Repossession going to auction

lenny83

Our offer was accepted on a repossession around 4 weeks ago. Didn't know it was a repo when we first viewed.

We are FTB's and the mortgage has taken a lot longer than expected to sort out, but through no fault of our own. The offer came through yesterday though:o And we paid and instructed the solicitor to start the searches (didn't do this previously as we were advised not to by solicitor and FA. It didn't look like we were going to get accepted for the mortgage so we would of lost a further £250)

Called the estate agents this evening to update them and they said, your 28 days is up the house is going to auction the first week in April.

If we can exchange before then it will be ours, but is it possible to exchange within about 15 days? We are clueless and tonight will be sleepless because I can't call the solicitor until the morning.

Is this what normally happens with repossessions? I can't believe they are so strict to put it to auction because we have gone past the deadline. Our offer is very close to the asking price!

Please help

Jorgan_2

Some repossessions go to auction, it depends on the mortgagee.

I think you have been badly advised by your solicitor & FA to only get the searches down after the mortgage offer was issued. Its a repo and you have 28 days to exchange, there maybe a little bit of flexibility on that deadline but not much. Your solicitor would have been aware that it was a repossession when the contract papers were received. The EA is not allowed to tell you its a repossession by the way.

What type of searches is your solicitor doing? If he is going via the council, rather than a search company, how long is the council taking to get the searches back? If there is a HIP with the property, they will probably be able to use the searches in the HIP.

Ask your solicitor to see if the mortgagee will allow you to exchange before the auction. They may well be dealing direct with the mortgagee's legal department where as the EA may dealing with a management company that is handling the sale.

On the bright side, if it goes to auction, you may be able to purchase the property for less than you have offered now, but it will be a gamble to take.

nelly_2

Ive got a threaad knocking about here about the exact same thing

lenny83

Thanks for the help Jorgan. I understand that if it goes to auction we might get it cheaper but it's a gamble I don't want to take.. I am happy with the price I have offered so I would like to exchange before the auction and asap!

Not entirely sure how the solicitor is doing the searches but I've just looked on the councils website and it says 3 working days or less. There is no HIP, it has been on the market for a while now.

I will know more tomorrow when I speak to the solicitor but I am extremely worried..really got hopes up when the offer came through (I know I shouldn't of but it's hard)

In your experience do you think they will let us exchange before the auction and would it be possible to do it in such a short time?

lenny83

Sorry nelly I didn't see it before I posted this thread but I've just found it. It sounds like the estate agent is on your side now but the one we are dealing with doesn't seem bothered if it goes to auction!

Jorgan_2

If the searches are back, or due back in the next couple of days, and your solicitor has raised any additional enquiries & had them answered, there is no reason why the exchange can't take place, as long as the seller agrees to it. I've had people complete on a purchase three weeks after the offer was accepted, so the timescale is possible.

As to whether they let you exchange, I have no idea. Some do, some don't. Good luck with your solicitor, they need to find the answers to these questions for you.

nelly_2

lenny83 wrote: »

Sorry nelly I didn't see it before I posted this thread but I've just found it. It sounds like the estate agent is on your side now but the one we are dealing with doesn't seem bothered if it goes to auction!

Id have thought it would be a similar situation.....dunno!

I said to the EA in my case ..well I might just bin it and go to the auction!

Now the girl in their office said they get nothing if it goes to auction but the gaffer said he still gets half commision... but they are really trying to get me what I want now ....I think.

See the thing is everyone deals with things in different ways I have opted to try to buy the house conventionally cos its less messing about and the house is actaully cheap (very cheap) I may get it less at auction or I may lose it all together either way NEVER set your heart on a pile of bricks I say

lenny83

Thanks for the advice

Will have to wait and see what solicitor says about it in the morning.

I have been on the agents website though and it says closing date for properties to go into the April auction was 7th March. This was before the date we had to exchange by, so looks like they had decided it would go to auction anyway!

:mad:

jackomdj

lenny83 wrote: »

I have been on the agents website though and it says closing date for properties to go into the April auction was 7th March. This was before the date we had to exchange by, so looks like they had decided it would go to auction anyway!

quote]

Not necessarily. We had a property which we were having problems selling as it had concrete cancer, so basically it was not mortgageable. We had an offer put on it & we told the people if they could complete before the auction date they could have it. We still "put it in for the auction" ie we paid the auction fee, but they managed to complete the transaction before the auction date...we actually exchanged & completed on the same day. The reason we did this was because we did not want to wait another 3 months (or whatever it was) for the next local auction if they pulled out.

Nicky

SquatNow

The bank will follow the terms of the contract exactly. If the contract say "go to auction after 28 days" then that's what they will do.

3 reasons:

1) If they sold the debt on the terms of that sale will require them to follow the terms of the loan exactly or buy the loan back... and take on any losses.

2) If they kept the debt and insured it, the terms of that insurance will require them to follow the terms of the loan exactly. If they don't they will invalidate the insurance... and take on the losses.

3) If they delay sale in any way outside the terms of the loan, and the money from the sale at auction does not cover the outstanding debt, the debtor could go to court and claim that the bank failed in it's duty of care to get the best value for the property, since in a declining maket the property drops in value on a daily basis. In that case a judge would be forced to stike out the outstanding debt.

lenny83

I understand what you mean SquatNow, but what I don't understand is that this is a house that has been on the market for a year. This price has been reduced three times. Several people have offered on it but they have always fell through for some reason or another. Why decide to put it to auction now after so long when we are so close to buying it? We would exchange on it tomorrow if possible!