House buying hell - Is there anything I can do...

doodling

Hi,

JM68 said:

So they waited around a year (at least) after the owner passed to even apply for probate.

They put his/her house on the market with no legal authority to do so (as probate had not been granted).

Someone has lied to someone for you to be told 'it's going through probate' (when you were first told that).

And the vendors solicitors have been 'evasive' and ignored emails etc. 

If I was you I would follow my head and pull out!!!

Yes, agreeing a new mortgage now might cost you a bit more each month.  But the market has changed since last summer and you may be able get something better for less, either now or in a few months.

I agree with everything apart from the bit in bold. The executors own the house from the moment of death and they can do pretty much what they like with it (subject to it being in accordance with the will and the interests of the beneficiaries) from that point.

They even have the theoretical ability to sell it (it is theirs after all) but the land registry won't register the sale until probate has been agreed (quite reasonably in my view) so any contract for sale would be "interesting" and most buyers would be strongly advised not to buy in that circumstance.

CruisingSaver

mi-key said:

If they only put in for probate mid december, then it may not go through until next december. It's pretty common for them to take 9-12 months even in simple cases.

Not necessarily so. Although probate waiting times have increased since I dealt with my Mum’s estate last year, I applied for and was granted probate in 8 weeks.

A simple estate under the IHT threshold.

Sarahspangles

LauraJane said:

Fast forward to TODAY 22ND MARCH 2023 and we have just been told by the Estate Agent that Probate was only applied for in MID DECEMBER and the Vendor's solicitor are chasing Probate.

I’ve been looking at HMCTS performance data recently as we applied for probate ourselves and the more pessimistic estimates in this thread would be extreme.  But they do happen.  16 weeks is the point at which chasing is allowed as the number which haven’t been dealt with within this timescale is more manageable.  So it ought to be soon - so long as the solicitor isn’t so doddery they applied by post!

ThisIsWeird

Zerforax said:

Start looking for other houses to see if there is anything else you like. If you find something else and an offer is accepted, then pull out of this process.

Apply for the new mortgage when you have to, work out how much extra it is costing you. When you are close to exchange, tell them house prices are falling and mortgages are more expensive so your offer is now X lower due to this.

Is that behaving like a [insert unsavoury word]? Yes, probably but no worse than how they have behaved with you.

I was going to suggest just this - and I wouldn't at all consider it behaving like a bleep. LJ wouldn't be 'trying it on' or gazundering - they'd be reacting sensibly to a change in the market and their mortgage circumstances caused by the vendor's seeming procrastination.

Hold on with it, LJ, if it's the best house you've found so far. If you find somewhere better or cheaper, go for it. If your financial circumstances - the mortgage etc - changes significantly, then work out how much you'll be worse off each year by, and adjust the offer to allow you to continue if you wish, but without excessive financial pain. If they refuse, that's their call - but I suspect they'll also be facing a changed market, so it could be a foolish move for them.

Try and have some sums in your head - sit down and work out what a new mortgage offer is likely to cost you for the next few years. 'Almost certainly' interest rates will fall again, but you need to ensure you are 'ok' for the next few years.

Hope for the best - but plan for the worst. Keep looking at other properties, whilst giving this one as long as it's worth.

Keep_pedalling

JM68 said:

So they waited around a year (at least) after the owner passed to even apply for probate.

They put his/her house on the market with no legal authority to do so (as probate had not been granted).

Someone has lied to someone for you to be told 'it's going through probate' (when you were first told that).

And the vendors solicitors have been 'evasive' and ignored emails etc. 

If I was you I would follow my head and pull out!!!

Yes, agreeing a new mortgage now might cost you a bit more each month.  But the market has changed since last summer and you may be able get something better for less, either now or in a few months.

The executors don’t need any legal authority to market the house before probate has been obtained the just need it to sell it. An application in December should have been finalised long before now but probate applications are backlogged and it seems rather random how long it takes some people are getting it in a few weeks and others it is taking months.

I would not pull out just yet as this may still be resolved in time for you to take advantage of your current mortgage offer. 

https://www.theprobatedepartment.co.uk/probate-delays/

LauraJane

Sarahspangles said:

LauraJane said:

Fast forward to TODAY 22ND MARCH 2023 and we have just been told by the Estate Agent that Probate was only applied for in MID DECEMBER and the Vendor's solicitor are chasing Probate.

I’ve been looking at HMCTS performance data recently as we applied for probate ourselves and the more pessimistic estimates in this thread would be extreme.  But they do happen.  16 weeks is the point at which chasing is allowed as the number which haven’t been dealt with within this timescale is more manageable.  So it ought to be soon - so long as the solicitor isn’t so doddery they applied by post!

If they applied by post I wouldn't want to know! I think it would drive me over the edge lol...My Solicitor has said she has other transactions where this particular Solicitor is on the otherside and he is hopeless she actually said "F*** hopeless".

LauraJane

ThisIsWeird said:

I was going to suggest just this - and I wouldn't at all consider it behaving like a bleep. LJ wouldn't be 'trying it on' or gazundering - they'd be reacting sensibly to a change in the market and their mortgage circumstances caused by the vendor's seeming procrastination.

Hold on with it, LJ, if it's the best house you've found so far. If you find somewhere better or cheaper, go for it. If your financial circumstances - the mortgage etc - changes significantly, then work out how much you'll be worse off each year by, and adjust the offer to allow you to continue if you wish, but without excessive financial pain. If they refuse, that's their call - but I suspect they'll also be facing a changed market, so it could be a foolish move for them.

Try and have some sums in your head - sit down and work out what a new mortgage offer is likely to cost you for the next few years. 'Almost certainly' interest rates will fall again, but you need to ensure you are 'ok' for the next few years.

Hope for the best - but plan for the worst. Keep looking at other properties, whilst giving this one as long as it's worth.

Thank you for the advice, I will be open-minded, I think they are lucky I haven't pulled out already. I certainly wouldn't have continued if when I put my offer in I knew they were months away from even applying for Probate.

Grizebeck

Our probate took 2 months

Slinky

We bought a house that had got probate granted. one of the children was a solicitor so did it.  It still took six months as they took that long to clear the house out.  The warning signs were there, food still in the kitchen cupboards and she'd passed away 14 months earlier.

Is the house you want empty?

robatwork

I'm in Camp Gazunder. 

They have messed you about, misled you, even lied to you, and to be honest you don't have much to lose.

"In light of recent facts we are reducing our offer to £X-10% and are now actively looking for other properties until we have some firm news."