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House buying, renting & selling

Archives for September 2010

Bungalow with loft room but no building regs
I've seen a 3 bed bungalow I like in which the loft was made into a bedroom about 9 years ago. It has a proper staircase going up from the ground floor, but no door to the loft room. It's been fully boarded & has wooden cladding on all "walls" & 2 Velux windows overlooking the rear garden. It all looks lovely but wasn't…
Newbie house buyer help!
Hi guys and gals. Myself and my long-term girlfriend have just had our offer accepted on our first house, which is really exciting. However im totally overwhelmed at what exactly i should spend my time doing this weekend with all the different things that i probably now need to sort / get the ball rolling ... Firstly.. the…
tv package and moving house
Dear Friends, I hope someone can give me some info... Basically I am going to move to new address in 20 days time and hence I had selected the SKY installation date as moving in date. But what will happen meanwhile in this 20 days? What about new phone line? How will they activate? I know the box and contract etc will…
Do we need to buy a starter home?
I'll finally qualify this year and start working again, so as a two income family we'll finally be able to put away money for a deposit. But we'd really rather not buy the cheapest house we can find, do it up, sell it on, buy another, do it up sell it on, over and over to build enough equity to buy the house we really…
Question re. joint mortgage
If you have a joint mortgage with someone and you no longer wish to see or speak to them and you pay the mortgage and they do not live there what rights do they have? Can they come to the property if you do not want them there? Can you get a restraining order if necessary? Can they force you to sell the house or leave? Do…
Cost to renovate 3 bedroom 1930s house?
Hi all I found you guys really helpful with my last question on here so.... I have found a 3 bed 1930s house I really like and would like to buy. The problem is it needs extensive refurbishment. I was wondering if you guys could give me a rough idea as to the price of things, I know it is difficult without knowing the…
Landlord playing dirty tricks with deposit!
I wonder if anybody could give me some advice about the trouble brewing about getting my deposit back, as I am really quite shocked at my landlord's tactics! I recently moved out of my rented flat as I've just bought a house. I'd been living there for around 2 years and was a really good tenant. I kept a cat and it was…
Renegotiate after Home Buyer's Survey?
I just got my Home Buyer's Survey back and although the surveyor agrees that the price is reasonable it has underlined a few issues with the property that will need resolving soon after moving in. The issues include: dodgy old electrics, a roof in need of some TLC (definately not a total write of though!!), fire places…
house i want has a back boiler? will this need changing
looked at a house which we want to put an offer in, but it has a back boiler central heating system? will this need changing to a combi system? if so will this be an expensive job. any would would be grateful :)
Could i ever afford it?
I just broke up with my partner whom i lived with in his house. I was wondering if there is any way i could afford a mortgage, i havent started to research it at all yet so please excuse that i know nothing. I have a low income of £15,000 and no debt. What is the best option for me, i am assuming this is too low therefore…
Is it OK to buy a 75-years old house
Please help me out. I am a first time buyer and have been looking for houses. I have found one house which is semi detached, 4-bed house with a big garden. I'm happy with everything but it was bulit in 1935. My queries are: 1. What will happen with my house when it will be 100 years old or more older? 2. Will other people…
Should I buy or sell or rent out? (Inheritance and Debt issues)
Hi Any advice you have would be appreciated. I am 45 and have inherited a 50% share (c. 65 - 70K) in a house from my Mom along with my sister who inherited the other 50%. The house is worth about 130 - 140K. I need to decide whether to realise the equity or whether to purchase the property outright (probably initially as a…
Action against Landlord please read and advise
This is a long post i know, but after finding out today my LL tried to forge a letter from the DPS to claim my deposit was protected i am now taking things further. I am a good tenant i have never caused any problems and i do not owe any rent, there is good landlords and bad but i think my current LL does not deserve to be…
Really impressed with our surveyor
He came out to do the survey yesterday. I know on here quite regularly there are FTBs freaked out by what comes up in the report, and I was expecting our eeeek moment (although I had a pretty good idea what would come up) when we open the big envelope - very very surprised he took the time to ring us this evening at home…
Price reduced after mortgage valuation
Just thought I'd share some good news..a while back on here I posted that our mortgage valuation had come back some £12k less than our agreed offer price. After a bit of time spent by the agents unsucessfully trying to find 'comparables' to prove the orginal agreed price, the vendor today agreed to drop the price by the…
Still Awaiting Return of Deposit
Hi, So I was living in rented student accomodation, and the contract finished on 28th June this year. I was out on time, and all up to date with my rent. Six weeks after the end of contract I recieved a letter stating the charges to my deposit. One of these was a £15 charge to hold my deposit in a Tenancy Deposit Scheme,…
Contractual Garden Work
We are renting a terrace house and the contract states we must maintain the garden, which is fine. However, the back of the garden is a serious mess of brambles and weeds which we have cleared twice in 2 years. The landlady says she does not want us putting weed killer down but rather that we must do weekly work manually…
Buildings insurance - occupied for renovation
Hi all, I've bought a house to renovate but am a bit confused by the extent of insurance I need upon completion. I called a few places who said they'd get back to me with a quote but as far as I understand it, I need a "renovation cover" policy... as I'll be getting the place gutted and rewired, installing new central…
Selling a house
My ex's partner's parents loaned me and my ex partner £10k ten years ago to buy a house together. My ex partner then left our home with our 2 children and moved in with the guy she was seeing behind my back in May 2009. I have since been paying the mortgage for this property since May, but she cited that she could have…
quick House Sale Needed
We have had our house on the market for 18 months now and really need to sell it due to a new job relocation. Has anyone had any dealings with companies who will buy your house. I understand they will only give you a percentage of your house valuation which i'm guessing is not that high. Just trying to weigh up all our…

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