How long after completion for funds.

thewad

Just sold house of a deceased relative.....completion and keys given on Friday...solicitor couldn't transfer funds Friday because of the Microsoft issue, fair enough I couldn't access my bank either....solicitor says he will go in Saturday and do it.....we were away over w/e so checked Monday still no money......ring solicitor says he will be in his office in the afternoon rings back in afternoon and says transfer complete....this morning no money in bank and solicitor will not be in office till this afternoon.....rings back and says bank has stopped transfer however it has paid his fees and estate agents fees, says he will sort by tomorrow.....meanwhile new owner now has access to property....is this right or even ethical.

Grizebeck

All you can do is get back on to the solicitor.

user1977

thewad said:

.....meanwhile new owner now has access to property....i

What, did you think the buyer had to wait until you personally had the money in your account before they could move in? It's nothing to do with the purchaser.

thewad

Never said it was my question really is how can they give someone the property but not pay you.

propertyrental

thewad said:

Just sold house of a deceased relative.....completion and keys given on Friday...

Completion takes place when

a) the seller, or their representative (usually their solicitor) receives the buyer's funds, and

b) the seller hands over the keys

So yes - perfectly normal and ethical for "new owner now has access to property". He's paid for it, right?

How soon the seller receives the funds depends on various factors eg

* how was transfer agreed? CHAPS? Cheque on? Bank Transfer?

* what time of day did solicitor receive buyer's funds?

* what time of day did solicitor send funds on?

* How busy the solicitor was eg Fridays are always busy with multiple sales, Solicitor/admin will focus on getting all those Completions done as priority over forwarding the money

* Banking is]sues (eg as here) outside solicitor's control

"rings back and says bank has stopped transfer however it has paid his and estate agents fees"

Well, yes. Naturally the transfer to the seller will be for what the seller is owed, which will be the sale price less solicitors, EAs and mortgage costs etc

user1977

Sounds you like don't understand the fundamentals of the process. Completion happens when funds are transferred from the buyer's solicitor to the seller's solicitor, and the keys are released simultaneously. Obviously there are other steps at either side, but if the money is with your solicitor then it's already your money, albeit there seem to be some admin niggles in getting it transferred between bank accounts.

Not an "ethical" problem unless you actually think your solicitor has stolen the money...

RHemmings

thewad said:

Never said it was my question really is how can they give someone the property but not pay you.

Your buyer has paid for the property, and it's right and proper that they have the keys to (and possession of) the property. 

I understand your frustration, but it's not the new owners who are at fault. 

Like others say, stay in contact with your solicitor. If you feel that you are experiencing losses due to the tardy transfer of the cash, then I would raise that with your solicitor. 

thewad

Why has it stopped the transfer of the buyers funds to the seller.

Tiglet2

It is not that unusual for solicitors to hold back purchase monies after completion before releasing it to the seller.  For example, they may wait for confirmation from the seller's lender that the monies sent to redeem the mortgage are sufficient to close the account. There also may be an Accounts Department who are responsible for monies in and out, but may need the signature of a senior partner before sending out large sums.  Generally, if there is no mortgage to redeem, then monies can be sent the same day.  In your case, there was a problem with Microsoft which has caused delays. 

Rest assured, if you have completed, then your buyer has paid and your solicitor has received the purchase monies.

RHemmings

thewad said:

Why has it stopped the transfer of the buyers funds to the seller.

This is a question for your solicitor to ask the bank. And, for you to ask the solicitor. 

MattMattMattUK

thewad said:

Why has it stopped the transfer of the buyers funds to the seller.

None of us can tell you, only potentially the solicitor and even then they might never get told the whole story by the bank. It could be one of many reasons related to anti-fraud measures, especially as there might be backlogs in the system due to the CrowdStrike outage.