Estate agent obligations to buyers

moneyistooshorttomention

Davesnave wrote: »

Agents must rely on what sellers tell them....and sellers, being human, forget things.

My seller certainly had a very "convenient" memory:cool: - as I've discovered and was quite capable of saying one thing to one person (ie me) and something totally different to someone else:mad:

moneyistooshorttomention

Andypandyboy wrote: »

It may not have been known to the EA. Our road is adopted and unadopted in various parts and even the council had to do a lot of digging to be accurate about which part was which.

Your solicitor is at fault here I am afraid if you were not made aware of the possible obligations of buying on an unadopted road.

Edit - but this thread seems to sugest you were made aware.
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4726555

I knew of share of road maintenance obligations - but this is something totally "new" that never came up basically (in effect something that has been dreamt up out of the blue in the hopes of getting extra money from me).

Red-Squirrel_2

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Is that a possibility? Should I think along those lines if so?

(feels glad I was very helpful to local police recently about a totally unrelated matter re things that were happening in neighbourhood recently......).

I'm pretty sure the police don't operate on a 'returning favours' basis!

DaftyDuck

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

I knew of share of road maintenance obligations - but this is something totally "new" that never came up basically (in effect something that has been dreamt up out of the blue in the hopes of getting extra money from me).

While you insist on being quite so ocluded as to what the issue is, I don't think anyone can give you clear advice. However, as far as I can glean, no, an estate agent has no obligation whatsoever to mention any such costs, not least ones that's "totally new....", "never came up..."

Even a solicitor has to rely on your "eyes on the ground" to provide accurate information back.

Why not just post what the issue is, and you may actually get answers!

BrassicWoman

Because this OP enjoys guessing games more than getting help?

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5264961

bouicca21

Half of the road I live on is unadopted. This turned up on the searches and my solicitor was adamant we had to find out just which bits were and were not adopted until I told her it was obvious from the potholes ...

That particular bit of road has a voluntary arrangement to collect money quarterly, hire a jcb and fill in the holes. Other places I know of have a more formal arrangement. The killer is if the road is a mess and the council decide to take it over - they'll get it up to standard and it will cost a fortune.

Mrs_pbradley936

Could it be that there has been a maintenance agreement in place for several years and that your contribution has not been forthcoming? Perhaps you are obliged to pay x amount every so often because the previous owners always did and you inherited that obligation when you purchased the property.

moneyistooshorttomention

I've now checked back on my original historical Deeds I have for here and they confirm my memory (ie that there is no mechanism in place for decision-making/collecting monies towards maintenance). I thought my memory was accurate on that.

I've checked the questionnaire the vendor filled in for answer to that sort of question too and they just state words to effect of "refer to the Deeds" for the answer to that. Not very helpful....

Missus_Hyde

We live down a private lane and it never occurred to me that we would pay to maintain it when we bought our cottage. We've been there 32 years and recently the top part of the lane was resurfaced (we're at the bottom.) We simply pointed out to our neighbours (very politely , but firmly, as they're very nice and we have no wish to fall out with them) that if they wanted to do their bit outside their houses that was entirely up to them, but we were quite happy to just fill in the potholes with rubble etc. as we'd been doing for the last thirty years. There are only four houses, plus one on the main road, down there anyway and the lane leads into a field, so there's no through traffic.

They were perfectly happy to do that and so the top part of the lane has been tarmaced which is what they wanted and our part and my immediate neighbours is still the original flint lane, which I think is far more attractive. However, my neighbours have the road they wanted (tarmac and no mud) and we have the flint lane we wanted, so everyone's happy! :T

moneyistooshorttomention

I don't think a lot of stuff to do with this would be thought about by people - as most of us have lived some/all our lives in standard Council-maintained (or otherwise...) roads.

In my home area there simply weren't many private roads near me and those that were were ones I wouldn't be contemplating buying in/didn't know anyone living in anyway - ie because that was the "expensive/status type" etc roads there. I simply wasn't aware of any private roads with "ordinary" level houses in.

Cue - moving to this area and there do seem to be quite a few private roads and all the ones I've come across to date contain perfectly "ordinary" level houses like mine. So you carry over the mindset that "roads just get done, don't they? and I don't have to think about it" basically...

Alternatively, you assume that, one way or another no-one bothers or there will be a properly set-up Residents Association with open/democratic functioning.

It definitely doesn't occur to you that any one person might just try to lay down the law and then be awkward about it if you don't "leap to it" and obey their commands - as you've got it ingrained in you that we all live in a democracy and everyone has the right to their "vote" on things that concern them. I guess I'm inclined to look at someone trying to "command" and think "Get back into the history books - we don't do things like that these days" LOL