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Martin Lewis Blog: 'House offer accepted, now they want £20,000 more! What should I do?'
A passer-by stopped Martin in the street recently to ask his opinion on her house buying dilemma. You can check out his view in a video he posted: Martin Lewis: 'House offer accepted, now they want £20,000 more! What should I do?' What would you do? Stand your ground? Walk away? Pay the extra? Negotiate? Tell us your…
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New to the House Buying, Selling & Renting board? Start here
✅ This board is for... * Questions about buying or selling a home * Questions about renting a home * Questions about being a landlord 🚫 This board is not for.. * Debating the state of the economy * Debating house prices in general * Political debates Note: In order to help keep the Forum a useful, safe and friendly place…
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Tenancies in Eng/Wales: Guides for landlords and tenants
post 1 This thread is intended to provide information to both landlords and tenants relating to Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) in England and Wales. Updated April 2020 to include the Coronavirus Act 2020 and July 2020 to include the Electrical Safety Standards Regulations 2020. Topics covered: Post 2: Repairing…
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House not listed as sold despite offer
Hi we have had an offer accepted on a house but have been told that the seeker will not list it as sold until we have a formal mortgage offer. In the interim they won’t do viewings and also say they really want to sell to us. is this normal? Should we be worried that it’s not being listed as sold subject to contract?
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What is a utility room?
I thought a utility room was a space for the washing machine and dryer, maybe a big sink for dirty washing (cat litter trays, small dogs etc) and cleaning products. That's what's in mine, along with tins of paint and other odds. Room for a chest freezer would be nice. I'm house hunting a want a utility room still, I like…
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Buying a freehold house but part of garden (15ft strip) is leased to council– anyone had experience?
Hi all, I’m a first-time buyer and feeling quite nervous. I’m buying a freehold house, but I’ve discovered that a 15-foot strip at the very end of the back garden has actually been leased out to the council (so the council is the tenant). Has anyone here had experience with this kind of setup? * What complications or…
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Selling a probate property - do they look into finances of deceased owners??
We are selling our parents property. Mum died in 2022, then Dad in 2024. Mum had given my brother & I some money before she died. I did factor this as gifts into calculating if IHT was payable as it was more than £3,000 and within the previous 7 years. But the estate was under IHT threshold so none was due. Now the buyers…
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Enquiries
I’m four months into the purchasing process. I am waiting on three separate enquires from the sellers solicitors. The first two seem reasonably doable. The third one sounds a bit tricky.. We are waiting on a response from the management company in relation to a Deed of Variation that my solicitor has requested as the…
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Advise needed to sell or buy to let
Hi all, I’m in a bit of a difficult situation and would really appreciate some perspective. The housing market is down, and we’re trying to sell our place but not getting anywhere near the value we expected. On top of that, our child’s school catchment is a big factor, and we need to sort things out before end of October…
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Abortive legal fees - challenge or not?
Hi all, I recently pulled out of a purchase and have just had my bill through... It is made up of legal fees of £480 plus £216.12 for searches. In short, the vendors declared a border dispute early on (in the initial sales pack), having agreed to change the border on land registry, months later they claimed there was no…
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Frustrated
I’m in the buying process. Nearly three months in. No chain on either side. I think my solicitor has recently come back from annual leave so I think there is a backlog - I got that info from the estate agent. When I email the solicitor I just get an automated reply saying - experiencing a high volume of emails etc etc. I’m…
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Soakaway drainage companies
What should I look for when choosing a company to install a rainwater soakaway? There are so many businesses offering the service, but how can I be sure they are genuine? Things we have to consider that needs to be done - Percolation tests, follow whatever building regulations, official approval or certification, such as…
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New "Have a Look at This" thread
The other one has disappeared and any posts I have made are not listed in either my posts or thanks. This thread is for things like: . Spotting pets in properties . Anything awful - decor, extensions etc . Quirky properties . Timewarp properties . Properties in serious repair and anything which is different and of interest…
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Money Moral Dilemma: Should I ask my lodger to pay more rent because she regularly has guests?
This week's MoneySaver who wants advice asks... I have a lodger, and she largely has my house to herself as I'm often away. I have several security cameras that she's aware of, and on reviewing them, it's clear she often has guests over to stay. While I'm not happy about having random people in my home, she's otherwise…
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Who should do new electric works in a rented property
I help manage the landlording for family members and the tenants have recently asked if it would be okay to get new mains sockets installed for convenience. They are willing to pay and were asking for permission. I have no issue with this and only requested that they use a qualified electrician who would issue an…
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Flat has been on the market for 3 weeks now, and I've not had many viewing requests - is there anyth
I've had my 2 bedroom, 2 bath flat located in South East London on the market for 3 weeks now but I've only had 7 enquiries, of which 4 turned into viewings (1 of the viewers liked it but wanted a more modern kitchen, 1 of them the state agent was convinced was going to make an offer the following day, but then…
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When to reduce a sale price - NW Lancashire
Possibly a piece of string question...our family house went on the market four weeks ago. We researched loads of agents, got it down to three, and then picked our current one. On reflection, we were crazy to be rushed into putting it on the market during the school holidays, but hey ho, that time has gone. They valued the…
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Shared ownership HA introducing new service charges 26 years into the lease
My shared ownership HA (Southern) are introducing a new service charges 26 years into the lease in spite of the fact that it's a repairing lease and I have full responsibility for all repairs and they haven't ever done any work on it. The only charges I have ever paid apart from the rent have been for the Buildings…
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Is RTM only for leasehold flats?
I'm on a not-so-new estate with a terrible management company and I've been told that we could use the RTM option to wrestle control of the management company to the residents. All of my research however seems to imply that RTM is only applicable to leasehold flats. Does anyone know if we could go down the RTM route if its…
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Buyers paying for estate agent AML checks?
We are registering with estate agents for a future move and I received a 'thank you registering' email this morning. I don't usually read them but there was a section that stated that BUYERS need to pay for AML checks if their offer is accepted. I've checked other emails and they do not mention this, so I want to ask if…
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Under what circumstances can landlords claim costs in excess of the deposit?
Currently dealing with a difficult landlord who is claiming I owe him rent post-tenancy because the property wasn't spotless which delayed them being able to rent out the property. Considering there was no tenant lined up to move in (not a single viewing while I was still living at the property), it seems disingenuous to…
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Stamp Duty on cheap property
Our main Home is up for Sale for £125k we are interested in 2 properties but only intend to buy one of them A is valued at £130k B is valued at £210k If we have not sold our Home before we own either A or B what impact will Stamp Duty have? Also Can Stamp Duty be claimed back once original Home is sold? Thank you for…
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Probate - buying out a beneficiary from property
My MIL died earlier this year leaving everything equally split between my husband and another beneficiary. Hubby is the sole executor and the estate is currently going through probate. We are living in the her house at the moment (we moved in before she died to help care for her) and our intention is to purchase the other…
