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House buying, renting & selling

Archives for February 2021

Very confused about surveys - single FTB
I've had my offer on a flat accepted. I'm a cash buyer and FTB. It's a leasehold flat (ex local authority). I have appointed a solicitor but heard nothing from them - am I supposed to keep calling/emailing them, or will they get in touch with me? I now need to organise a survey but am getting all sorts of conflicting…
Starting holiday lets
Anybody else on here doing holiday lets? Come April 12 we will be! We have a small house we have rented out for nearly 12 years and have been really fortunate with tenants. One stayed about 18 months and the others 10 years. When they left we took the opportunity of freshening it up so we had a lovely new kitchen…
Sellers Solicitor Not Responding
So myself and my partner sold our house and then finally found a house we love and had our offer accepted 5 months ago. It’s a 3 link chain. Because of coronavirus, Christmas and New Years, everything has moved slowly. We are now in a position where we are trying to agree to a completion date. Our buyer and ourselves have…
Best decision for long term
Hi everyone - looking for advice on our house hunt! Me & my partner are FTB, and we're unsure which approach is better financially in the long run, or whether it matters at all, and I'm struggling to get my head around it: 1) Buy a house around the 260-270 range with a 15% deposit, mortgage rate around 2.5%. Pay no stamp…
Shared Driveway nightmare
Hi all i bought my house and there is a shared driveway to the front of the property. There are only 3 houses in the street and my is the last one in. The middle house has tenants in it. He continues to park his van on the shared driveway causing an obstacle for me to get in/out of the property (I’ve already damaged my car…
1bed flat or 2bed flat?
Hi, I'm about to start the process of buying a flat in London. For context, I'm 28, single, no kids and buying on my own. My current budget will allow me to buy a decent 1 bed flat in some decent parts of London (not central obviously, more like greater London) that I like and I'm familiar with. However, I'm now thinking…
Tax for renew lease
I going to receive my new 999-year lease with no ground rent payable is given to the leaseholder, after I paid around £7,000 to extend my current flat from 89 years lease to a 999-year lease with no ground rent payable. I received a piece of advice that there are income tax implications. If matters are arranged so that a…
Calling the chain?
Hi. I'm selling my house and buying another at the same time. In a 4 person chain. Interested to know if anyone has experience or see the benefits of communicating directly with their buyer and/or vendor to resolve issues and keep things moving. My current line of communication via my EA is vague at best. Thanks in advance.
Sold house - still no money from solicitor
Hi. I completed the sale of my house last week and the solicitor told me late on Friday that the transaction of the balance to my account has been made. However, it's Sunday and I still haven't received the money. It was made by a Telegraphic Transfer I believe. As it's a large amount of money, i'm worrying about what…
Public Right of Way (PROW) Advice
Hi all, Any advice would be gratefully received. Currently buying a new build which unfortunately has a PROW running through the land and in the process of this being extinguished. This obviously requires a lot of back and forth between the developer and local authority to agree to an amicable solution. Just wondered if…
Change of registered title from three to two
I own a flat jointly with my wife and my son, which is let out. There is no mortgage on this property. We have since helped him purchase another flat for himself and he no longer has any interest in this jointly owned flat so we wish to remove his name from the title deeds and there will be no payment involved. I know that…
Advice choosing between 2 properties
Hi there, Just wanted some advice regarding a future house purchase. My wife and I have put in an offer for a property for £315k on a new build development. It is a 3 bed, 3 story townhouse, centre terrace in a large-ish UK city. Another property has come up on the same development that is up for £375k, same build specs,…
About straighetening of the roof
Hi, being in search of a house to buy and having viewed many, I've always wondered if it would be possible to straighten the roof, that in all my cases was sloping on one or two sides. I've also noticed that it's always much lower than the ceiling in the lower floors (around 2-2.10 m). Given a proper engineering plan,…
Issues with valuer?
Hi there Has anyone ever challenged a valuation which declared a property "mainly unsuitable security" due to structural issues? The property is an old house, 1880's, which was only mortgaged less than 3 years ago and the Homebuyers report (given to us by the Vendor) did not mention anything about structural issues. When…
Stamp duty for leasehold flat
Pl how much will be stamp duty for a £375,000 leasehold flat after the holiday period? Thanks
Completion certificate
Hello, Any advice appreciated. In the process of selling our house, the buyers had a survey done recently and has thrown up that there isnt a completion certificate on one of the extensions (we have the planning approval for it). The extension in duspute was done in 1982. Are completion certificates still relevant if the…
Planning Permission
Last post from me on here today but : Got a slightly complicated situation with my neighbour and a balcony, I'm going to have to try and object to an application. I'm thinking that if it gets through, and then they realise how much its going to cost to do the work that they decide not to - can they withdraw it? I know its…
Mortgage application with santander
Hi, my partner and I have just put a mortgage application in with Santander through a broker. My partner is on a permanent contract. As I’m on part time furlough, I had to provide a letter with the date id be back in work full time from my company. On the letter my boss stated I’m on a fixed term contract until August 2021…
Anyone experienced EWS1 form request for a conversion flat?
Hi everyone, I was wondering if anyone who has bought a conversion flat, ideally Victorian/Georgian/Edwardian in the last 6 months with mortgage and whether they had been subject to EWS1 certification? From some threads I saw on this forum, it can depend on the bank whether they will give you a mortgage offer as it's not…
What tax liabilities would we have renting a house
This is an inquiry for a lodger i have living with me. This lodger has spit from his wife & is now completely single & free & would like to buy a house & rent it out & stay living at my place as a lodger. Now we realize he is eligible for tax on the rental income, but would he be liable for anything like CG/tax or similar.…

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MSE News

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If you're a Lloyds, Halifax or Bank of Scotland current account holder, the interest rate you're charged for using your overdraft could change soon as part of a fees shake-up. The Lloyds Banking Group, which owns all three brands, says millions of its customers will pay less after the changes – but a "few" will pay more.
Warm Home Discount expansion confirmed with millions more eligible for the £150 top-up this winter – here's what we know
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Martin Lewis: At last a chance to fix Council Tax flaws impacting millions – debt collection, difficulty challenging your band, discounts and more
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Energy complaints to be dealt with more quickly and Energy Ombudsman to get new powers under Government plans
If you have a complaint about your energy firm, it may be resolved more quickly in future, as the Government has announced a raft of proposals to strengthen consumer protections in the energy market. The planned changes include giving the Energy Ombudsman new powers to force firms to comply with its decisions – but it's still very early days. Here's what we know so far.
Warm Home Discount expansion confirmed with millions more eligible for the £150 top-up this winter – here's what we know
Around 2.7 million more households, including 900,000 families with children, will become eligible for the £150 Warm Home Discount this winter, as the Government has confirmed it will remove the existing 'hard to heat' eligibility criteria. The extension has only been confirmed for winter 2025/26, with further changes possible for future years.
Base rate held at 4.25% – here's what it means and when it might be cut next
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Applied for South West Trains 'boundary fares' compensation? Act now to claim it
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Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated for millions – Martin Lewis explains how it'll work, what it means and if it's an improvement
All State Pensioners in England and Wales will receive a Winter Fuel Payment this winter, though those who earn over £35,000 will see it clawed back through the tax system. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. Here MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis shares his instant response and analysis, and we include answers to your key questions.
Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated for millions – Martin Lewis explains how it'll work, what it means and if it's an improvement
All State Pensioners in England and Wales will receive a Winter Fuel Payments this winter, though those who earn over £35,000 will see it clawed back through the tax system. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. Here MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis shares his instant response and analysis, and we include answers to your key questions.

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House buying, renting & selling

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