That means the buyers of the house they were buying can't buy the house that our buyers were selling, which means they can't buy ours, we then cant buy the very specific and ideal house we found, the owners of that can buy their new place, and so on a couple more iterations!
It is a crazy system as we have all locked in (though nothing is legally binding). We have all spent money on surveys and conveyancing solicitors but we can't just go ahead with the sale. As houses are so ridiculously expensive there is no real possibility for anyone, including us to just inject the cash into the chain.
I am sure bridging loans were once possible but several hundred thousands to put into new home whilst the equity and mortgage is being held on the old home is not very doable. So we are in a half packed state, not a perfect show home state and are ready to show new people around the place in the hope it doesn't mean we lose where we were heading. It's the 2nd or 3rd collapse of the chain. Other times it has re-established.
I am also sure everyone involved is as disappointed as we are but these things are nobody's fault. Small blips and mistakes in the chain have consequences all the way along. So for now the the treasury are missing out on a huge pile of Stamp duty tax payments. It is a pity that those payments can't be used to create a fund to help long chains move with bridging loans. Though property and debt are not flavour of the month with austerity high on the agenda. Still, all these things happen for a reason. So for now my wife will have to keep commuting the 2 hours each way to London, my in-laws (whose house has sold already as we were combining households to a place with a separate annex) will have to remain camped out in the spare room. The Predlets will keep going to the same school and constantly have leaving parties with their friends.
The house is online here if you know anyone who needs a good family home, near a very good primary school (hook with warsash) close to corner shops, a pub and the sea then please point them our way :)
