Advice Please - 100% Flying Freehold?

benb3342

We are trying to sell a house that is considered 100% flying freehold (although the land registry says it is freehold with cellars not included).

We have an interested buyer, but his surveyor has recommend that the mortgage lender and the housing association that he is using to buy our house, refuse to lend money.

We are getting conflicting information from the estate agent (who's surveyor the chap has used), our solicitor and a surveyor in our family.

We never had a problem getting a mortgage with the Halifax, who simply required that we take out an indemnity policy for the property, and our solicitor never had any problems.

The estate agent says that no-one will lend on a 100% flying freehold house, and our house is not saleable (funny how he didn't say that when trying to get our business), and that he has to tell anyone looking to buy our house that a sale fell through due to a tenure issue. The surveyor also says we should contact the Halifax, and ask them for compensation as they lent us money on a house that we cannot sell (they should have noted this in their valuation survey). The surveyor believes the Halifax would not have mortgaged the property if they were aware it was a flying freehold.

I was just after any information on:
1) Can/how do we get round the surveyor who refuses to except that there is such a thing as 100% flying freehold. The solicitor and a surveyor (a FRICS) in our family says that the surveyor is just inexperienced, and if we can contact the potential lender of the buyer the sale may continue.
2) Is there such a thing as 100% flying freehold?
3) Can someone tell me what to do - as we are just going between solicitor and estate agent!

Sorry for the long post and cross posting, and thanks in advance for any help and advice.

Ben

pawpurrs

If the house is unmortgageable it should have been picked up by your soliceter when you bought it and he would have a duty to inform the halifax.
Most lendors will lend on flying freehold properties but only up to 15%, so 100% would prove to be difficult as this would generally constitiute a leasehold property, rarther than freehold.
Obviously you managed to buy it and secure a mortgage in the property, Im guessing it will depend how much your buyers want this property. As halifax currently mortgage this property then they will proberbley be happy to carry on mortgaging it, how about speaking to them about it, and see whether your buyers would consider using the halifax.
Youe EA should be trying to help you resolve this as they only get paid when the sale goes through, it doesnt sound like they are being very helpful.

I have never heard of a 100% flying freehold before, but that doesnt mean it does not exsist.
Will do some investigations.

benb3342

Update - Our solicitor and surveyor recon that if we can get in touch with the buyers solicitor and surveyor we should be able to proceed. It appears we are getting really bad advice from the Estate Agent and their own solicitors and surveyors (who the chap is using).

Ben

Conrad

It is very difficult to obtain finance on a flying freehold Im afraid. The legal issues are many and complex - for example who is responsible for a sagging floor you or the person below who who in fact has a sagging ceiling?

Lenders dont consider such properties as good security as there is a limited market for them (cash buyers).

Ultimately your Lawyer is responsible. He should have covered this in detail with you when you purchased.

Apart from litigation against your Lawyer the only other hope is that the property is not flying freehold.

Even if it isnt flying freehold most lenders dont like 'awkward' property, afterall thier entire loan security is the property itself so why burdone themselves with a property that may have 'issues'. Avoid any buyer that requires a mortgage from a non - standard lenders (examples - Kensington, GE Money, Platform and so on)

Good luck

EdInvestor

Could you describe the property a bit, benb? Usually flying freehold refers to an elevated bit of a property ( say a small section of the roof) which overhangs the garden belonging to the house next door.

!!!!!! like this are regarded AFAIK as comparatively routine,not a serious problem.

What does your flying freehold look like?

benb3342

Our house is a mid terrace, and next door own the cellars below the entire length of our house. That's it really. All are in good shape - having just been renovated.

We have a policy incase anything from below affects our house - fire, damp etc.

Thanks for all the advice,

ben