via soliitors.  Make sure your solitor knows if you want these same day, or a week apart, 2 weeks, whatever.

Tell your EA to tell your buyers to be patient. You are paying the EA a lot of money (more than your solicitor though god knows why!), so it's his job to 'manage' the buyers on your behalf.

charleneann09

user1977 said:

You're allowed to see them if the buyers are willing to show them to you. It would be a bit of a weird question though and they certainly don't have to show you anything.

You could look at getting search insurance if that's the only hold-up for your purchase.

We have tried that, nationwide will not allow search insurance