Howdy.
So, the posts are coming in thick and fast now. Two in as many days. Prolific is a word you may not be able to use yet but soon.
This post is entitled Moving House = Pain in the derrier. Never has a truer phrase be written down, at least in my experience anyway. Catherine, Fred and I currently live in a masionette in Potters Bar. It's a lovely flat (apart from the afore-mentioned floorboards obviously), and for a childless couple, it is a dream. Quiet road, two double bedrooms, massive lounge, equally massive kitchen, a modern bathroom with enough room to swing a cat and a triply massive garden with a patio, lawn, and most importantly 2 sheds, one of which I have sound-proofed to act as my music studio. Never has a masionette been more appealing. Add to that, that we are a 7 minute walk (I've timed it) to the train station that takes you right in to Moorgate or Kings Cross and a plethora of shops including a medium sized Sainsbury's next to the train station and you have a pretty much ideal place to live.
We put the flat on the market in June 2011 and by July 2011 we had a perfect buyer or so it seemed. A single lady with no house to sell herself, no need for a mortgage and wanting to move as soon as possible. Too good to be true. How true that term sounds today. We are on the brink of 2012, six months after we accepted her offer (she offered about 5 times before we let her have the property for a very reasonable price I might add) and we are no nearer to moving out. The property that we fell in love with has now been put back on the market and the estate agent that was dealing with our sale has gone on holiday without having the courtesy to tell us, even though she said that she would let us know the outcome of latest talks last night at 5pm.
What's the issue?
The buyer instructed a surveyor who gave her a report asking her to check out a couple of things. The buyer contacted us to ask if we would contribute to the cost of the work people who would check out what work the survey found might be required. We said we'd contribute to the cost of any repairs within reason. If the work turned out to be on a grand scale, we'd need to discuss the matter further. Workmen came and went. No quote. We contacted the estate agent. Where's the quote? They said they'd tried to contact the buyer but she wasn't returning their calls. The buyer finally returned their call two weeks after the builders had been round to say that she hadn't received a quote and couldn't get in touch with the builders and wanted to send round more builders for a different quote. The estate agents offered their recommended builders to give her a quote which would be returned the next day but she refused saying that she wanted to choose her own builders. This happened three times! With three sets of builders coming round and apparently not giving her the quotes. Does this really happen?
She finally received a quote which was pathetic. I wouldn't get out of bed to do the work for the money so we agreed to pay half the amount on completion of the sale. We agreed with the buyer that we would exchange contracts by the second week of December and complete in the new year.
All was swimming along until last Friday when our estate agents called us to inform us that the buyer was now putting the purchase on hold till after Christmas as her mortgage offer had expired. This is the mortgage that wasn't required. This was the mortgage that she didn't require so that we'd sell to her quickly with no fuss at a decent price. To say we were frustrated (I could type more expressive words but let's keep it clean hey?) is an understatement. Our estate agents advised us to put the house back on the market which we did only to find out that by doing so, the house that we had found and had an offer accepted and were looking forward to moving in to in the new year, found out about our reluctant buyer and was placed back on the market.
So not only do we have a will she or won't she buyer but we are probably going to miss out on the house we could really see as being out family home for the next five years or so.
I am not happy.
Conclusion - Moving house = pain in the derrier
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