Thanks 
Called but the EA was out of the office, and he has a day off tomorrow…
Thank you
The EA was out of office on Wednesday and had a day off yesterday, hopefully will have a result today. Will keep you posted.
Do not want to lose the property over 2k, but I am really over-streched!
Keep calm and carry on
I think you should be fine. It’s up to you whether you’d accept their offer.
The vendor must like the fact that you’re chain free.
PS, I must clarify myself if my previous posts were not clear. To solve the dampness issue of the other house, the works we had (commissioned the damp proof company to do) included renewing damp proof course, repositioning outside ground vents, repairing leaking pipes/gutters, repairing/replacing some roof slates and etc. I don’t have all the details as my partner was in charge 
but it’s definitely more than just renewing damp proof course.
Hope the previous posts haven’t been misleading.
Didn’t realise this until receiving a message from someone yesterday asking about damp proof course.
:handshake
you are very kind, thanks
reduction rejected, I have pulled out :’(
What a pity 
Why? I thought you liked the house…
Was it a tactic or you just couldn’t accept £4k?
Anyway buying your home is one of the most important things you have to do so it has to feel right for you.
My pleasure. Good luck. I hope you’ll find your new home soon, be it this one or somewhere else.
Thanks again:hug:
I don’t really mind 4k deduction, but the vendor requires to complete before the end of this month, and my solicitor is asking for ridiculous documentations for deposits from China - bank statement with address, certified passports etc. No time to change a solicitor now. Don’t know where to get bank statements with address unless I produce some myself? 
The other thing is the property is a lot above my original budget, I have to borrow heavily from my family in China. Although they voluntarily offered to help and there is no rush to repay the money, it’s still a huge pressure on me, never been in debt before…
Have a lovely weekend
谢谢你 不知道怎么回复点评，只能这样回复了
昨天中介又跟我说房主跟太太商量以后同意5K reduction，加送原来要我出1K买下来的电器（其实1K卖给我的话我根本不想要，这房主连cooker都要另外跟我收钱的），但是成交价不改了，以5k allowance的形式给，这样我要多出5k*5%=£250的stamp duty。房主应该是不想修改mortgage offer耽误时间吧，其实我的mortgage offer本来就要修改的，中介早就知道但是估计没敢跟房主提。我想想就接受了，因为实在不想重新开始再走一遍找房，竞价，survey这些程序，而且我在这个房子上已经花费了2k+了。
现在周一要跟律师交涉文件的问题，原来的律师休假去了，现在这个是临时cover，希望有好运能够说服她不要国内带地址的银行账单吧。国内的护照公证今天已经联系好了，应该没问题。只是国内的银行账单确实不给写地址啊，我早就给她了 
祝周末愉快
好消息:cn15:
别客气。
我想你的conveyancer应该会通情达理吧，如果你和他/她解释清楚中国bank statement的格式。告诉他/她假如你给了一份带地址的bank statement，那一定是伪造的。。。他们做的案子都要通过内部compliance，并且要服从 The Law Society Protocol. 有时候他们在比较忙的情况下会不假思索照搬一些要求，尤其是代班的人。
从理论上讲，你的mortgage lender是有权利知道价格上的变动的。当然假如房主提出以私下cashback这个形式给你allownce，是可以避开在lender那耽误时间，（但理论上讲这是不应该的。。）。
假如是cashback，你一定要注意如何确保房主到时会honour这个协议。没有放进合同的东西，一旦complete了就没有任何保障了。其实exchange以后你后悔的余地也很受限了，那时pull out会给你带来比较大的经济损失。
关于房主留下的电器，相信你最后还是要换的，尤其是厨房里面的:P
不过这也不是绝对的。我曾经买过一个房子，连带得到厨房里一个非常非常棒的freestanding vintage cooker，一直都非常喜欢，虽然其它被“赠送”的电器都被recycle了。
祝你顺利+好运:victory:
Thanks 
You are lucky to get the vintage cooker and lucky to be on the property ladder already, it is so difficult nowadays.
The solicitor still asked me to pay £80 to get the Chinese bank statement translated although I had provided with her with a formal Certificate of Deposit of the same account in both Chinese & English, don’t know what’s wrong with her… She did not ask for bank statement with address today, hopefully she’s given up on it.
Thanks for the reminder, I suppose the vendor’s solicitor needs to revise the draft contract and the fixed assets register to reflect the allowance and those free appliances? Will ask the estate agent tomorrow, he’s off today.
I asked the solicitor if I should remit the balance of the deposit from China now, she did not have a clue, just said I could not remit it directly to their bank account… I am thinking of remitting to different bank accounts, still a long way to go
10%deposit on the day of exchanging contract, remind on the day of completion. If your bank account has transfer limit, you need to plan ahead.
发送自苹果论坛手机版： m.powerapple.com
Just for interest, did the damp proof treat work? As I understand, the damp proof course just like put a “plastic sheet” between two layers of bricks. I am curious how do they put a plastic sheet between bricks in an old wall?
Thanks
I want to make the telegraphic transfer as earlier as possible in case my solicitor asks for any other kinds of proof of funds or the receiving banks freeze the funds for investigation (unlikely but don’t want to take any risk at this stage) . If the exchange of contract does not happy before 28 August, the vendors will lose the property they are buying and I will lose this 1.
Fingers crossed!
I intend to engage an independent damp specialist to find out the ultimate reason for the damp before planning for any damp proof course.
I will update this post if I go ahead with the damp proof course - the surveyor told me it involved injecting chemicals into the wall, not sure how correct he is…
The EA seems quite relaxed (certainly a lot more than the vendor!)…
The vendor can definitely include white goods in the property without causing problems for either party. However if their solicitors were to amend the draft contract to reflect the £5k allowance, your mortgage lender would have to be informed of it (by either you or your solicitor).
It will then depend on the lender if they will accept it as it is or treat it as a price reduction (hence mortgage offer amendment).
Different lenders have different approaches. Here’s a link
http://www.cml.org.uk/lenders-handbook/englandandwales/question-list/2054/
Only thought of it as you mentioned that the vendor wanted to avoid waiting for amended mortgage offer.
It will be a good idea to check how exactly the vendor wish to proceed and then communicate with your lender.
It’s always sensible to avoid underhand dealings at any cost.
Regarding deposit:
As Lilac mentioned, you will need to transfer 10% deposit to your solicitor on exchange and the remainder before agreed completion date.
Depending on your daily transfer limit you may need to do it in a few instalments.
Your solicitor will Not accept your deposit unless they’re satisfied with both the anti money laundry docs and your proof of funding.
Hope this makes sense
I have no idea 
It’s still being renovated at the moment.
My OH organised it. Could ask him tomorrow (hopefully he’s less clueless!)
As I mentioned earlier quite a few things were done in addition to renewing damp proof course in order to improve the condition.
You’re right - it’s a 1895 Victorian house with solid wall. It has the usual problems for properties this age but they’re all perfectly tolerable. To be honest I didn’t even think the dampness was that bad but the dealings of the previous owner (and their damp proof people) were quite remarkable (hence the ranting).
And it’s probably not going to be our main residence so I guess I’ll know the effectiveness of the works in time…
The EA is working 5 days a week
Thanks a lot for the link, under Santander it says “The purchase price must also exclude the value of all concessions, discounts and any other benefit provided by the seller as well as the value of any carpets, curtains, furnishings and appliances included in the sale.”
My solicitor has written to Santander regarding the allowance etc, not sure if Santander will accept it… No time to play around now! The vendor may fear that the repairs allowance would affect my mortgage but it should not as my LTV is pretty low.
Asked my sister to buy pounds and do the transfer yesterday, she didn’t do it - lost a bit of money on the exchange rate today, what a life :’(
Wish I were as intelligent as you!
Nice evening
I think you’re doing really well as a first time buyer! You’ve planned and organised things a lot better than I had back then.
There’s nothing too complicated in the property market. The next time around you’ll be able to help someone else with your experience.
Hope it goes well with Santander. Revised mortgage offer can be out very quickly but you may need to let them understand how keenly awaited the offer is.
Shame that the rate moved a little against you. But there’s never a best or worse rate so try not to worry too much as long as things are reasonably acceptable.
Nite nite
Hi my OH said what the tradesmen did about the damp proof course was to remove the old cement render (?) on external walls, then drill holes on the mortar joints and inject damp proof injection, followed by reapplying new cement render (about a foot) and finalising by spraying a damp proof spray/seal.
(I wish I knew what I’m talking about!
)
For preventing rising damp they also repositioned some exterior ground vents.
For preventing penetrating damp and leakage they fixed some leaking/worn pipes, replaced loose roof slates, applied damp seal around the chimney and etc.
I understand now, the mortar between two layers of bricks has gaps. The injected damp proof materials fill those gaps. It does not provide a complete barrier because it cannot get inside solid mortar but it should make a noticeable improvement.