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buying flat - issues with vacant flat underneath?
500pages
Posts: 34 Forumite
We're interested in buying a one bed flat in a conversion property consisting of three flats. The lease is 900+ years so no issue there.
The flat above is occupied and tenanted but the one below is empty and has been for several years - apparently purchased five years ago but empty since (v. odd!).
It looks dilapidated and there's a half-open window at the rear so looks potentially vulnerable to squatting or something... It's also not been kept well - windows rotting etc.
This has raised a flag for me and whilst I haven't yet queried the vendor on it, I'm wondering what - if any issues - this may raise. Would it/should it matter? I'm not sure what the structural condition of the building is - the roof looks okay but imagine at some point in future it could need work doing that would need to be shared by all leaseholders. In fact, the front door clearly needs to be replaced immediately...
If the leaseholder below is absent, I am walking into a purchase that will cause stress in getting improvement/maintenance works done to the building or is it really down to the freeholder to deal with? I'm not certain but I think the flat above is tenanted so the leaseholder there is also perhaps less inclined to participate in any improvement works...
As I said, I've not queried vendor on this yet, nor do I know story with the freeholder or management agent (I will be asking questions) but wanted to check with wise owls on here if there's anything in particular that I should check on.
Would this raise a flag for you and if so, what are the concerns do you think? I'd initially been keen to find out if the people below were noisy but wasn't expecting to find it completely empty... Many thanks!
The flat above is occupied and tenanted but the one below is empty and has been for several years - apparently purchased five years ago but empty since (v. odd!).
It looks dilapidated and there's a half-open window at the rear so looks potentially vulnerable to squatting or something... It's also not been kept well - windows rotting etc.
This has raised a flag for me and whilst I haven't yet queried the vendor on it, I'm wondering what - if any issues - this may raise. Would it/should it matter? I'm not sure what the structural condition of the building is - the roof looks okay but imagine at some point in future it could need work doing that would need to be shared by all leaseholders. In fact, the front door clearly needs to be replaced immediately...
If the leaseholder below is absent, I am walking into a purchase that will cause stress in getting improvement/maintenance works done to the building or is it really down to the freeholder to deal with? I'm not certain but I think the flat above is tenanted so the leaseholder there is also perhaps less inclined to participate in any improvement works...
As I said, I've not queried vendor on this yet, nor do I know story with the freeholder or management agent (I will be asking questions) but wanted to check with wise owls on here if there's anything in particular that I should check on.
Would this raise a flag for you and if so, what are the concerns do you think? I'd initially been keen to find out if the people below were noisy but wasn't expecting to find it completely empty... Many thanks!
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Comments
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It would worry me. Not so much squatting (now a criminal offence in residential property) but fire starting or similar.
At the very least the freeholder should be trying to make the property secure.0 -
Thanks princeofpounds, that's a really good point.0
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Maybe you can buy the empty flat, at a discounted / distressed sale price instead...?
Just a thought..!
I wouldn't want an empty flat above or below my flat.
For a start, with winter coming, will their pipes be freezing?
If it's an old conversion, I'm guessing your flat will also end up with a cold space below it...?0
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