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11
Nov 2020
Harrogate council urges homebuyers to be patient about search delays
Harrogate Borough Council has urged homebuyers to be patient after admitting it is struggling to cope with the volume of land searches.
The council posted a message on Facebook yesterday saying it had received more than 700 search requests in October, which is about twice as many as the same month last year.
Local authority searches, which check there are no hidden surprises for buyers, are an essential part of the home-buying process.
The council said it was doing "everything we can to reduce the processing times for searches that is currently around 30 working days". It added:
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A buoyant market, fulled by the freeze in stamp duty, has left many homebuyers keen to complete moves before Christmas.
A council spokesman said:
The Stray Ferret first reported the delays last month. Property experts suggested searches in Harrogate were taking several weeks longer than in neighbouring Leeds and York.
The situation is frustrating for homebuyers and estate agents.
Alex Goldstein, an independent property consultant in Harrogate, told the Stray Ferret:
Mr Goldstein added the delays can be particularly hard on those with financial worries.
It costs £103.95 for a search, which reveals information on issues relating to the property such as previous planning applications, roads, utilities and the environment.
The Stray Ferret has previously spoken to a couple selling a property in Grantley near Ripon who waited 10 weeks for a search.
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