Advice on delaying a house sale

davedub2015

Hey looking for advice on a situation myself and wife are currently in. We have sale agreed our house before Christmas and also went sale agreed on a house at the same time. The house we sale agreed fell through as there were issues with the survey report. So we no need to try and slow down the selling process the deeds came to our solictor today so should we inform the estate agent to let the seller know it could be delayed. Basically we dont mind selling and moving into a parents house but would want a house sale agreed for us before we sell up. Has anybody any experience on this and advice on what we should do? Im sure we will get something in the next month or two but dont want to be selling unless we have something..
Thanks

SozBbz

Best to be straight with them IMO.

You can typically ask your solicitor/EA to drag their heals for a week or two if its just a small bit of time you need, but starting again is likely to take months, so you're not going to be able to fob them off for that long, and you'll just lose their trust.

Be honest, explain you still want to sell and will be active in looking for a new property. Even explain that you'll happily move elsehwere for a few weeks further down the line to speed things up, but that you want to go Sale Agreed on something before signing the contracts for sale on your existing property.

Depending on their own circumstances, they either will go for it or they won't. Theres no way of knowing, as each buyer will react differently. They might not fancy going back out to look themselves and may agree to hang on.

Samuel T. Cogley

For me this is one of those 'how would you like to be treated' scenarios.

Gumbo

OP if you delay, you also run the risk of tour buyers backing out.
Best to have yours sold and cash sitting ready to pounce in my opinion.

Dolbhad

I’d be upfront with the purchasers. Tell them you need to buy in order to sell and the purchase has fallen through and see are they happy to wait. It’s different if they was a delay in your purchase that a closing date is pushed out a few weeks - you could buy time. However with no house lined up just yet I’d be honest.

You never know it may suit them. Or it may not and they cut their losses but then you haven’t wasted your time. You’ll see loads of posts here from purchasers worried when they have radio silence from sellers and their solicitors and it can sour things.

BailMeOut

Can you close and organize with buyer to 'rent' the house back off them until you are ready to move out? (basically pay their morgage for that temp period).

Samuel T. Cogley

BailMeOut wrote: »

Can you close and organize with buyer to 'rent' the house back off them until you are ready to move out? (basically pay their morgage for that temp period).

It's almost certainly a condition of the purchasers mortgage that they get vacant possession.

annoyedgal

Have been on the receiving end of delaying tactics. Extremely stressful and left a bitter taste when all was finally done and dusted.