-
If you really want the house I'd cut them a bit of slack, be a little bit human and go for it.
The problem isn't with the timescales - well, it kinda is, but - the problem is that the seller wants to Exchange as quickly as possible whilst fixing the Completion date to March.
The 'human' way of dealing with this would be to appear willing whilst dragging out exchange as long as possible so that should the market take a nosedive you can still punch the abort button whilst not lending them £30k interest free for x months, which is pretty much the opportunity and cost the sellers are trying to take from you by insisting on timing things their way.
Howard-
This advice I will take. Is nice to exchange and have it locked in so there is more certainty in life and you can get on with planning everything else, and I believe the sellers want to do it quick for that reason rather than them being being money hounds playing the market.
I could just hire a really shitty solicitor who will drag feet in the sand and delay the exchange without my intervention.
Hovis
There already will be a penalty if the seller pulls out prior to completion. It should be the amount of your deposit, but could vary.
I think you would be very lucky to be moved in before xmas anyway. 2 months from offer accepted to completion is pretty quick in my experience. I'd say late January would probably be a fair expectation for completion. Their wanting to complete in March isn't that much of a stretch, and with a baby on the way it's completely understandable. If you really want the house I'd cut them a bit of slack, be a little bit human and go for it.