Shared Entry - legal rights?

Enigma80

Hi all,

We're headings towards the contract stage of our purchase and my solicitors have requested that the vendor provide some legal paper work to prove rights over half of a shared entry.

It's a mid terrace house and there's a shared entry that leads to a gate for the (our) back garden and to a door for neighbours (door is plastered up on their side). The owner of the house next door has let the place house out.

The shared entry has half of our houses over the top of it, just like in the link:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=b17+0pb&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=14.53663,29.750977&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Birmingham,+West+Midlands+B17+0PB,+United+Kingdom&ll=52.447352,-1.948013&spn=0,359.985473&z=16&layer=c&cbll=52.447408,-1.947934&panoid=JOf28P7RE2GDcj75nnLP5w&cbp=12,159.94,,0,8.25

Now, she's been told to pay £140 for this paper work from our solicitors, which she can't afford. Has anyone every heard of anything like this? Do people know what the score is? Is it required?

Our solicitors are begining to wind us up, our broker hasn't heard of this, neither have her solicitors or her son who in the building trade.

Any pointers would be appreciated. We have suggested that for the sake of the sale going through that we'd put up the cost of this if it is required.

Also there's something about her driveway. Basically it was done over 20 years ago before she moved in. She moved in 4yrs ago and had it re-paved 3yrs ago to make it look more presentable. Our solicitors are also requesting some proof of permission for the driveway? Again as far as I know this was only needed for driveways being built from a year or so ago?

Can anyone shed any light on any of this at all?

Thanks

Nas

princeofpounds

Your solicitors should be able to. This is what you employ them for. They are very likely to be looking out for your interests here.

Certainly with the shared access, if it is not mentioned on your deeds then you don't technically have any rights to use it, so the lawyer will look for evidence that you do. I don't know specifically what is costing money here but it's certainly something that needs to be evaluated otherwise you could end up with a costly neighbourhood dispute.

Fire_Fox

Flying freeholds are oddities, let your solicitor do his job without questioning his professional judgement. Your mortgage broker is a broker and the son is in the building trade, why exactly would they know more about legalese than your solicitor?

Enigma80

Heard from my solicitors, and it's an indemnity policy costing £175 that simply states that the shared entry is indeed shared and 50% ours; it will be added to the final solicitors bill.

I'm aware that some people can be a bit dodgy and try to pass off as much as they can, but the vendor seems quite genuine and we've developed a slight relationship with her. So when we says she can't afford to pay it, we believe her. And for the sake of the sale going through I think we'll opt to pay it.