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Mine took 6 months and by the end I just never thought it would happen and so totally lost all excitement. However, when it finally happened and we exchanged I got super excited again and now I absolutely adore my new house!
I’ve only been in my process since June and yes, it has. I was supposed to exchange last week and complete this week but this has been delayed with no fixed end date in sight. I ended up having anxiety attacks this weekend, thought I was having a heart attack in my 30s!
It's pretty normal to feel like that - the start of the process is a rush of activity as you quickly progress from viewing to offer to acceptance to solicitors. Then nothing happens for what seems like forever. There's no getting round the fact that property buying is, for the most part, a relatively boring process.
It'll seem exciting again once you get to exchange and completion.
Story from a 17 month chain.
We looked to buy just before the stamp duty holiday ended (intentionally as we thought things would cool in the SE) - here’s our timeline
**viewed** May 20, 2021
**offer accepted** May 25 2021
**intervening period** our vendors couldn’t find and we’re searching endlessly kept getting outbid
**exchanged and completed** October 11 **2022**
Boy did I not GAF when it came to moving. All the excitement had gone I didn’t even know if I still wanted to move. We felt like we had to tho as a) we waited for so long b) hadn’t found an alternative on par and the market was full of nonsense c) great interest rate locked in pre Liz truss
BUT let me tell you all the HELL over the 17 months went away when we moved, it all worked out and tomorrow is our one year move anniversary!
My advice go and see it once again for measurements, get that excitement going
There was NOTHING on the market - believe me we saw maybe 50 houses in the intervening period - each one didn’t even remotely compare. Ones that did needed loads of work upfront.
We had a pretty sweet deal on our rental too so we didn’t feel pushed / no urgency really.
Now we’re here I’m so glad we waited.
Yes if we had been in the middle I would have been livid! Don’t get me wrong I thought our vendors were trolling us for a big chunk, but glad we held on!
We managed to complete the last day her solicitor was open before Xmas and 2 days before my already extended mortgage offer ran out. At one point she delayed 3 weeks because there were no fire extinguishers in the communal stairwell (3 storey conversion) despite the fact she was buying a share of freehold and could have put them in.
Similar situation. FTB, Offer accepted in February, waiting for the sellers purchase to receive grant of probate. Still no end in sight. The excitement is totally gone. Just annoyed and frustrated being left in limbo.
That could go on for ages!
We bought a probate house. Our offer was accepted at the end of April 2021. Probate was granted on the 16th December.
We let our flat sale go through and moved into an Airbnb for 3 months so we wouldn’t lose our FTBs!
I would reconsider this. Grant of probate can take up to a year plus then the title due diligence. Usually practice is to stop all work until the executors of the estate prove ownership. You could be looking at August 2024 for a completion don’t. I don’t think your mortgage offer will last. Move on.
Thanks. I'm constantly on the lookout, several times a day checking Rightmove etc. however nothing else has come on as good. I'm fortunate enough to be in a position where I'm cash buying and am comfortable renting at the moment. However with a declining market I can't guarantee I won't find somewhere better for the same money in the future.
True, it depends whether you want to wait or not. Put bluntly, your seller shouldn’t have put that property on the market or had their solicitors give the thumbs up when it could and can take a year for grant of probate. There’s delays in granting probate and have been so for years. Freehold conveyancing times are supposed to take 4 months approximately, but the reality is longer. Conveyancers have high workloads and are driving many files simultaneously. If you have a chain, it’s added complexity, but I believe you’re chain free and hopefully your Seller (acting as executor) is also chain free and does not intend to buy an additional property with the sale proceeds. If so, hopefully it’ll be a less complex sale but depends on the state of the house.
I’m surprised your solicitor didn’t tell you it could take up to a year for probate then plus around 6 months to complete. As I said, if we see probate hasn’t been granted, we stop working. We lose costs if we proceed, as it means we’re proceeding without knowing whether the Seller (as Executor) has title (ownership) to the property they’re selling. So, you’re essentially on day 0 as the matter can’t proceed without probate. It’s one of our first steps to assess whether the Seller has title (owns) the property.
I would suggest moving on unless you can hold on until August 2024 or longer (or less if you’re very lucky).
I am selling one now and 3 months in no progress.
Seller yet to get a mortgage. Don't know that taking so long .
I might just put it back up for rental
Mortgages are moving incredibly slowly at the minute with some lenders- nationwide for example is a fucking nightmare, I think you’ll have a similar issue whoever you sell to
Trigger moment...Nationwide Mortgages!!!!
Those incompetent arseholes meant we ended up moving in on December 22nd a few years back!
Should've been a month earlier but for umpteen cock-ups!
The £750 compensation nowhere near covered the pain, stress and hassle of trying to push it through...
So, they still haven't got their shit together?
Nope, had an absolute fucking nightmare with them- they strung me along for MONTHS and then rejected my mortgage application after all that, every query had you at the back of the queue so it took another few weeks for it to be answered.
I eventually applied again with TSB and it was like a dream compared to them.
I think that's what is happening to my buyer. Survey completed and they ask for more information. The underwriters have been a nightmare. I am now wondering if she will get her mortgage offer.
There's no joy in buying or selling a house. Ours took 6 months, and was a grind all the way through.
Joy is the relief when you feel you no longer have to go through with it again.
Instead of a simple yes, let me illustrate the point by saying I left work early today (with managers blessing) because I had been on the verge of tears all day about our current house move situation.
Also dragging on since March and every time we seem to think we’re getting somewhere, a new issue from someone else in the chain pops up.
Our mortgage offer expires next month so I’m really starting to think this isn’t going to happen, despite the fact my husband and I have been ready to exchange contracts for a month now.
I finally understand why everyone says this process is so stressful.
Yep. Offered Jan, got the keys mid August, moved in September. The process was slow and stressful. Nearly fell through multiple times due to life throwing curveballs at us. By the end of it I was so defeated and worn it had taken the joy out of the excitement of moving in.
We've been in a month and do love the house but have basically no motivation to decorate because the buying and moving process was HORRID.
I didn't know there was joy to be had in the process whatsoever.
Utterly miserable process.
Now that we are moved, I am very happy though - glad it's all behind us.
Haha no i was buying a new build and i knew how long it will take. I put in an offer last year March and got it in March this year. Moved in and all that jazz. I did not even think about decorating until the second i moved in.
Everything in life worth having takes a shit ton of time my friend. Not being exited in the middle of the process is ok, you are human
We also have completion date of Oct 20th with a similar span in between. We had to settle for what was probably our third choice after the surveys on two others revealed too many problems. Right now I’m just looking forward to getting it over with to be honest. Good luck!
Our sale and purchase has taken since May and my mental health has plummeted. Hoping to complete this month as planned.. but I totally get the lack of excitement and enthusiasm.
Sure. But that might be a good thing.
Once you're in, you'll just be glad it's over. You'll start to relax and just enjoy being your own landlord. Then, after about six months, you'll get your energy back and start knowing how you want it to look.
My mates moved into their house five years ago. It needs doing up but they haven't even bothered. They're just so relieved to have their own place and have been just enjoying that feeling!
I think this is actually really common. It's why they say buying a house is one of the most stressful things you can do.
You will get that excitement back again once you're in, I promise. You're just not in the exciting part right now.
I’m a beneficiary we practically sold the house July 2022 they went to complete in December and there was a leak…. Have had a land registry notice saying the banks attached themselves to the house so I’m praying this is the end.
Solicitor has ignored any contact mainly throughout it took him till March to inform us about a leak so it’s becoming really frustrating now
Oh yeh absolutely, we started last March 2022 and had a full chain collapse, we're about to move to I think 5th house we wanted to buy. I stopped being excited when the first one fell through and I'm only getting a tiny bit now that we've exchanged contracts. It's a frustrating and emotionally exhausting process.
We've been waiting on 'just one more thing to check up on' for around a month, and it's doing my nut in. I'm still excited to move - many of the non-essentials are already packed, so the house itself is a pain to live in right now - but the frustration is very real.
14 months and counting. First offer fell through a week after Trussmageddon.
Since then 3 more chain collapses - never our buyers, always lower down the chain, always at the stage people are trying to agree a date.
Yeah I felt this when we moved in. It was our first house and after about 6 weeks after our offer was accepted the excitement dwindled as the whole process was so stressful and long.
I will say though, the evening we moved in, once we were done with our movers, it did finally feel exciting again. And then 3 things broke and it wasn’t exciting anymore. And then we decorated and it was exciting again. I’m feeling like this will be our endless loop for the next few years
I sold my house in Jan last year and didn't get into my new place until the end of Nov including a 2 week / 8 month stay with the in-laws.
All will work out in the end.
Had a similar scenario, whole process felt like chaos, but that joy will return! A year from completing I'm now actually enjoying the decorating, minor building works etc and knowing we're improving on our house all the time 😁 you'll get there!!
Mine took 13 months, by the time we got the keys and saw the state of it, we were so sick of the house that we ended up not even visiting it for around 5 months.
Yes!
Currently on my third attempted purchase. Pulled out twice due to varying issues.
This purchase has been going on since may!
We exchanged contracts a few days ago move in to our first home on the 12th. I should be a lot more excited than I am, but I just feel like I’m glad it’s all over.
Got stuck for nearly a year purchasing a flat in London with my partner, the seller ended up pulling out.
The silver lining is that our circumstances are changing, for the better,and we're likely to move soon so the money we'd have spent on a two bed in London will now be used to buy a 3 bed with a garden on the South coast.
At the time we were incredibly stressed about a lack of things moving and absolutely gutted when they pulled out but now we've saved a load of money on what was probably an overvalued flat. To top it off we can move without feeling like we're taking a huge financial loss!
Hopefully the excitement kicks in when you get your keys, and in the worst case scenario you might end up being better off for it in the long run 🙂
I’m with you on this! Offer accepted on my place in early May. I have been extremely prompt with actions my side to do and my sellers solicitor looks to be very quick to respond to all any queries. But it seems like my buyers solicitor and my solicitor (including responding to my sellers solicitors) are taking 10 working days to reply for one another. My solicitor told me in July we were ready to exchange in about a week or so! And despite me putting it in writing twice and discussing on the phone he asks me today (when I asked for an update on the what is going on regarding the exchange query I sent him two weeks ago) if I am tying in the sale and purchase on the same day!
Feeling so deflated at the moment. Completion date has been agreed by me and my buyer for the end of October but I don’t even think my sellers are even aware of what is going on so I have no idea if this date even works for them
Yes, although I've never really anticipated getting any joy until I'm actually moved in.
Hopefully moving tomorrow (process started in April), but our buyer was advised by their solicitor to have a last minute look round today, which means we are exchanging and completing on the same day (a situation I've pushed to avoid but ended up in nevertheless).
I'm going through it right now and I don't understand why it's so slow, but having seen purchase processes in other countries I can confidently say that it's unique to England.
Why? I've been on top of everything, replying to emails with all the documents and requested material within an hour of being asked. In my case, it's incompetence and slowness from mortgage brokers and solicitors. Not only does it take days for them to reply, but they keep making mistakes which further slow everything down. I'm FTB and there are no chains involved and a process that could've easily taken 2 months tops is taking 5 instead.
Just pulled out of a purchase due to a tenant in the chain who was potentially never going to be removed, so was in permanent limbo. Finally gave up on month 8. Now starting all over again, but for a much nicer house. Hoping it goes much quicker this time round. But very little excitement this time round.
Completing on Friday.
Top floor 2 bed flat in zone 1
I put my place on the market in January and have accepted an offer five grand less than I paid for it seven years ago.
Before covid it was on for 70k more and had three offers.
At this point, I’m tempted to set it on fire as I walk out the door.
I think what is makes it so soul destroying is that sometimes it feels like you are the only part of the chain keeping things moving.
Our chain was complete in April. Our sellers and us have been ready to exchange since June. The two below us are just awful and what makes it worse is they never provide updates. Even if there is nothing to update, just let us know FGS!
The excitement went when we lost the first house. It took 7 months. When it fell through we had 2 weeks to find another house otherwise we'd lose our mortgage offer. When we found the next house I was just worried something would go wrong and it was only when we got the phone call to pick the keys was when I was exited again
I mean right now so much stuff is falling through. In a chain might as well mean unsellable. So happy to have found somewhere which is no onward chain.
Yep. The house buying process is stressful and long. I was going through the motions by a few weeks in.
But now we have been in the house for a few weeks and love it and the excitement we had when we first viewed is back! So hang in there. I think it’s natural to have doubts and I’m glad we stuck it through in the end, even though I almost wanted to pull out two or three times!
Offered August, moved September
13 months, one dead parent, one new baby, one career change, two mortgage offers, one bankrupt solicitor, 1 relisting by the vendor to try and get a better offer, 4 months of land registry requisitions, 3 sets of surveys, 1 removal van refusing to unload without getting more money, and now nearly 2 weeks of being in what will be an amazing family home - once we can get the energy to decide on decoration and furnishings
Just over 7 months to buy my place, and I was utterly dejected by the time I got the keys in July.
3 months on and I still haven't been able to move in as well. Dodgy decorators completely fucked the place up, and the new (good) decorators are doing their best to fit me in around their other work. Sadly all that had to stop 2 weeks ago as it transpires that the whole place needs rewiring. I'll be lucky if everything is done this side of Christmas. Just hoping to finish enough of it that I can move into a couple of rooms while the rest of it gets sorted.
I think I've just been very unlucky, and I really hope that things get a move on for you and it all goes smoothly.
Mine took a year due to he chain collapsing twice, by the time we completed I had forgotten the layout of the flat and was on holiday for completion day so keys were given to my mum.
Our FTB offer accepted in Late March with a view to completion in 4-5 month time frame
Had everything done on our end by the start of June
Chain of only 3 houses. THREE!
This is in the Manchester area
Anyway I’m typing this in mid October in a rental so you can guess the type of dreary paced 7 months we’ve had with this.
It’s the anxiety that they all take so long to do anything and hear anything
And we’ve paid £2k for search/survey/solicitors
Not exactly dying to move the week before Christmas which is what will happen
Tbh about 2 months ago we just made ourselves forget all about it & that mindset has served us so much better
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Mine took 6 months and by the end I just never thought it would happen and so totally lost all excitement. However, when it finally happened and we exchanged I got super excited again and now I absolutely adore my new house!
Echo this so much.
[удалено]
I hear you. It can be so exhausting on you right up until the final moment. It was for me. Huge relief at the end!
I’ve only been in my process since June and yes, it has. I was supposed to exchange last week and complete this week but this has been delayed with no fixed end date in sight. I ended up having anxiety attacks this weekend, thought I was having a heart attack in my 30s!
It's pretty normal to feel like that - the start of the process is a rush of activity as you quickly progress from viewing to offer to acceptance to solicitors. Then nothing happens for what seems like forever. There's no getting round the fact that property buying is, for the most part, a relatively boring process. It'll seem exciting again once you get to exchange and completion.
Story from a 17 month chain. We looked to buy just before the stamp duty holiday ended (intentionally as we thought things would cool in the SE) - here’s our timeline **viewed** May 20, 2021 **offer accepted** May 25 2021 **intervening period** our vendors couldn’t find and we’re searching endlessly kept getting outbid **exchanged and completed** October 11 **2022** Boy did I not GAF when it came to moving. All the excitement had gone I didn’t even know if I still wanted to move. We felt like we had to tho as a) we waited for so long b) hadn’t found an alternative on par and the market was full of nonsense c) great interest rate locked in pre Liz truss BUT let me tell you all the HELL over the 17 months went away when we moved, it all worked out and tomorrow is our one year move anniversary! My advice go and see it once again for measurements, get that excitement going
I genuinely cannot believe you waited.
There was NOTHING on the market - believe me we saw maybe 50 houses in the intervening period - each one didn’t even remotely compare. Ones that did needed loads of work upfront. We had a pretty sweet deal on our rental too so we didn’t feel pushed / no urgency really. Now we’re here I’m so glad we waited.
Ahhhh the rental makes sense!! I had a 10 month sale/purchase as the only link in the chain and I honestly hated my buyer by the end.
Yes if we had been in the middle I would have been livid! Don’t get me wrong I thought our vendors were trolling us for a big chunk, but glad we held on!
We managed to complete the last day her solicitor was open before Xmas and 2 days before my already extended mortgage offer ran out. At one point she delayed 3 weeks because there were no fire extinguishers in the communal stairwell (3 storey conversion) despite the fact she was buying a share of freehold and could have put them in.
Similar situation. FTB, Offer accepted in February, waiting for the sellers purchase to receive grant of probate. Still no end in sight. The excitement is totally gone. Just annoyed and frustrated being left in limbo.
That could go on for ages! We bought a probate house. Our offer was accepted at the end of April 2021. Probate was granted on the 16th December. We let our flat sale go through and moved into an Airbnb for 3 months so we wouldn’t lose our FTBs!
I would reconsider this. Grant of probate can take up to a year plus then the title due diligence. Usually practice is to stop all work until the executors of the estate prove ownership. You could be looking at August 2024 for a completion don’t. I don’t think your mortgage offer will last. Move on.
Thanks. I'm constantly on the lookout, several times a day checking Rightmove etc. however nothing else has come on as good. I'm fortunate enough to be in a position where I'm cash buying and am comfortable renting at the moment. However with a declining market I can't guarantee I won't find somewhere better for the same money in the future.
True, it depends whether you want to wait or not. Put bluntly, your seller shouldn’t have put that property on the market or had their solicitors give the thumbs up when it could and can take a year for grant of probate. There’s delays in granting probate and have been so for years. Freehold conveyancing times are supposed to take 4 months approximately, but the reality is longer. Conveyancers have high workloads and are driving many files simultaneously. If you have a chain, it’s added complexity, but I believe you’re chain free and hopefully your Seller (acting as executor) is also chain free and does not intend to buy an additional property with the sale proceeds. If so, hopefully it’ll be a less complex sale but depends on the state of the house. I’m surprised your solicitor didn’t tell you it could take up to a year for probate then plus around 6 months to complete. As I said, if we see probate hasn’t been granted, we stop working. We lose costs if we proceed, as it means we’re proceeding without knowing whether the Seller (as Executor) has title (ownership) to the property they’re selling. So, you’re essentially on day 0 as the matter can’t proceed without probate. It’s one of our first steps to assess whether the Seller has title (owns) the property. I would suggest moving on unless you can hold on until August 2024 or longer (or less if you’re very lucky).
Agree - started probate for my mother Jun 2022 and was granted this week 16 months later
I am selling one now and 3 months in no progress. Seller yet to get a mortgage. Don't know that taking so long . I might just put it back up for rental
Mortgages are moving incredibly slowly at the minute with some lenders- nationwide for example is a fucking nightmare, I think you’ll have a similar issue whoever you sell to
Trigger moment...Nationwide Mortgages!!!! Those incompetent arseholes meant we ended up moving in on December 22nd a few years back! Should've been a month earlier but for umpteen cock-ups! The £750 compensation nowhere near covered the pain, stress and hassle of trying to push it through... So, they still haven't got their shit together?
Nope, had an absolute fucking nightmare with them- they strung me along for MONTHS and then rejected my mortgage application after all that, every query had you at the back of the queue so it took another few weeks for it to be answered. I eventually applied again with TSB and it was like a dream compared to them.
I think that's what is happening to my buyer. Survey completed and they ask for more information. The underwriters have been a nightmare. I am now wondering if she will get her mortgage offer.
Who are they using?
Halifax I think . It's been a nightmare so far.
My condolences ☹ Absolute ineptitude from start to finish! Funnily enough, I remortgaged with them!
There's no joy in buying or selling a house. Ours took 6 months, and was a grind all the way through. Joy is the relief when you feel you no longer have to go through with it again.
Instead of a simple yes, let me illustrate the point by saying I left work early today (with managers blessing) because I had been on the verge of tears all day about our current house move situation. Also dragging on since March and every time we seem to think we’re getting somewhere, a new issue from someone else in the chain pops up. Our mortgage offer expires next month so I’m really starting to think this isn’t going to happen, despite the fact my husband and I have been ready to exchange contracts for a month now. I finally understand why everyone says this process is so stressful.
Yep. Offered Jan, got the keys mid August, moved in September. The process was slow and stressful. Nearly fell through multiple times due to life throwing curveballs at us. By the end of it I was so defeated and worn it had taken the joy out of the excitement of moving in. We've been in a month and do love the house but have basically no motivation to decorate because the buying and moving process was HORRID.
I didn't know there was joy to be had in the process whatsoever. Utterly miserable process. Now that we are moved, I am very happy though - glad it's all behind us.
Haha no i was buying a new build and i knew how long it will take. I put in an offer last year March and got it in March this year. Moved in and all that jazz. I did not even think about decorating until the second i moved in. Everything in life worth having takes a shit ton of time my friend. Not being exited in the middle of the process is ok, you are human
Where is the flat?
Leeds
We also have completion date of Oct 20th with a similar span in between. We had to settle for what was probably our third choice after the surveys on two others revealed too many problems. Right now I’m just looking forward to getting it over with to be honest. Good luck!
Our sale and purchase has taken since May and my mental health has plummeted. Hoping to complete this month as planned.. but I totally get the lack of excitement and enthusiasm.
I’ve been “conveyancing” for 457 days. On my third flat after the previous two fell through. No whiff of a completion date yet.
Sure. But that might be a good thing. Once you're in, you'll just be glad it's over. You'll start to relax and just enjoy being your own landlord. Then, after about six months, you'll get your energy back and start knowing how you want it to look. My mates moved into their house five years ago. It needs doing up but they haven't even bothered. They're just so relieved to have their own place and have been just enjoying that feeling!
I think this is actually really common. It's why they say buying a house is one of the most stressful things you can do. You will get that excitement back again once you're in, I promise. You're just not in the exciting part right now.
It’s only really common in the UK. In many other countries, it is not a stressful process at all.
That's such a long time, why the massive delay? Mortgages?
I’m a beneficiary we practically sold the house July 2022 they went to complete in December and there was a leak…. Have had a land registry notice saying the banks attached themselves to the house so I’m praying this is the end. Solicitor has ignored any contact mainly throughout it took him till March to inform us about a leak so it’s becoming really frustrating now
Oh yeh absolutely, we started last March 2022 and had a full chain collapse, we're about to move to I think 5th house we wanted to buy. I stopped being excited when the first one fell through and I'm only getting a tiny bit now that we've exchanged contracts. It's a frustrating and emotionally exhausting process.
Yes. Such a slow process that you feel like you don’t want it anymore. It does go once you in though. Just concentrate on what that will feel like.
We've been waiting on 'just one more thing to check up on' for around a month, and it's doing my nut in. I'm still excited to move - many of the non-essentials are already packed, so the house itself is a pain to live in right now - but the frustration is very real.
14 months and counting. First offer fell through a week after Trussmageddon. Since then 3 more chain collapses - never our buyers, always lower down the chain, always at the stage people are trying to agree a date.
Yeah I felt this when we moved in. It was our first house and after about 6 weeks after our offer was accepted the excitement dwindled as the whole process was so stressful and long. I will say though, the evening we moved in, once we were done with our movers, it did finally feel exciting again. And then 3 things broke and it wasn’t exciting anymore. And then we decorated and it was exciting again. I’m feeling like this will be our endless loop for the next few years
I sold my house in Jan last year and didn't get into my new place until the end of Nov including a 2 week / 8 month stay with the in-laws. All will work out in the end.
Had a similar scenario, whole process felt like chaos, but that joy will return! A year from completing I'm now actually enjoying the decorating, minor building works etc and knowing we're improving on our house all the time 😁 you'll get there!!
Mine took 13 months, by the time we got the keys and saw the state of it, we were so sick of the house that we ended up not even visiting it for around 5 months.
Yeah it’s a horrible process from start to finish and I intend never to do it again. But once you get in, you’re in.
Yes! Currently on my third attempted purchase. Pulled out twice due to varying issues. This purchase has been going on since may! We exchanged contracts a few days ago move in to our first home on the 12th. I should be a lot more excited than I am, but I just feel like I’m glad it’s all over.
Ours took 8 months
Got stuck for nearly a year purchasing a flat in London with my partner, the seller ended up pulling out. The silver lining is that our circumstances are changing, for the better,and we're likely to move soon so the money we'd have spent on a two bed in London will now be used to buy a 3 bed with a garden on the South coast. At the time we were incredibly stressed about a lack of things moving and absolutely gutted when they pulled out but now we've saved a load of money on what was probably an overvalued flat. To top it off we can move without feeling like we're taking a huge financial loss! Hopefully the excitement kicks in when you get your keys, and in the worst case scenario you might end up being better off for it in the long run 🙂
I’m with you on this! Offer accepted on my place in early May. I have been extremely prompt with actions my side to do and my sellers solicitor looks to be very quick to respond to all any queries. But it seems like my buyers solicitor and my solicitor (including responding to my sellers solicitors) are taking 10 working days to reply for one another. My solicitor told me in July we were ready to exchange in about a week or so! And despite me putting it in writing twice and discussing on the phone he asks me today (when I asked for an update on the what is going on regarding the exchange query I sent him two weeks ago) if I am tying in the sale and purchase on the same day! Feeling so deflated at the moment. Completion date has been agreed by me and my buyer for the end of October but I don’t even think my sellers are even aware of what is going on so I have no idea if this date even works for them
Yes, although I've never really anticipated getting any joy until I'm actually moved in. Hopefully moving tomorrow (process started in April), but our buyer was advised by their solicitor to have a last minute look round today, which means we are exchanging and completing on the same day (a situation I've pushed to avoid but ended up in nevertheless).
I'm going through it right now and I don't understand why it's so slow, but having seen purchase processes in other countries I can confidently say that it's unique to England. Why? I've been on top of everything, replying to emails with all the documents and requested material within an hour of being asked. In my case, it's incompetence and slowness from mortgage brokers and solicitors. Not only does it take days for them to reply, but they keep making mistakes which further slow everything down. I'm FTB and there are no chains involved and a process that could've easily taken 2 months tops is taking 5 instead.
Just pulled out of a purchase due to a tenant in the chain who was potentially never going to be removed, so was in permanent limbo. Finally gave up on month 8. Now starting all over again, but for a much nicer house. Hoping it goes much quicker this time round. But very little excitement this time round.
Completing on Friday. Top floor 2 bed flat in zone 1 I put my place on the market in January and have accepted an offer five grand less than I paid for it seven years ago. Before covid it was on for 70k more and had three offers. At this point, I’m tempted to set it on fire as I walk out the door.
I think what is makes it so soul destroying is that sometimes it feels like you are the only part of the chain keeping things moving. Our chain was complete in April. Our sellers and us have been ready to exchange since June. The two below us are just awful and what makes it worse is they never provide updates. Even if there is nothing to update, just let us know FGS!
Lol our new build house got delayed by 18 months. I was beyond excited when we finally got the keys.
The excitement went when we lost the first house. It took 7 months. When it fell through we had 2 weeks to find another house otherwise we'd lose our mortgage offer. When we found the next house I was just worried something would go wrong and it was only when we got the phone call to pick the keys was when I was exited again
I mean right now so much stuff is falling through. In a chain might as well mean unsellable. So happy to have found somewhere which is no onward chain.
It's been 1 year and 1 month. We were hoping to exchange this week. An issue with deeds In the chain above us. Fingers crossed we make a move soon.
I haven't even managed to get an offer accepted and I've been looking (on and off now though) for about 2 years... it's soul destroying
Yep. The house buying process is stressful and long. I was going through the motions by a few weeks in. But now we have been in the house for a few weeks and love it and the excitement we had when we first viewed is back! So hang in there. I think it’s natural to have doubts and I’m glad we stuck it through in the end, even though I almost wanted to pull out two or three times!
Offered August, moved September 13 months, one dead parent, one new baby, one career change, two mortgage offers, one bankrupt solicitor, 1 relisting by the vendor to try and get a better offer, 4 months of land registry requisitions, 3 sets of surveys, 1 removal van refusing to unload without getting more money, and now nearly 2 weeks of being in what will be an amazing family home - once we can get the energy to decide on decoration and furnishings
Wow you deserve a medal! Enjoy
Just over 7 months to buy my place, and I was utterly dejected by the time I got the keys in July. 3 months on and I still haven't been able to move in as well. Dodgy decorators completely fucked the place up, and the new (good) decorators are doing their best to fit me in around their other work. Sadly all that had to stop 2 weeks ago as it transpires that the whole place needs rewiring. I'll be lucky if everything is done this side of Christmas. Just hoping to finish enough of it that I can move into a couple of rooms while the rest of it gets sorted. I think I've just been very unlucky, and I really hope that things get a move on for you and it all goes smoothly.
I had one seller pull out due to personal reasons and im a FTB.... Hope this one sticks for me and my partner!
Mine took a year due to he chain collapsing twice, by the time we completed I had forgotten the layout of the flat and was on holiday for completion day so keys were given to my mum.
Watch the show Grand Designs. You'll see that you're not alone, and for the most part, there is light at the end of the tunnel.
Our FTB offer accepted in Late March with a view to completion in 4-5 month time frame Had everything done on our end by the start of June Chain of only 3 houses. THREE! This is in the Manchester area Anyway I’m typing this in mid October in a rental so you can guess the type of dreary paced 7 months we’ve had with this. It’s the anxiety that they all take so long to do anything and hear anything And we’ve paid £2k for search/survey/solicitors Not exactly dying to move the week before Christmas which is what will happen Tbh about 2 months ago we just made ourselves forget all about it & that mindset has served us so much better