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Chain just not moving
cadherin
Posts: 5 Forumite
Hi MSE community,
Some advice on this very frustrating and stressful situation would be much appreciated especially given we're first-time buyers with limited experience.
We put an offer on a house (a day after it went on the market), which fortunately got accepted and removed from the market that day - this was back in early August (now over 6 months ago...) and we still don't have an exchange or completion date. We like the house very much and are pretty set on moving there. We have been ready to go since searches, survey and enquiries were done back in October and our vendors also have been ready to go since December.
Our vendors had an offer accepted on a leasehold property and this part of the chain has been no end of problems. It took them 4 months (December?!) just to get the searches done and get responses from the management company. Worse, the people living in the property our vendors are buying decided to ask for a lease extension for the property they're moving into after 5 months of waiting (😡), which fortunately got rejected very quickly by the people at the top. Now I'm told that they're 'waiting for responses to five outstanding enquiries' a few weeks ago with no further detail or updates since. While our solicitors have been excellent, solicitors and estate agents further up the chain have been absolutely useless, unresponsive and, quite honestly, seem evasive and obfuscate - our solicitors get very slow responses back and our estate agents cannot get in touch with anyone at all.
Does it seem to you like someone is either pulling a fast one or, if not, what I should do (if anything) to speed up this process? Have we been too soft - it's really hard to be pushy and threaten as I'm told our vendors are ready to move tomorrow and keep asking for updates too? My worry is that our lender has kindly agreed to extend the mortgage offer until 30th April, one extra month beyond the normal 6-month offer period. If it completion goes past then, it will be an absolute nightmare to get an entirely new application sorted.
Thank you in advance for your advice.
Some advice on this very frustrating and stressful situation would be much appreciated especially given we're first-time buyers with limited experience.
We put an offer on a house (a day after it went on the market), which fortunately got accepted and removed from the market that day - this was back in early August (now over 6 months ago...) and we still don't have an exchange or completion date. We like the house very much and are pretty set on moving there. We have been ready to go since searches, survey and enquiries were done back in October and our vendors also have been ready to go since December.
Our vendors had an offer accepted on a leasehold property and this part of the chain has been no end of problems. It took them 4 months (December?!) just to get the searches done and get responses from the management company. Worse, the people living in the property our vendors are buying decided to ask for a lease extension for the property they're moving into after 5 months of waiting (😡), which fortunately got rejected very quickly by the people at the top. Now I'm told that they're 'waiting for responses to five outstanding enquiries' a few weeks ago with no further detail or updates since. While our solicitors have been excellent, solicitors and estate agents further up the chain have been absolutely useless, unresponsive and, quite honestly, seem evasive and obfuscate - our solicitors get very slow responses back and our estate agents cannot get in touch with anyone at all.
Does it seem to you like someone is either pulling a fast one or, if not, what I should do (if anything) to speed up this process? Have we been too soft - it's really hard to be pushy and threaten as I'm told our vendors are ready to move tomorrow and keep asking for updates too? My worry is that our lender has kindly agreed to extend the mortgage offer until 30th April, one extra month beyond the normal 6-month offer period. If it completion goes past then, it will be an absolute nightmare to get an entirely new application sorted.
Thank you in advance for your advice.
1
Comments
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All you can do is contact the EA and tell THEM to keep chasing further up the chain.
Are there any other houses on the market you like? If you're willing to walk away, then tell them your deadline and say that if you do not exchange by end of March then you will withdraw your offer.
Other than that, just keep chasing and you have no choice but to be patient!Should've = Should HAVE (not 'of')
Would've = Would HAVE (not 'of')
No, I am not perfect, but yes I do judge people on their use of basic English language. If you didn't know the above, then learn it! (If English is your second language, then you are forgiven!)1 -
Prices have risen since August. If you withdraw your offer, will the same money buy something else that is as nice?No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?1
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Leasehold does take longer because there's another party involved that couldn't care less how quickly, or slowly, things happen. The lease extension is an additional time lengthener.I'm not sure why you're angry with the vendors of the leasehold property. They won't have decided to get a lease extension they probably just want to sell and be done with it, it's your own vendors or their solicitors demanding it.Everything that is supposed to be in heaven is already here on earth.
1 -
Just to clarify - the lease extension is not for or requested by the property our vendors are moving into, it is for the property our vendors’ vendors are moving into. So that’s why I’m cross with them!Doozergirl said:Leasehold does take longer because there's another party involved that couldn't care less how quickly, or slowly, things happen. The lease extension is an additional time lengthener.I'm not sure why you're angry with the vendors of the leasehold property. They won't have decided to get a lease extension they probably just want to sell and be done with it, it's your own vendors or their solicitors demanding it.0 -
It is the problem with a house purchase, you are at the mercy of the weakest link in the chain.All I can advise is to make sure you do everything you can and have everything you need done in a timely manner so it isn't you causing the issue.May you find your sister soon Helli.
Sleep well.1 -
This sounds very similar to my situation. I am still awaiting a date in a rather frustrating chain!! Leasehold at the top of the chain, which my vendor is moving into. Everyone seems to be on the go slow. In fact, you aren't at the bottom of MY chain are you?! The dates are very similar...0
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