Hello,
Firstly I hope you find this information useful and will put your mind at rest as I know how frustrating buying a new build property is.
I bought off plan and early-bird reserved my plot.
I reserved in September 2019 and exchange contracts at the start of November 2019. I still have not completed on the purchase due to constant delays and the onset of the Covid 19 crisis. I am due to complete on the purchase on the 3rd of July 2020. Fingers crossed that there will be no more further delays.
You will find that meeting the 28 day exchange deadline that all building companies stipulate in their reservation T&C's is near impossible.
The reason they put this in is to weed out the time wasters and window shoppers - people who reserve because they like the house but then find another one they like with a different developer.
You will find that as long as the developer can see your case progressing then they will not be bothered if you go beyond the 28-day limit.
If you choose to reserve but have no intention of buying that house then that is when you will most likely lose your reservation fee.
In the first instance I would of not have reserved a property without contacting your broker and obtain a DIP (decision in principle) from the lender.
Knowing that your other half has been furloughed it may have been wise to to do this to see if you can afford the house on the furloughed salary.
Even though your other half is maybe going back to work in July it is no given that there will not be another lockdown in the future.
In order to reach exchange point there is so much that has to be done in the background. Your solicitor has to perform all the area checks, planning permission and obtain all this information from the council, your mortgage broker has to put in an official application and you have to provide all your payslips, bank statements, proof of deposit etc.
Your lender has to assess your case, carry out a valuation on the property (desktop or physical) and then the underwriter has to assess.
In order to exchange you must have a mortgage offer granted. No honourable solicitor or mortgage broker will let you exchange contracts and commit to buying the property without a mortgage offer in place. This will all take a lot longer than 28 days to do so in the current climate.
Do not stress yourself about the 28 day deadline. Again...as long as the developer can see your case progressing then they will be OK if you go past this date.
Communication is key...if you are not using the developers recommended solicitor and mortgage broker then send weekly updates to the developer to let them know how you are getting on.
It took me 2 months from reserving to Exchanging of contracts and that was prior to lockdown and all the restrictions and problems that have come from Covid-19.
In the current climate all parties need to be working with each other to facilitate the purchase. What was once, is no longer applicable in the current climate. Surveyors, mortgage brokers and lenders all have massive backlogs to work through and what once took a matter of weeks to do, is now taking months. Your developer will be well aware of this and should be accepting the fact that due to current challenges we all face, the requirement to exchange contracts within 28 days is no longer realistic.
If they are not willing to be accommodating to a serious buyer, then I would really re-consider if this developer is for you.
My ongoing experience as mentioned previously is with an off plan and early bird reserved plot. When I reserved the plot, the plot had only the footings in. Before Exchange could even happen the house build had to be at a certain point.
Obviously if your house is already built, everything has been done and ready to be sold by the developer then they will be looking for a quicker turn around on things and may put pressure on to exchange and complete.
As long as you are doing everything possible to facilitate the purchase in a timely manner. I.e providing documents as soon as they are requested, Paying fees as soon as they are requests, requested updates from your mortgage broker, solicitor, house builder then you will be OK.
*The above information is based on my own experience. The views and opinions should not be taken as financial advice. You should contact a registered financial adviser for this.*