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Stamp Duty following Separation
Myself and my partner have jointly owned our home of 10 years and both own no other property. We have recently divorced and in recent months I moved out of the property and stay with a friend whilst she remains in the property. I will be buying my now ex wife out of our house and wondered if stamp duty would be applicable.…
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Estate agent AML and other fees for selling
We had a valuation for selling our house and the commission comes to £7800. In addition we are required to pay an additional AML fee of £60 each for my wife and I. We're rather surprised that this isn't included. Is this not the same type of check banks perform when you open an account and part of the daily business of…
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CCTV Drainage survey
Hi, We are in a process of purchasing an old probate property that needs full modernisation. We've had a CCTV drainage survey carried out as it was recommended by our surveyor. The survey identified multiple areas of displacement within the original clay drainage system, including several major displacements, two cracked…
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LISA use rules
I am currently living in Europe - is it possible to buy property here and then still use a LISA in the UK when I move back later? Or will my only penalty-free option be to use my LISA savings as a pension?
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How can I tell if individual house prices are falling ?
I'm considering buying a house, and wondering where the market is at currently. However, when I see the average house price has gone down, I'm never sure if that means individual house prices are going down, or simply that there's more activity at the lower end of the market than the higher end. For example, if individual…
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North east facing garden
Hi all, Looking for peoples experiences with a North East facing garden. We're looking at buying this property. Garden isnt huge. Kitchen/diner is at the rear leading out to the garden. We've always had south/southeast facing gardens and I'm wondering if this will get any sun or it will just feel dark and dingy. We have…
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Redrow Restrictive Covenant and Parking
How can Redrow enforce a restrictive covenant regarding visitor parking on our road? A neighbour has informed us that our visitor cannot park on our road outside our house due to Redrow's restrictive covenant. The parking of this regular visitor (twice a week on average with overnight stays) does not cause any obstruction…
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Taylor Wimpey new-build roof defect causing leak – NHBC experience?
Hi all, Looking for some experiences or advice from anyone who has dealt with a similar issue on a new-build home. We purchased a new-build property from Taylor Wimpey around 3.5 years ago. We have recently experienced water entering the loft and bedroom ceiling during periods of rain (water ingress). An independent…
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Should a law firm pay interest on monies held in their Client account?
Hi all, I have a question on whether a law firm should pay interest on funds held in their general client account? The Solicitor told me that they don't make any interest on their client account therefore there is no interest to pay me for the funds they are holding. I have never questioned his position on this, however,…
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Buyers is delaying / refusing to exchange
We have agreed the sale of our property (leasehold flat) and all outstanding items have been resolved. The buyer (cash buyer) is moving back from the States and is apparently 'desperate' to move yet she keeps delaying exchange and completion. She has recently had surgery in the states and has refused to complete until she…
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What’s my next move?
Hi all, For context, I’m a 1st time solo buyer. My friends have either purchased new builds or with a partner who’s taken the lead on the purchase and I’m the 1st person in my family to buy a house, so I have no-one to run this by IRL. I recently had a Level 3 survey, which was largely positive. However, the surveyor did…
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Rental Application
Good evening, I am a bit worried as looking to rent again but back account is nearly £500 overdrawn I am on benefits, I have a guarantor and can give reference letter from landlord, and obviously show benefits statements. I am really worried they will ask for bank statements as then they will see the overdraft, I do pay…
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Buy now vs buy in a few years?
Good Afternoon Everyone, I have a question regarding whether I should buy now or rent for a bit longer to save more money and increase my deposit. So I have just seen that Santander do 2% deposit mortgages currently, and with that I would be able to buy a house in the latter part of this year. But I am wondering whether it…
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Water Damage from Other Property - Leasehold
Hello. The property upstairs is managed by a Letting Agency on behalf of the owner. Several months ago this agency arranged for plumbers to replace a water heater and water came down into my property because they didn't drain it. I lost electricity for several days whilst it dried out and then they replaced the mains fed…
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Certificate of Structural Adequacy after Subsidence
Who’s had experience of getting buildings insurance cover with these at reasonable rates? If so were you actually asked to submit them or did you get the cover simply by declaring that you had one and weren’t actually asked to submit a copy? In my experience the latter is more common now as with AI underwriting there is no…
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Overpriced house, offer rejected, what now?
Husband and I went to view a property on Sunday and we both really liked it however we think it is overpriced. It was put on the market in June 2025 for 850k, reduced 3 months later to 800k then taken off the market. It has recently been put back on at 775k and I still think it is really overpriced. The house has been…
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Defunct land next to house
Hello! This is a weird one - our house at the end of a cut-de-sac has a lane running down the side - we have been here for 7 years and it's not been used in that time - speaking to the neighbours, the lane hasn't been used for decades. The local council still maintain a street light at the top of the lane! After calling…
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Rents increasing
Locally in Essex where we have rental properties we own and manage rents have, on average gone up by 10% and we have noticed fewer properties for rent. It looks to us as if the renters right act is having the opposite effect intended. Less homes to chose from and higher rents? Is it the same in your area?
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Buying my old house back after 3 years
hi I need advise on buying my old house back I sold it 3 years ago for 400k and now regret it but now it’s back on the market for 460k the new owner has done nothing to it and he’s let it go I’ve offered 425k cash and he won’t accept my offer he says wants 440k but I feel 40k in 3 years is delusional as other houses in my…
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Purple Bricks' Lifetime Guarantee
Hi, we paid Purple Bricks' agency fee 4 years ago on the basis that it would be honoured whenever we chose to sell our house. I've now been advised that the new owners of the company will only give us six months to sell our house, after which we lose our money (c£1700). Anyone know if there is any way of challenging this…
