The nervous wait to exchange....

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Joys, solicitor has managed to lose documents vital to our mortgage application and it's only after a week of constantly chasing they have admitted to it.

Already getting a worse mortgage rate because of the delay and looking likely will lose the house now and sellers are threatening to relist.

Not filled with confidence if it does move forward, no doubt a load more issues with them to come.
 
Gotta love solicitors.

Solicitor: 1st September, your purchasers are requesting a boiler service.
Me: 1st Setember, ok I'll get that done.
Me: 8th September, here's the boiler service certificate.
Estate agent: 9th November, do you have the boiler service certificate the buyers solicitors don't say they have it.


How are these people paid so much and yet are so ******* incompetent. It makes my blood boil.
 
Mason- said:
Gotta love solicitors.

Solicitor: 1st September, your purchasers are requesting a boiler service.
Me: 1st Setember, ok I'll get that done.
Me: 8th September, here's the boiler service certificate.
Estate agent: 9th November, do you have the boiler service certificate the buyers solicitors don't say they have it.


How are these people paid so much and yet are so ******* incompetent. It makes my blood boil.
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I suspect that it's because for conveyancing they're not really charging much - relative to other services they offer. So they put the more junior people on it.
 
Basher said:
I suspect that it's because for conveyancing they're not really charging much - relative to other services they offer. So they put the more junior people on it.
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She’s a partner of quite a big firm. After this is through I’m gonna write a pretty snotty email to their lead partner/owner.
 
I know one conveyancer got the sack locally, and one from another company locally who was supposed to be my conveyancer got ""furloughed"" in July, lightly the sack also.

Well, just to join in on the glorious positivity here, though genuine congrats to those who've exchanged on the previous page :D
..My mortgage offer runs out in 2 weeks. After speaking to the bank again, this time the actual guy who was dealing with my offer said he will check to see they still offer a 28 day extension they used to offer as he wasn't sure. The previous guy was just plain, no, no extension for you. March 4/5th offer was accepted, even that was a joke, zero chain up and down too.
 
Was due to exchange on a flat I'm selling this week. Buyers solicitor now say they want a Deed of Variation on the lease (+£2000) because it's "defective". My solicitor and the freeholders solicitor say "it's not defective, just older". Buyer's solicitor says they don't care and will be advising no sale without it.
Already accepted a below valuation offer due to no chain.

Selling a flat is THE most stressful thing I've ever done.
 
midweek said:
Was due to exchange on a flat I'm selling this week. Buyers solicitor now say they want a Deed of Variation on the lease (+£2000) because it's "defective". My solicitor and the freeholders solicitor say "it's not defective, just older". Buyer's solicitor says they don't care and will be advising no sale without it.
Already accepted a below valuation offer due to no chain.

Selling a flat is THE most stressful thing I've ever done.
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So what do you plan to do?
 
midweek said:
Honestly don't know yet. Tell them no and if they pull out of the sale just put it back on the market or take the hit and be done with it.
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Do you need the 2k? Times are tough and selling leasehold flats is a nightmare, if it has to go back on the market will you lose more money in legal fees or storage for example if you are paying to a room somewhere for stuff. Will it cause you to lose out on your new property?

- GP

Edit: Also get your estate agent to speak to the buyer and see if thye are aware of the shennanigans etc. Sometimes that can have some sway
 
well the house went on sale today and the board went up! first time seller so all a bit nervous about it all, especially at this point in time! Looking for a place in nottingham of all places but you get a load more house for your money there than here (Cambs). Will have to wait for some serious interest before i can go viewing but there seems to be a lot on the market up there. Its all an adventure!
 
Anyone getting nervous about stamp duty exemption running out at the end of March?
Just had my solicitor apply for searches, so may take 4+ weeks for that to come back. I'm in a chain of 4 with no idea how everyone else is getting on.
 
midweek said:
Was due to exchange on a flat I'm selling this week. Buyers solicitor now say they want a Deed of Variation on the lease (+£2000) because it's "defective". My solicitor and the freeholders solicitor say "it's not defective, just older". Buyer's solicitor says they don't care and will be advising no sale without it.
Already accepted a below valuation offer due to no chain.

Selling a flat is THE most stressful thing I've ever done.
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What's the defect?
 
Mason- said:
Gotta love solicitors.

Solicitor: 1st September, your purchasers are requesting a boiler service.
Me: 1st Setember, ok I'll get that done.
Me: 8th September, here's the boiler service certificate.
Estate agent: 9th November, do you have the boiler service certificate the buyers solicitors don't say they have it.


How are these people paid so much and yet are so ******* incompetent. It makes my blood boil.
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And how come nothing happened in the meantime, did you wait a month before seeing if anything had been done? Why weren't the agents being proactive and moving things forward? Your blame goes entirely on the solicitors but presumably you're paying the agents somewhere between the same and 10x what the solicitors get depending on whether it's online or high street agents and the value of the property. Shouldn't they be doing something to earn their extortionate fees?

Put yourself in the solicitors shoes, if they're anything like my place they'll be the busiest they have ever been, it's not a time to be able to go back over every case on a regular basis to make sure nothing has been missed however unfortunate that might be. If they missed you sending over the certificate and nothing else came from the buyers solicitors and nothing from you or the agents it's possible your case hadn't been looked at since. Yes, that's **** but it's a reality of the process. Selling a property is mostly reactive.
 
Skillmister said:
What's the defect?
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Provisions for termination of the Lease in the event of damage / destructions, division of insurance proceeds between the respective interests in the building, an obligation on the landlord to make good any shortfall in proceeds of insurance

3 of the 4 flats have changed hands in the last 10 years (1 multiple times) without this ever coming up. Apparently it isn't mentioned in the Lenders Handbook either as a requirement.
 
Skillmister said:
And how come nothing happened in the meantime, did you wait a month before seeing if anything had been done? Why weren't the agents being proactive and moving things forward? Your blame goes entirely on the solicitors but presumably you're paying the agents somewhere between the same and 10x what the solicitors get depending on whether it's online or high street agents and the value of the property. Shouldn't they be doing something to earn their extortionate fees?

Put yourself in the solicitors shoes, if they're anything like my place they'll be the busiest they have ever been, it's not a time to be able to go back over every case on a regular basis to make sure nothing has been missed however unfortunate that might be. If they missed you sending over the certificate and nothing else came from the buyers solicitors and nothing from you or the agents it's possible your case hadn't been looked at since. Yes, that's **** but it's a reality of the process. Selling a property is mostly reactive.
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These excuses are absolutely terrible. It’s not my fault you’re at your most busy. So am I in my own job it doesn’t mean I can just be negligent. Simple fact is, if your company is taking on too much work at one time, then that is a failure of your company. You can say “no sorry we have too many clients at the moment”. That’s the right thing to do.

Instead what you’re implying is it’s the people that kick and scream the most that get the fastest process. Which, again, is a terrible attitude. I send emails once a week asking for an update further (which I think is reasonable), I was ignored for 4 weeks until I sent a really snotty email asking them to respond. It’s completely unacceptable. I don’t understand why you’re being so defensive. I know you’re a conveyancer, but my problem is with the firm I’m using not you. They can be incompetent you know without it reflecting on yourself personally? Of all the hills to die on, I don’t think defending the solicitors who don’t send a document on for 2 months and take on too much work due to terrible mismanagement is the best one to go for.
 
Mason- said:
Gotta love solicitors.

Solicitor: 1st September, your purchasers are requesting a boiler service.
Me: 1st Setember, ok I'll get that done.
Me: 8th September, here's the boiler service certificate.
Estate agent: 9th November, do you have the boiler service certificate the buyers solicitors don't say they have it.


How are these people paid so much and yet are so ******* incompetent. It makes my blood boil.
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I see where you coming from, my solicitors replied to buyers enquires back in Oct within a day yet they claimed not to have received this and didn't bother chasing up. I know they were replied to within a day as i have a portal that can see all correspondance going out.
 
2004typer said:
Next complication has arisen - our buyers are having a nightmare getting searches back from the Local Authority. Apparently it's normally a 5-10 day turnaround, but due to the Covid situation extended to between 10-20 days. I'm aware they were submitted to the Local Authority on 8th October so being proactive I chased the Local Authority myself - cue more bad news - as it stands they are still processing the searches submitted at start of September, so our buyers searches are still another month up the pile, so the likely response time is looking to be another 4 weeks at an absolute minimum, so a grand total of probably around two months by the time they get anything back - absolutely appealing if you ask me even with the Covid situation.

I'm being pestered by the chain above us - we're ready to exchange with the chap we are buying off, and so is he with the person above at the top (our buyer is bottom of chain with nothing to sell). Note - they were late into the party after our previous buyer lost their buyer, so we had to re-market six weeks ago but luckily managed to resell within a week, and we managed to retain the rest of the chain above us (but only just).

But at this rate I can see them getting peeved off and pulling the plug on me, for something essentially out of my control.

I've got our councillor involved, and I'm going to keep pestering the Local Authority, and our buyer also doing the same - hopefully the Local Authority will get sick of us, and for what probably amounts to a 20 minute job they'll just get them out of the door, rather than having to spend 30 minutes a day either emailing or speaking to somebody complaining.

I wouldn't be too fussed if the rest of the chain was at a similar stage because I wouldn't be under the pressure I'm being placed in, nor do I hold any resentment for the additional Covid time.......but two months would take the proverbial!
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DId the previous buyer get searches done. its possible your new buyer could get/pay for the searches that the previous buyer did as it would be a saving all round
 
Wegason said:
DId the previous buyer get searches done. its possible your new buyer could get/pay for the searches that the previous buyer did as it would be a saving all round
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Don't think they did - their solicitor was absolutely useless.

But - good news anyway - my mithering worked and council did the searches last week - our buyers solicitor hasn't got them yet, apparently they are now with their private search agent (company called NLIS - so I'm hoping they forward them very soon - I'm assuming our buyers solicitor applied for the searches indirectly via them, rather than approaching the council direct).

Then - we can finally exchange once they have them.

I'm never moving house again lol, been so frustrating.
 
2004typer said:
Don't think they did - their solicitor was absolutely useless.

But - good news anyway - my mithering worked and council did the searches last week - our buyers solicitor hasn't got them yet, apparently they are now with their private search agent (company called NLIS - so I'm hoping they forward them very soon - I'm assuming our buyers solicitor applied for the searches indirectly via them, rather than approaching the council direct).

Then - we can finally exchange once they have them.

I'm never moving house again lol, been so frustrating.
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I said that five years ago, but here we are currently having sold and purchased and in the searches/survey stage due to

A) wanting a quieter road
b) take advantage of stamp duty holiday to get it
c) get a bigger house with the potential to turn it into our dream home.

If this all does go ahead then this, definitively, is the last time we move!
 
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