deed of substituted security

peachgirl

Hi everyone,

I live in a block of flats and we've completed the new purchase of freehold/lease extension (it's a 999-year extension). In their last letter, the solicitors representing our block included a note saying that mortgage holders, like me, will be required to enter into a Deed of Substituted Security with our individual mortgage lenders. That's all fine, I've done some research on it and now understand what that means although it took a while!

What I can't seem to find out is the cost involved, or if I can do that myself. I've come across a lot of conflicting advice (govt. websites, lease-advice.org, MSE...) and I'm just getting myself more confused. The solicitors want another £220 to do it for me, and to be frank after all the thousands of ££££s I've spent on this, I don't want to spend more than I need to! I'm also due a refund of £250 in overpaid fees, and I'm wondering if it's just an excuse to squeeze more out of me when I can do it cheaper myself.

I've contacted my mortgage provider and they're going to come back to me on this (admin dept. was closed when I called), but I'd like to try and understand it more in the meantime! Any help/of your experiences with this would be really appreciated. Thanks in advance.

xylophone

There's a sample here https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/389213/self-employment-and-the-state-pension.pdf

I imagine that the mortgagee may insist on the use of a solicitor?

And after spending thousands, £250 is a drop in the ocean to have the legalities properly covered and you can off set it against the refund?

peachgirl

Hi xylophone, thanks for your answer. Unfortunately the whole process has bled me dry; I have no savings and quite a lot coming up that I need to pay for (annual car insurance renewal, ditto tv licence, ditto internet provider), and anything I can save on this would make a big difference over the next few months. I don't really trust this solicitor (not my choice to use them, the management group's) so I'm not sure if they're trying it on.