Originally Posted by Editha

I kind of have one foot in Canada and one in the UK, because although I'm living in Canada for another year, I also own property in the UK and have spenta couple of months each year there since we came to Canada in 2006.

The British housebuying process is maddeningly slow and uncertain compared with Canada, and I speak as a retired UK solicitor. In my experience, it's not just lawyers, but estate agents and mortgage brokers/lenders who move at the pace of a snail, with the added frustration that until contracts are exchanged, the parties are not legally bound to complete the sale/purchase, and you are spending money on a survey, solicitor's fees etc, knowing the whole deal could fall through at any time.

The money laundering regulations apply to most financial transactions nowadays, and apply to everybody. Generally, you have to produce ID documents, or certified copies.

We've just sold our house in Canada. We're going to move into rented accommodation for our last year here. We are in the process of buying a house in Devon in advance of returning next year.

Originally Posted by Paws3

Thanks for the replies!
Buying the house was very slow. We were told 4-6 weeks and it was a struggle to get things done by 8 weeks (with constant nagging). As others have pointed out, both parties can drop out at any time so it is very nerve wracking. And on the money side, bring ALL paperwork in hard copy (internet statements are NOT accepted) and have it with you. You will have to provide a complete paper trail for ANY cash from when received (salary etc).
Yes we did use HSBC which had both Canadian and UK accounts. I guess this helped a bit but we still needed a very nice obliging Bank Manager this end to sort out a lot of queries and to countersign reams of paperwork.

Now I have stopped working it is amazing how much time I have to do things I love (gardening, cooking I am even baking bread!)

Canadian husband is getting settled slowly. My answer to his major anti-UK moans is basically I suffered Canada for 16 years but as now his parents have died and he is retired (2 major reasons we moved to Canada) he will have to do the same here! (actually I think he quite likes it but he just likes to moan..

More later

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

Buying a house in the UK can be done quickly...I had the keys in my hand just short of 3 weeks. It all depends on how you are paying for the house and your solicitor. All I had to do was to produce a notorised copy of my passport...this is now required by UK law. As far as money is concerned...I paid the deposit...the balance was paid in cash from my Nat West Bank account.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

Buying a house in the UK can be done quickly...I had the keys in my hand just short of 3 weeks. It all depends on how you are paying for the house and your solicitor. All I had to do was to produce a notorised copy of my passport...this is now required by UK law. As far as money is concerned...I paid the deposit...the balance was paid in cash from my Nat West Bank account.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

Buying a house in the UK can be done quickly...I had the keys in my hand just short of 3 weeks. It all depends on how you are paying for the house and your solicitor. All I had to do was to produce a notorised copy of my passport...this is now required by UK law. As far as money is concerned...I paid the deposit...the balance was paid in cash from my Nat West Bank account.

Originally Posted by Mummy in the foothills

Did you have to have any proof of where the money came from? Did you have to produce the house sale papers from the US? Just so they knew you weren't money laundering.

Originally Posted by Simon Legree

May I take it you have already sussed out a top notch hairdresser in dear old Devon. It would be a travesty if you had the same heartache that you had in Edmonton. Perish the thought !