Sales Agreed 18 Months Ago

tonydatiger

Hi

I went Sale Agreed on a Property 18 Months ago (February 2017) with deposit paid there and then. Property is in turnkey condition and fully furnished (part of the sale) and nobody has lived in the property or rented for the property for the last 10 Years!

After the Sale Agreed deal was done I soon discovered via my Solicitor that the Property was part of a Larger Estate and in the middle of the Probate Process.

Fast forward 7 Months to Sept 2017 and I get the same status update from my Solicitor that the Sale is still in Probate and the seller is not open to a Rental Agreement while the Probate is still being processed.

I've requested a Status update via my Solicitor each Month up until September 2018 and I get the same response that the Probate process is not finalized according to the Solicitor looking after the sale. I've also contacted the Selling Auctioneer who is unable to shed any light on the Sale Deal as they have been told the same that the Property is stuck in Probate.

I've shown more than enough patience at this stage with the end of 2018 approaching I can't see me getting keys to the property until after Christmas.

The amount of time that has lapsed has also seen my Mortgage Application expire and I will need to reapply from scratch on this which is more a hindrance due to extra time the mortgage will take to process again.

I'm at a loss at this stage as to what I can do as I've been advised that the Probate is the Job of the Courts Service and no representation will speed Probate process up.

Is there any pointers on what I can do to help speed the process up?

Alkers

Keep looking at houses and bidding until you have contracts signed and a move in date. We had two sale agreed houses fall through in a row. There are still a lot of people not in a position to sell, trying to entertain the bank etc. Sale agreed means nothing!

TheShow

Probate takes as long as it takes. Unless you’re prepared to wait it out, I’d start looking again.

cruizer101

Need to keep looking at houses. House prices have risen a lot in the last 18 months and sale agreed doesn't really mean much I wouldn't be surprised if house went back on market when probate sorted.

Samuel T. Cogley

Think of sale agreed as a 50/50 gamble.

tonydatiger

Fast Forward 5 Months, still no end in sight to the House Sale due to Probate process!

I'm looking at other properties now to purchase but I would like to keep this Sale alive as I've invested so much time into it and my Mortgage capacity has improved. I'm in consultation with my Solicitor but i'm wondering does anyone have any information as to what time constraints I would be under to complete the sale once the Probate is finalized?

Muahahaha

Thats a long time to wait for the probabte process to be finished, something must have went wrong/documents were missing because it can be done in under six months. I also think it is cheeky of vendors to bring a house to market knowing that it still has to undergo probate, it effectively cannot be sold until the process is complete so they are not being genuine sellers imo. As for time constraints once probate is complete, perhaps 4-8 weeks provided nothing else goes wrong. I'd be asking your solicitor to check now if all other paperwork is in order to close the transaction rather than finding out three months down the line that there will be further delays.

Though I'd also say you are right to keep looking as the owners might be thinking they can get more money for it than your bid 18 months ago.

s7ryf3925pivug

Normal to put houses on market before probate is complete. Bad form not to have informed you until so late. 23 months before probate is granted is excessive. Beneficiaries and creditors can take legal action after a year.

You could inquire whether the application has been submitted and when. They have no obligation to answer, but I’d assume the worst if they don’t. You can check with the probate office of what the waiting times are. This will let you know how much longer it is likely to take.

Wildly Boaring

Very close experience of similar.

A farm took approx 18 months to get through probate. Neighbour had a deposit down early on.

When came to contract signing the executor insisted on 2 strange inclusions in the contract.

Keeping it broad, he was insisting on messing with pretty obvious things like (but not exactly) moving a shed prior sale.

The neighbour really wanted to buy.
The family kept putting obstacles in the way.

In the end he pulled pin and they went again. House was sold almost instantly.

Neighbour swears a family member had a friend wanted it.

Moral is as above think of sale agreed as 50/50.

spaceHopper

My guess is that there is a tax bill to be settled and they are talking to revenue, ask you solicitor if there are any charges registered against it. At this stage I'd pull out and get something else. Prices my well have peaked.

tonydatiger

The Saga appears to be at an end. Probate is finalized on the Property and I'm now at the Contracts Exchange step of the process!!

While I still have no concrete reason as to why the there was delay caused by Probate the best advise which I received from a few knowledgeable folks here and in person was to sit tight and ride it out. While the process will have taking over 2 Years once I turn the key in the door I do think it was the best course of action but with my patience tested.

Thanks again for your input guys!

JJJackal

Best of luck and congratulations