Thursday 18 February 2021

Moving House

Moving house.............. Why, why, why is it so stressful?

Thanks for all the comments yesterday. I didn't really explain properly that everyone - even me- knew about the Equity Release that had been taken out on the property that I'm buying but what no one knew until Tuesday afternoon was that there would be a long delay. My Estate Agent said it might  be because of them having to pay a penalty for early repaying of the equity release? There might also be a delay because they are moving to Kent which is apparently notorious for very slow legal searches.

Some  of the problems are caused by the Government's Stamp Duty holiday which finishes on 31st March. For people who don't know Stamp Duty is a tax paid to Her Majesties Revenue & Customs on top of the house price..... The higher the cost of the house the more stamp duty the government get. The stamp duty holiday was done to keep the housing market afloat through Covid (and hence keeping all people like builders, carpet fitters etc employed) but it's just caused so many problems with everyone trying to get  all sale and buying completions done by the end of next month.

 I debated taking this place off the market but that seems silly when I know I don't want to stay as it's just too big with too much work (plus potential problems) and  I  have a buyer ready and waiting who I don't want to lose. They can't afford to move here if they have to pay another £15,000 Stamp duty on top of the purchase price.So I'm going into a holiday let for a month (at least) and putting the furniture in storage - all this is going to cost me a lot of extra money so it's a good job that I'm getting a really good price for this house.

My only worry is if the bungalow sellers decide not to sell for any reason or if the Equity Release thing is more complicated ................then heavens knows what I'll do. As my solicitor said "it's a risk selling without completing on a purchase". The removal man said "the most common reason for people having to put everything in store is due to house purchase delays".

At least I have a plan - 4 weeks in a holiday let  until after Easter to start with and if things drag on any longer then I think I might buy a static caravan and spend my summer by the sea in Felixstowe!


Back Tomorrow............as long as I've not given up the will to live!
Sue
 



60 comments:

  1. Be strong! It will come right in the end. Love and prayers winging your way

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    1. Thank you Ang, I think I need a few prayers.
      Bet you are glad you sorted out Cornerstones several years ago

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  2. Sounds alright. Could all be a blessing in disguise.

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    1. If you have exchanged contracts, yes, but if you haven't you might have found a nice place to buy as a cash buyer. Sounds like you got caught out with the delay news after you had signed and exchanged because I remember you saying the other day you were signing the contract and sending it back. You haven't exactly been very well treated by somebody.

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    2. Nothing around to buy that I would want even as a cash buyer . Reassurance this morning from the agent of the sellers saying they are definitely moving and selling to me. Just waiting on searches in Kent and the equity release problem is that they are carrying it on from one house to another and the Equity release company won't let them break by moving into rental to speed things up. They can only move it directly from one home to another. NOW I understand it all.

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    1. My brain is too fuddled to worry about apostrophes!

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  4. At least you have a plan. I hope everything sorts itself out and you are finally settled into your new home - wherever it is! xx

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  5. There is a penalty if you end the equity release before a stipulated time (5 years from taking it out is the norm). They just have to bite the bullet and pay up if that's the case - it shouldn't cause delays though. Them moving to Kent may well by the sound of things. Perhaps something better will come on the market whilst you are waiting . . .

    Sounds like your plans A and B are sensible ones. Good luck.

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    1. I hope the bungalow will be mine eventually - just have to wait a while. Not keen on the extra complications and expense though

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  6. What a pain in the proverbial...
    We are just embarking on our house move journey and I am fully expecting a few roadblocks along the way.
    A caravan by the sea would be nice!

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    1. Hope your move is quicker than our last 3 moves!

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  7. What a pity - I really do admire your grit and optimism though. All the extra expense to you, through no fault of your own, must be terribly galling but the prospect of summering by the sea might be a a comfort.

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    1. Not keen on the extra expense but luckily this house is selling for more than I expected

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  8. I don't think I have ever had a stress free move. When we moved here we had a cash buyer for ours, and the lady selling this house was moving in with her boyfriend, so simples, no, the buyer turned out to be afraid of risk and had loads of checks done on our home before completing, house passed them all, he also tried to offer a lower price or pull out, we called his bluff and he paid the agreed price. Sorted, then the seller of this house suddenly needed more time before moving. It dragged on for ever, us stuck in the middle.

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    1. Isn't it strange all the complications that suddenly appear in what ought to be straightforward

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  9. Yes this moving house lark is very expensive isn't it. We are having to pay half of the price of having the 'new to us' houses chimney and roof ridge tiles repointed as the sellers just can't afford it all, and the buyers of our place are getting our Welsh smallholding for £35,000 UNDER the already reduced asking price. It's all they can afford (Stamp Duty in Wales isn't reduced as much as in England) and we just want rid of the place.

    It sounds like a good plan to move into a rented place and a Summer in a van at the seaside will be relaxing if push comes to shove ... you know I love Vans :-)

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    1. Glad that you sold Sue, but not so good you had to take a hit on price. We have work to do on our new house too and she wouldn't drop a penny despite being on the market 18 mths!

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    2. Sue - dropping the price must have been so frustrating but better than hanging on in hope of more, which is something we did when we sold a building plot years ago - ended up taking a lot less than the original offer

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    3. Definintely, and we have come away with a bit of a profit even after sinking so much money into the place. So we are happy just to be moving on.

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  10. Moving house is very stressful - even when you're not in a chain and the house you're buying is empty! Been there, done that. Hopefully things will be sorted out sooner rather than later! Fingers crossed! 🤞

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    1. moving seemed much quicker in the 1980's and 90's

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    2. As I said before, homes were once for life, people didn't move around so.much, population smaller.

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  11. As Rachel said you'd be a cash buyer, so a positive there. I would be very much tempted to pull the plug if no contract exchanged yet.
    Best wishes, keep positive, it will happen! xx

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    1. I don't want to pull out as the bungalow will suit me fine

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  12. Just read this on my Rightmove email: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/news/articles/property-news/stamp-duty-holiday-extension?utm_source=uknewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletterfebruary321&utm_content=stampdutyext

    I hope that they do extend the deadline.

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    1. The Estate Agent mentioned this was a possible when she rang this morning but I'm sure a few weeks ago I heard a government bod saying No to any hope of extension of stamp duty holiday

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  13. I like your plan, and admire how calm you are about it all. I would be seething.

    I hope you don't need to stay any where beyond the month planned in a holiday let, but if you do remember (you probably already know this) that some caravan sites won't let you purchase if you don't have a permanent address where you are paying council tax. You could get round this by one of your kids buying it I'm sure, but potentially another irritation.

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    1. Oh yikes I didn't know that about having to have a permanent address to buy a caravan but as you say it could be in sons name

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    2. I don't know how rigorously it's applied, but I have seen it mentioned on statics for sale from time to time. Typically couldn't find much after I wrote my comment but did find this on the Parkleisure.co.uk site

      'If your main residence is outside of the UK, you’ll probably be required to provide proof when buying a holiday home. Similarly, if you downsize to buy a holiday home, you’ll still need to maintain a main residence.'

      Not insurmountable, but something else to check should it be needed. Hopefully you'll be tucked up happily in your bungalow instead.

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    3. Yes I don't really want to buy a holiday caravan - too many extra expenses with owning one - even more than a beach-hut

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    4. Why would you want to buy? Totally puzzled me unless you wanted it for the long term as a holiday break place.

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    5. It's something the children wished I would do!
      and also they are not renting out holiday caravans due to covid and it was if the house purchase dragged on then it would be somewhere to live.......simple

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  14. Well I am sorry that you are having all this aggravation but have to admire your retaining some sense of humour, not easy. Fingers crossed for a happy outcome.

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    1. I wasn't very happy on Tuesday Afternoon! but feeling calmer now

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  15. I'm sure it will all sort out for you but you could have done without the stress. :-(
    xx

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    1. I decided all these things are sent to try us and keep our minds active!

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  16. Yowza. I know the housing market in the US is crazy with many houses going for tens of thousands more than asking prices in bidding wars. Keep wondering who can afford some of these places when so many people have lost jobs.

    Hope the Stamp Duty gets extended with hopes that it takes the pressure off closing so many deals in short order. Know that won't help your situation, but hope you can catch a break somewhere in this mess.

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    1. I suppose someone thought the stamp duty holiday was a good idea without knowing there would be problems when it ended

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  17. I'm sure it will sort out. When you wrote about a caravan by the sea at Felixstowe it sounded wonderful - probably because its 21. below here. Good wishes for a speedy resolution, jean Winnipeg

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    1. So cold for you - don't think I could cope with that

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  18. I like the summer by the sea idea. I guess if that's the worst that can happen it'll all work out OK in the end! :)

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  19. How frustrating this must be! I'm sorry you are having to deal with all this. They say every cloud has a silver lining, I hope you find your silver lining!

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    1. Coping on my own with problems seems to have become the norm!

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  20. As I said previously, I stayed with family in the interim period and put my stuff into storage, which was expensive,and at one point I thought about not ever retrieving it! but I did eventually move and you will too. Things work out.

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  21. This is my 31st move...it is just not worth hassle...I do understand...had problems and had smooth times...good luck...I am just thankful to get out of the snow...despite leaving family here to be near other family...sad and happy. Enjoy your blog of course.

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  22. When we moved several times in the 1980s and 90s we never had all the hassles there seem to be now.
    and your 31 moves make my few moves look like peanuts!

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  23. Buying and selling homes seems very complex adding lots of stress. Almost like a one step forward, two steps back, with detours. Living by the sea if you have to sounds like a good backup plan.

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  24. Not having a home for a little while could actually open you up to whole lot of things you could do....although Covid does make it harder. A month in Greece? etc.

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  25. Keeping my fingers crossed that things move quickly enough for you to manage just a short time, if any time, in a holiday let.

    God bless.

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  26. I am in favour of selling and then floating around for a bit if the numbers add up. Takes the stress out of chains. In my case I am trying to persuade the husband to do this as we cant make a decision at present as to next location and we could buy and live on a very nice boat for the summer and move around too! After 14 months of the flat Fen view I am ready for a change even if it while its flat it can go up and down too. Perhaps just a little stir crazy?

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  27. Oh, good. I just read your other post -- a couple of days late. And I was worried. I still am but glad you have a holiday let set up. I wish your solicitor could negotiate a bit of a recompense pay for you but I don't know if that is possible. I know this must be a stressful time for you, but there is time -- and you can be aware, too. Who knows -- perhaps there is another bungalow nearby if this falls through. It would be wise to keep options open.

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  28. Oh what a bother...but if you're set on moving then I guess you're doing the right thing. Talk about streess load...good luck. x

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  29. Oh my. Thanks for explaining further. I hope it will all work out in the end, and getting a good price for your current place and enjoying a good life in the next place, makes every delay and complication worth it. Blessings!

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