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What can go wrong on completion day

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  • Marvel1
    Marvel1 Posts: 7,429 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    What date are you completing? Don't think Fiiday 20th is good idea. 
  • I wonder if you could stagger your move a bit. If you are moving on Friday perhaps not but if you can get the removers to take your stuff on the day of completion but deliver it the next day it gives you a bit more time to sort out any nasty surprises. We moved once and the previous owner had completely blocked the sewer with nappies. We were sat in the garden waiting for completion when we noticed the smell. The sewer went all round the house so we had to get drainage people in before we could flush the loo. 
  • DD92
    DD92 Posts: 34 Forumite
    Eighth Anniversary 10 Posts
    Marvel1 said:
    What date are you completing? Don't think Fiiday 20th is good idea. 
    Not leaving it that late - 17th. Just in time for Xmas 
  • Change all the locks as soon as you are in! a good idea in any event, but from the sound of your seller, you may want to advance it up the priority list a little! 
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  • DD92
    DD92 Posts: 34 Forumite
    Eighth Anniversary 10 Posts
    SDLT_Geek said:
    DD92 said:
    pinkshoes said:
    1. Nope. The house is not yours until completion happens. Do not enter. 

    2. If you rack up any costs, keep a tab of them and get receipts. You can claim reasonable costs.

    3. If he leaves crap behind you have an obligation to keep it safe and make it available for collection at a time convenient to you. He can't just turn up. Put it in bags and leave it in a garage or next to the front door. Any costs involved with removal of rubbish can be claimed, although to be honest it's not usually worth it. Just clean up and move on with life!

    Have you actually exchanged contacts yet?


    So does completion not happen until he's out. Even if money has changed hands and he's past the cut off in the contract? 

    Yeah we exchanged a couple of weeks ago to complete in a couple of days. 
    Completion happens when the solicitors agree it has happened.  Where there are doubts about vacant possession being given, you should set up with your solicitors an arrangement like this:
    • They send money to the seller's solicitors to hold "to their order" until completion is agreed.
    • You check at the property that the seller has moved out and confirm to the solicitors, so that they can then "release" the completion money and completion occurs.
    If you are using mortgage finance, then I expect it will be a condition of mortgage funds being made available that they are only released when there is vacant possession.

    I expect in practice there is usually a bit of "give and take" in terms of the time of completion, but as you are on notice that the seller could be difficult, then it is best to stick to a solid procedure.  It relies on you being at the property at the right time to see if he has gone with his furniture and belongings.

    Do not expect the seller to give you the keys direct.  The most common arrangement is for the seller to leave the keys with the estate agent, then the seller's solicitor calls the estate agent once completion has happened to confirm that the estate agent can release the keys to the buyer.
    This sounds sensible to me. Our seller is buying an empty probate house so presumably wouldn't be screwing over another part of the chain accidentally. Also I assume our seller would be on the hook twice for two lots of failure to complete if he messed around? 
  • Herzlos
    Herzlos Posts: 15,752 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    I'd have plans in place in case the place isn't available or livable on time. If he's difficult he may move out on time but do something stupid like take all the lightbulbs or leave the place a mess, in which case you maybe want to stay in a hotel for the night and then deal with the cleaning in the morning.

    It sounds like the biggest risk in your case is that he'll refuse any access until he's out, and will take his time providing keys to the estate agent meaning that if you get the keys that day it could be pretty late.

    Also, take lots of photos/videos of everything before you start cleaning up, should you want to pursue anything later.
  • Flugelhorn
    Flugelhorn Posts: 7,263 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    it is one of the really tricky things of having a load of furniture on the van that the chaps just want to offload ASAP and the place could do with a really good clean first 
  • Hoenir
    Hoenir Posts: 7,415 Forumite
    1,000 Posts First Anniversary Name Dropper
    Herzlos said:
    I'd have plans in place in case the place isn't available or livable on time. If he's difficult he may move out on time but do something stupid like take all the lightbulbs or leave the place a mess, in which case you maybe want to stay in a hotel for the night and then deal with the cleaning in the morning.


    Many years ago completed on the last Friday before Xmas. We eventually got the keys at 4.30 from the EA's. The previous owners had removed all the lightbulbs and the ignition switch on the gas boiler was broken. 
  • Herzlos
    Herzlos Posts: 15,752 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    edited 16 December 2024 at 2:59PM
    A friend of mine bought a house and the seller took the light switches, too. I think the house was sold from a messy divorce and the seller wanted a lot more money than they got. People can be unbelieable.

    So I'd avoid relying on anything working in the house on the first night, just in case. I'm not saying that it's likely, just not impossible.
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