House Buying Is More Stressful Than Divorce, Death or Bankruptcy

[Slanket]

That's gorgeous Florin and how exciting to have a summer house.

Wishing you the very best of British Dez, Old Bean. Here's hoping you find something very soon, it's a super smooth transition and you'll be all sorted within 3 months. Well, stranger things have happened.

[Figaro]

Does anyone have any thoughts on whether it's better to use a local solicitor or the online conveyancer my mortgage broker have recommended? The price difference is negligible but the online one ("YourHomeMove") would come with legal fee insurance in case things fell through when we'd already paid.

There are very few online reviews of local firms but lots of the online one - which range from outstandingly brilliant to life-endingly awful. It seems to largely depend on which case handler you are allocated (which is obviously not within our control).

Overall I think we will go for a local firm but it is hard to choose really - we are leaning towards the larger one on our list, with more conveyancing solicitors /conveyancer a in the office. But it's very hard to choose!

Has anyone had a good experience with an online conveyancer?

Lots of luck to everyone else who is looking! I really hope ours all goes through

[Derek Nimmo]

I don't think it matters a jot if your solicitor is local or not, as long as you're not involved in any complex issues to do with local planning laws.

IF I ever get that far, I will be asking for personal recommendations from turtles far and wide as I don't know anyone in real life who actually had a good experience with their conveyancers.

[Figaro]

Having searched for conveyancers on here, all that came up were a lot of murderous thoughts, but if anyone has had a positive experience I too would be very glad to hear of it

[absley]

We had a great conveyancer - recommended by Rebs - a lady in Wimbledon. Can give you details if they're not already on the boards.

eta. - how rude of me - good luck everyone! and that looks great Florin. I have itchy feet ATM so would happily be getting involved if it were an option. I've even been looking longingly at restoration projects a couple of friends in remote-ish eastern european countries. If only I knew where I wanted my holiday home. And that I had the cash!

[Figaro]

I would love her details please abs - I couldn't find them. Thank you.

[Rebel Pebble]

Heh - I was just coming on to say the only people I never got the rage about in all my house moves were the conveyancing firm we were lucky to have recommended to us when we bought our first flat and stuck with for 2 further moves and a remortgage after that. Although the last time I suggested them to someone on here they found they weren't taking on any new clients at the time as they were too busy! That was a little while ago now though.

What a lovely garden Florin! And lots of potential in the house for extending like the neighbours have done.

Good luck everyone.

[AshleyX]

I've never had a good experience with one either. I don't know why they're all so horribly useless.

We're also looking to buy a new place this year. We've been renting since we moved to Inverness, and I'm dying to buy again. We've sold our place in Edinburgh now, so theoretically things should be straightforward when we're ready to buy (aye right). Not till later in the year, though. I'm slightly dreading the process but looking forward to having our own place again.

Good luck, everyone. Florin, your new place is gorgeous

[absley]

Although the last time I suggested them to someone on here they found they weren't taking on any new clients at the time as they were too busy!

That rings a bell and I think D had to use someone else when we sold his flat as a result. He was happy with that person too though, so if anyone needs an alternative let me know and I'll ask him for details.

[Squirrel]

Florin that looks lovely, I especially love the garden and summer house. I hope you'll all be very happy there.

[Ella77]

Yes, I tried for the Rebsley recommendation when I moved but they were too busy . Instead I got Volatile John. I'm still to scared to review his services online.

[Estrella]

Good luck to everyone in the process!

We went to see a house today and it's absolutely perfect. 1 acre. Perfect inside. Lovely outdoor area and pool. Secure for the dogs to run around. Except for the price. They are wanting $155k more than what the similar house next door sold for a year ago and there's no way prices have increased that much. We really want to buy it. We can afford the asking price but to be honest we would have to get it essentially for $100k less than what it's on the market for as I reckon that's what it's actually worth. If it was on the market at that price we would have submitted an offer today.

The buyers are overseas until later this month but we told the agent we would keep in touch and would welcome them discussing our thoughts on the price with the vendor.

Here's an aerial shot of it.

[Derek Nimmo]

I like the aerial shot Est, very Dallas-like

So. Went to the viewing on Saturday for the flat where the owner's looking to downsize. It was an open house, and I was the third one in, and at that point they already had an asking price offer. I was about 90% convinced so put in a slightly above asking price offer, and have been going backwards and forwards on it mentally since, but decided to let it play out rather than withdrawing my offer this morning.

I've just had a call from the agent, and they had 10 offers on Saturday. That's 10. Offers. They are going to best and final on Thursday, but I have declined to participate.

10 offers!

[Teasel]

10! That's madness, Derek. Have you got anything else lined up to view?

Est - that looks amazing!

[Ella77]

Ugh, open houses work really well for the sellers of course. That sucks. Also you only have their word that there were 10 offers. They could be lying to get you to put your offer up, or whatever .

[Figaro]

Wow! Was it underpriced do you think? Or is that just Brighton? That's madness.

We are now just waiting for our mortgage and conveyancing etc to be done. Still hoping to exchange reasonably quickly and hopefully complete not long after - our sellers are chain free as well, so no reason this needs to take months and months. Fingers crossed

That looks really nice, Est! If it's overpriced don't be tempted to pay over the odds, however much you like it, though. Are there other similar houses nearby? Hopefully as the new year progresses there will be more things coming up for sale.

[Derek Nimmo]

Fingers absolutely crossed Fig!

I really don't think they were lying and I am highly suspicious of everything I ever hear from an EA. It was a nice flat on at a slightly under market price, and there's sod all else around in the price bracket. I went to see a tiny little cottage in a twitten the same afternoon, which had only come on to rightmove the evening before (and had one picture, and zero additional information), and by the time I got there they also had one offer at asking, and 15 more viewings lined up - I know, I saw the agent's booking sheet for the day. Gobsmacking.

I've got one thing lined up for next Saturday, purely because it's top floor but with the potential buy into the freehold and gain ownership of the loft space at the same time, and if that's the case it could be the right size once extended upwards with a master bedroom and ensuite and the lay out monkeyed around with a tiny bit below. I wanted to avoid doing any work, but it's a nice road so I'll at least look at it.

In the meantime, I'm staying in the most amazing Airbnb flat up the road from me (whilst my place is painted) and was having a chat to the owner last night, who reckons that the chap who owns the top floor flat (currently vacant) might - just might - be planning to sell it. He owns a couple of other flats there, and has really been pushing to do communal works (just completed) over the past year, so she reckons it was with ulterior motives in mind.

She's going to dig out his email address for me. The stairs - there are a LOT - will probably kill me, but the views are stupendous (and that's one floor down!). There's a bit of inaccessible woodland at the back which can never be built on so the bedrooms are really quiet, and apparently the top flat has access to a flat roof on the side which, even if not officially part of the flat, would be very nice to have. So we'll see.

I'm also going to go round to the 30s blocks I really like at the top of the hill and convince the onsite caretaker to let me put up a note on their noticeboard to advertise that I'd be interested in a private sale of one of the top floor flats. I want to move goddamn it

(Sorry, essay.)

[Derek Nimmo]

Check out - briefly - the view from her kitchen. Super high ceilings too.

[Ella77]

Very nice, Derek. I reckon you'll make your own luck .

[Derek Nimmo]

Thank you. It would be so nice to know that none of the monies involved were going to go to an estate agent