Vendor saying “after Christmas”

pinkteapot

SJE89 said:

Seems many would rather wait until after Christmas. I would have thought the opposite. At the current rate I would expect the first week of December to be a fine one for moving. 

I’m also not ready to wait too long as our mortgage expires at the end of March. Might seem like a long time but I feel the longer it takes to complete, there more opportunities there are for things to go wrong along the chain, taking longer and potentially pushing us even closer to the expiry date of the offer and losing our interest rate. 

Don't tell them that your mortgage offer expiry date is the reason you don't want to wait. Then they'll KNOW you're not going to pull out over this (because you'll never be able to complete on a different house in time).

You need to try negotiating with them and see what happens.

theartfullodger

Ask which Xmas....

ReadingTim

SJE89 said:

But I’m starting to get the feeling the vendor is taking advantage of the fact we have no chain and want to take their time/save stress before Christmas.
I’m not about to let this happen if I can help it. Is there anything I can do to stop them playing games and speed up the process?
Or if it does happen is there anything to be done to recover additional costs later down the line?
I don’t want to lose this property, but if they mess me around, I will start looking for properties. 

They're not "playing games": they have been totally up front about a date and it's a perfectly reasonable one from their perspective.  Just because you don't like it, doesn't mean they're "messing you around".  If you'd prefer an earlier date then you need to negotiate with them, and with an attitude like that, you probably won't get far.  

Furthermore, if you do throw your toys out of the pram and walk away, then you're unlikely to find somewhere else and move into it in less than 7 weeks, so don't risk cutting off your nose to spite your face.  And no, you can't recoup costs for withdrawing from a sale in a strop.  Sorry if this isn't what you want to hear.  

Ath_Wat

SJE89 said:

We’re in the process of buying a house, our first house, and we’re currently in rented accommodation with no chain.
Everything is sorted, contract paperwork is through, surveys, searches, mortgage offer, simply waiting to exchange and agree a completion date.
We were buzzing, thinking we’ll be in before Christmas.
Email from the solicitor yesterday saying the top of the chain says they can’t move before Christmas and they are querying this as to why.
I have the property report and been reading through it and got to the property information from and on the back page “Does the seller have any special requests for a moving date?” And they have written “after Christmas”
So I have queried this with the solicitor and waiting for a response.
But I’m starting to get the feeling the vendor is taking advantage of the fact we have no chain and want to take their time/save stress before Christmas.
I’m not about to let this happen if I can help it. Is there anything I can do to stop them playing games and speed up the process?
Or if it does happen is there anything to be done to recover additional costs later down the line?
I don’t want to lose this property, but if they mess me around, I will start looking for properties. 

No, you are not "starting to get a feeling" about anything, you have been told quite straightforwardly that they don't want to move until after Christmas. 

Incidentally if this is the "top of the chain" does it mean it's not the house you are buying? If there's nobody else but the two of you involved it wouldn't really be a chain.  If it's not even the house you are buying, it's even more absurd to assume it is somehow personally targeted at your circumstances.  They will have their reasons, which they needn't share with you.

Titus_Wadd

In 1988 I moved into my first house as a FTB on Xmas Eve, and a few years ago on the 18th Dec; it's not great.  It didn't feel like a magical first Christmas in our new homes.  The first time I was young and foolish.  The recent move we were held to ransom by the end of the chain who actually had nothing to sell and weren't even moving in until the NY!  Please don't be that sort of buyer.  Christmas 2023 will be magical and unstressed in your new home!

I'm a cup half full person so it did mean I was off the hook to host Xmas dinner those years!  There were no other high points.   Enjoy your Xmas, use the time off to get ready to move for an effortless completion day in the New Year, would be my advice.

OhWow

Chains break down all the time and they are taking a massive risk. You will find that selling is more stressful than buying as we don't really have any control. If the chain breaks, they have to wait for new buyers and will face a higher mortgage interest rate.

You still have time on your side. Why not start looking to see what else is out there; you don't have to tell anyone. You might find something better has come on the market, for the same price. Some people are getting worried about being able to afford their mortgages.

You have the advantage of no property to sell. You will be gutted if you sit and wait and then the chain breaks.

TripleH

We moved over Christmas one year but as I was 8 I cannot comment on how stressful it was for my parents.

I finished 1 term at one school and started a new term at a new school.

We had completed on our new house at the time as well (dad was living there as different town to us).

If there are children involved in the top of the chain and a move to a new town then you may struggle to complete sooner.

At least it has come out at the start rather than 2 weeks before exchange.

saajan_12

SJE89 said:

We’re in the process of buying a house, our first house, and we’re currently in rented accommodation with no chain.
Everything is sorted, contract paperwork is through, surveys, searches, mortgage offer, simply waiting to exchange and agree a completion date.
We were buzzing, thinking we’ll be in before Christmas. - based on what.. has the solicitor said everything's ready for the whole chain (not just your checks)? Have you discussed a Nov / Dec completion date?
Email from the solicitor yesterday saying the top of the chain says they can’t move before Christmas and they are querying this as to why.- definitely worth finding out why, to see if there's any flex on their side. However its still a negotiation, they could just refuse and call your bluff on whether you can find another place, run checks and complete any quicker. 
I have the property report and been reading through it and got to the property information from and on the back page “Does the seller have any special requests for a moving date?” And they have written “after Christmas” 
So I have queried this with the solicitor and waiting for a response.  - ah, so they did tell you their plans.. What are you asking the solicitor? 
But I’m starting to get the feeling the vendor is taking advantage of the fact we have no chain and want to take their time/save stress before Christmas. - how are they taking advantage when they told you their timeframes upfront, and are simply following that? From their perspective, there's a bit of advantage taking from you by raising an issue with the timeline this late in the process. 
I’m not about to let this happen if I can help it. Is there anything I can do to stop them playing games and speed up the process? - no games here. Just ask why after xmas and see if there's any room for negotiation.. either by them just being flexible, or compensating them for whatever makes it less convenient to move before xmas. Could also see if you can exchange before Xmas with a long gap to Completion in Jan.. that way you know there's a confirmed date and aren't worried about your mortage offer. 
Or if it does happen is there anything to be done to recover additional costs later down the line? - costs for what? They don't have to complete before xmas or ever, so they're not liable for costs if they fail to do something they're not obligated to do. The only time costs come into play is if / when you exchange, and THEN they don't meet the agreed completion date. Until then, nothing is agreed. 
I don’t want to lose this property, but if they mess me around, I will start looking for properties. 

Comments in line. Especially since they told you about their preferred dates (via PIF), they're not messing anyone around by sticking to that.. if anything, you should have raised this earlier if you wanted a different timeframe. 

At this stage, by all means ask but they might have good reason to insist on after Xmas, in which case your options are to find elsewhere (and risk completing even later) or wait it out. Depending on their reason, it might make sense to negotiate some compensation for moving earlier to offset whatever their reason is, or perhaps exchanging sooner with a long gap to completion after xmas - takes out the risk for you of going past March.. 

sheramber

It is quite reasonable to want to limit the stress of a move before just before Christmas and they did tell you in advance.

They may have children in school who don't finish until just  before Christmas

Just as you have your reasons to want to move before Christmas they have their reasons to wait until after.

We moved on 26 December when I was a child.

My sister and I were in school until the last minute.

My father was a teacher who was working until the l last day of term and could not take time off.

TheJP

I completely understand the want to get in before Christmas, its exciting and the romance of having Christmas in your first home, however this isn't always the case. There is more that can go wrong just before Christmas than there is just after. Also the romance soon wares off when the reality of home ownership sinks in, the house looks different from when you viewed, boxes everywhere, new furniture hasn't arrived yet, broadband not set up yet etc. 

I also completely understand the view from your sellers, both Christmas and moving can be stressful, they are managing that stress. There is no advantage being taken, shady goings on and i highly doubt your mortgage offer is any doubt between now and March.