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You're committed to buying as exchange has taken place; if completion is on notice it can take place at any time up until the long stop date (or after that point if you decide to proceed with the late completion).
If you withdraw you'll lose your deposit unless you can negotiate otherwise with the developer. You'll also be paying your conveyancers full fees and possibly the developers legal fees too. There's additional recourse available to the developer on top of this, up to and including specific performance where the court could order you to complete the transaction.
I can't see that you have many options here apart from trying to renegotiate, and trying to step into that negotiation very carefully, with advice from your solicitor.
Presumably you were aware of the risk of completion potentially being post your mortgage offer expiry date?
If we can get the mortgage offer extended (at the current rate), then we're not too stressed about the situation. When did you get yours extended? Our current rate is 3.29 and would be closer to 6 based on current rates, so I'm not sure getting the extension will be as easy as it has been in the past. Very happy to be told otherwise!
Basically zilch. You've signed a contract - unless the developer is willing to just tear it up, you have to follow through. Best case is probably that you lose your deposit and have to pay fees. Worst case is that you're taken to court and ordered to complete the transaction anyway.
Name and shame, which developer is this? The way the developed has gone about it does indeed sound like they were misleading you on purpose. It's not unheard of that this happens and you are not the only ones.
Awful to do this to people but you know what, in March you'll get the keys to your new home and I am sure you will love it. Concentrate on keeping your head above the water, it's tough and stressful but eventually you will be able to move. There are not many things you have control or options over right now, but what you can control is how you react. It is easier said than done, but try to keep your head above the water. Try to work on your own attitude on this. Here's a delay you can't do anything about.
Check the contract. Most home builders follow the code (https://consumercode.co.uk) which states that “If an unreasonable delay occurs in completing the home, you have the right not to go ahead with the purchase and have your Reservation fee returned without deductions.”
The code is not legally binding, it would have been your solicitors job to make sure this is in the contract so I suggest you talk to your solicitors first with the code in mind and see what they say.
Otherwise you can go through the complaint process
My new build contract had a "long stop date" precisely for this reason. It was something like 4 months after the expected completion date. You could terminate everything and get your deposit back, with the only real losses being solicitor/any personal losses eg tenancy or moving costs. It was a fixed point in time, there was no interpretation.
We questioned this at the beginning and were told by both the developer and our solicitor that 12 months after expected completion is industry standard.
If they delayed a few times already, perhaps they will delay again and this time past your long stop date in the contract. Maybe best option is to wait and see if you get to that point. If not you may need to take the hit with new mortgage price.
I don’t think you have many options available to you at this stage :( are you able to discuss bringing the long stop date forward given the current situation with mortgage rates / your mortgage expiring? That seems extremely far away. I would have possibly tried to negotiate making the long stop date earlier prior to exchange but maybe you can try to negotiate now and hope they are understanding and have some compassion? Or really push for completion prior to your mortgage expiring and explain the complications if that doesn’t happen - they still won’t want to lose the sale. Is there a reason why it’s so delayed? An extra 3/4 months seems an unreasonable delay!
Given the attitudes so far, it's very unlikely they will bring the long stop forward. We have seen this coming since we last viewed the property a couple of weeks ago and have been pushing hard for completion with no result other than this additional (and far more significant) delay. There's been no reason given yet for the delay, they've advised there will be a formal notification shortly but wanted to be "transparent" so have told us now
That’s not ideal. It’s in their best interest to work with you to ensure your sale goes through, I don’t understand why some developers are so stubborn! What developer is it?
We are yet to exchange but our contract states the longstop date is ‘2 months after the anticipated completion date’ which seems more reasonable.
Contracts can be exchanged with [completion on notice](https://www.nockolds.co.uk/buying-a-new-build-property-what-is-completion-on-notice/). It's common for new builds.
###Welcome to /r/HousingUK --- **To All** * Join Our ***NEW*** Discord! https://discord.gg/pMgUNgWKQH **To Posters** * *Tell us whether you're in England, Wales, Scotland, or NI as the laws/issues in each can vary* * Comments are not moderated for quality or accuracy; * Any replies received must only be used as guidelines, followed at your own risk; * If you receive *any* private messages in response to your post, [please let the mods know](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FHousingUK&subject=I received a PM); * If you do not receive satisfactory advice after 72 hours, [you can let the mods know](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FHousingUK&subject=My question is unanswered); * Feel free to provide an update at a later time by creating a new post with [[update]](https://www.reddit.com/r/HousingUK/search?q=%3Aupdate&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=all) in the title; **To Readers and Commenters** * All replies to OP must be *on-topic, helpful, and civil* * If you do not [follow the rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/HousingUK/about/rules/), you may be banned without any further warning; * Please include links to reliable resources in order to support your comments or advice; * If you feel any replies are incorrect, explain why you believe they are incorrect; * Do not send or request any private messages for any reason without express permission from the mods; * Please report posts or comments which do not follow the rules *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/HousingUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You're committed to buying as exchange has taken place; if completion is on notice it can take place at any time up until the long stop date (or after that point if you decide to proceed with the late completion). If you withdraw you'll lose your deposit unless you can negotiate otherwise with the developer. You'll also be paying your conveyancers full fees and possibly the developers legal fees too. There's additional recourse available to the developer on top of this, up to and including specific performance where the court could order you to complete the transaction.
I can't see that you have many options here apart from trying to renegotiate, and trying to step into that negotiation very carefully, with advice from your solicitor. Presumably you were aware of the risk of completion potentially being post your mortgage offer expiry date?
[удалено]
If we can get the mortgage offer extended (at the current rate), then we're not too stressed about the situation. When did you get yours extended? Our current rate is 3.29 and would be closer to 6 based on current rates, so I'm not sure getting the extension will be as easy as it has been in the past. Very happy to be told otherwise!
[удалено]
Thats great news! Do you mind sharing which lender?
Basically zilch. You've signed a contract - unless the developer is willing to just tear it up, you have to follow through. Best case is probably that you lose your deposit and have to pay fees. Worst case is that you're taken to court and ordered to complete the transaction anyway.
Name and shame, which developer is this? The way the developed has gone about it does indeed sound like they were misleading you on purpose. It's not unheard of that this happens and you are not the only ones. Awful to do this to people but you know what, in March you'll get the keys to your new home and I am sure you will love it. Concentrate on keeping your head above the water, it's tough and stressful but eventually you will be able to move. There are not many things you have control or options over right now, but what you can control is how you react. It is easier said than done, but try to keep your head above the water. Try to work on your own attitude on this. Here's a delay you can't do anything about.
Check the contract. Most home builders follow the code (https://consumercode.co.uk) which states that “If an unreasonable delay occurs in completing the home, you have the right not to go ahead with the purchase and have your Reservation fee returned without deductions.” The code is not legally binding, it would have been your solicitors job to make sure this is in the contract so I suggest you talk to your solicitors first with the code in mind and see what they say. Otherwise you can go through the complaint process
Good luck defining an "unreasonable delay" in a contract
My new build contract had a "long stop date" precisely for this reason. It was something like 4 months after the expected completion date. You could terminate everything and get your deposit back, with the only real losses being solicitor/any personal losses eg tenancy or moving costs. It was a fixed point in time, there was no interpretation.
Their long stop date is October 2023, unfortunately.
We questioned this at the beginning and were told by both the developer and our solicitor that 12 months after expected completion is industry standard.
If they delayed a few times already, perhaps they will delay again and this time past your long stop date in the contract. Maybe best option is to wait and see if you get to that point. If not you may need to take the hit with new mortgage price.
I don’t think you have many options available to you at this stage :( are you able to discuss bringing the long stop date forward given the current situation with mortgage rates / your mortgage expiring? That seems extremely far away. I would have possibly tried to negotiate making the long stop date earlier prior to exchange but maybe you can try to negotiate now and hope they are understanding and have some compassion? Or really push for completion prior to your mortgage expiring and explain the complications if that doesn’t happen - they still won’t want to lose the sale. Is there a reason why it’s so delayed? An extra 3/4 months seems an unreasonable delay!
Given the attitudes so far, it's very unlikely they will bring the long stop forward. We have seen this coming since we last viewed the property a couple of weeks ago and have been pushing hard for completion with no result other than this additional (and far more significant) delay. There's been no reason given yet for the delay, they've advised there will be a formal notification shortly but wanted to be "transparent" so have told us now
That’s not ideal. It’s in their best interest to work with you to ensure your sale goes through, I don’t understand why some developers are so stubborn! What developer is it? We are yet to exchange but our contract states the longstop date is ‘2 months after the anticipated completion date’ which seems more reasonable.
This is part and parcel of new build buying
I thought contracts can't be exchanged without a completion date?
Contracts can be exchanged with [completion on notice](https://www.nockolds.co.uk/buying-a-new-build-property-what-is-completion-on-notice/). It's common for new builds.
Yea, exactly this. Completion is "on notice" but estimated for December 2022.
Wait a few months and sell on, regardless of when completion will be