Timeline for Buying a House

Sally133

I'm currently in private rented accommodation. Our tenancy agreement ends March 2025 and we want to move into our new house in February 2025. We have nothing to sell, how soon should we put in an offer on a property and get a mortgage in place. We don't want to overrun/renew our March 2025 end of tenancy, but we can't afford to keep both properties on, so timing is crucial and I'm not sure how long it would take to buy a house that is occupied and has a chain. Our Landlord only wants to renew on 12month tenancy agreements, it's never a rolling contract, so we don't want to get locked in. Any advice is very welcome.

Flugelhorn

Just about anything can happen - I have bought 3 properties in the last few years and they took between 5 weeks and 5 months to go through (all chain free). Chains can take longer and collapse / have to restart sometimess

You definitely can't guarantee it won;t run over into March next year so better to start sooner and accept that you might have to pay for both for longer than you had hoped 

Sally133

Should I specify a moving date when I put in an offer on a property? I know that the sellers may not be able to meet that date, but should I tell the vendor that I will not be moving/buying until February? How long would a mortgage company hold the mortgage offer for? Thank you

Bookworm105

Sally133 said:

Should I specify a moving date when I put in an offer on a property? I know that the sellers may not be able to meet that date, but should I tell the vendor that I will not be moving/buying until February? How long would a mortgage company hold the mortgage offer for? Thank you

as you say yourself, if people are in a chain then no individual can set a date that others can be certain of meeting. Others in the chain may find a timetable helps them with their own position, but it only takes one person to break a chain. As a FTB you are most likely to be looking at property in chains, as people are moving up the ladder, not dying off and leaving it vacant. It would be unfair of you not to make people aware of your timetable as it is, in June 24, a big disincentive to placing you at #1 purchaser
 
if you are suggesting that you are going to start offering on houses now but will not complete until Feb 25 then, first time buyer or not, I'd think most vendors would drop you as soon as they get an offer from someone else who is in a more "proceedable" position. Offers are not binding and can be replaced, even after you have spent money on surveys etc .

Your current landlord has the same mindset. They want certainty of 12 months rent and warning of it not being renewed so they can minimise the void period before you are replaced. Going from rented to owned is never a seamless process if your L:L will not accept you going periodic.

as for the mortgage offer, try google: Mortgage Offers Explained | How Long Does A Mortgage Offer Last? | Uswitch 

How long does a mortgage offer last?

Most mortgage offers last three to six months, but this can vary from lender to lender. Not all lenders count offer validity from the same point, with some using the date you put in an offer on the property and others using the date of your mortgage application.

Some lenders even specify an actual date by which you must have completed, so it’s important to be clear on the validity rules before signing the offer. If you're buying a new build property 'off-plan', you may need to ask them to extend the offer period in line with the property's construction completion date

Flugelhorn

I don't think you should mention February - that would put sellers off.

Only way round it is to accept that you may have to complete earlier (and pay a few extra months)  OR pay `12 months more. 

Greatgimp

If you complete early and move in, you are probably still responsible for the rental house if it stays empty up to the end of your agreement (flood, squatters etc).

Bookworm105

Greatgimp said:

If you complete early and move in, you are probably still responsible for the rental house if it stays empty up to the end of your agreement (flood, squatters etc).

you are still responsible for the rental house up to the end of your agreement.

RAS

You need to understand that until you exchange contracts, there is no guarantee that you will be buying the property. It used to be common for people to exchange a month or more before moving, quite often these days it's a week and sometimes the same day between exchange and completion.

You also need to understand that at the end of March your tenancy agreement does not end. The following day it rolls over to become a periodic contract. You need to read your rental contract now to find out if it includes information about the period of notice that is required if you have a contractual period contract. Otherwise it become a statutory periodic contract requiring one month's notice. Read the stickie at the very top of this forum to understand the exact details of the notice required.

Your EA and LL may well demand that you sign a new fixed term contract but they cannot force you to do so. The LL might issue you with an S21 notice but that does not end the tenancy either. It is merely advice that at the end of the notice you can leave without giving notice and thereafter the LL is entitled to start court proceeding to remove you. If you explain that you are buying, they may be reasonable and allow you to give the required notice when you've exchanged. It a lot cheaper and less hassle than legal action.

On the one hand you (or the lawyers) are trying to manoeuvre a juggernaut, horse drawn buggy and train alongside each other so that people can jump between them.

On the other side, you are trying to align that jump with the end of the tenancy. There are two dates when you can do so without giving notice, at the end of the fixed term and the date of the S21 notice given by the LL. Otherwise you need to give the required notice, once you have exchanged so there will be up to a month when you have to pay both rent and mortgage.

You can of course agree an early surrender with the LL but make sure you both understand what's agreed and it is in writing as unless it is specifically confirms that you are no longer liable the LL can demand rent after the surrender. Don't do that until exchange has happened. And remember that once you've agreed to leave, the LL can chase for double rent if you fail to move out. 

propertyrental

No one can guarantee how long a purchase will take, and trying to get agreement at an early stage is pointless.

You will have some flexibility to slow down your purchase (though beware a seller seeing this as you not being a serious buyer and pulling out). As for speeding up the purchase - you can only control, to some extent, your own solicitor but are at the mercy of everyone else in the chain.

Where you do have flexibility is in your tenancy. When the fixed term ends in Feb, you do NOT have to sign another 12 month fixed term. Move to a monthly periodic (rolling) contract so you can give notice when you Exchange on your purchase.

See

Post 4: Ending/renewing an AST: what happens when a fixed term ends? How can a LL or tenant end a tenancy? What is a periodic tenancy?

Albermarle

OP - Also do not forget that from when you start looking and making a serious offer could also take months ( to find the right sort of place)
I have a friend who has been looking for a new home for years. A mixture of wanting to live in a desirable area and some bad luck have combined to prevent any progress.

BonaDea

Note that the LL doesn't have to give permission for the rolling periodic tenancy; it's automatic, whether he or she likes it or not. (At least that's my understanding as a former LL - if I'm wrong no doubt other LLs will weigh in to say so.   And you could check on Shelter's website.)  

Also, if you want to move earlier in the spring than the end of your 12-month term, it's always worth checking if the LL would be willing to re-advertise the property early and release you from the tenancy if she or he finds another tenant before your  tenancy ends who will move in as you move out.  You could always offer to pay the LL's 'reasonable administrative expenses' for doing this (aka a sweetener) - in that way the LL loses nothing as one tenant merely takes over the rent from another, plus the LL gets the small 'expenses' payment.   Up to you how much you offer (maybe 5-10% of the rent for those months short of the 12?).  Many of these arrangements are negotiable, you just need to understand what it is the LL wants and how to make the arrangement attractive enough to get him/her to go along with your plans.

With house buying and selling, everybody needs to be flexible and willing to compromise, perhaps repeatedly, so you can't fix any dates until close to the point of exchange.  Probably no seller will wait for 9 months, that involves just far too much risk for the seller (even if they're not in a hurry themselves).