about to exchange!!! why contract is only one page !!??

gemma.zhang

Hi Guys,

We're panicing FTB, and about to exchange! Still got a few questions puzzling... want some help !!!

1. On the title deed, it says -
The land tinted blue(parking space outside th house) on the title plan is sujbect to rights of way. This right is for the benefit of xx (opposite house), which rights have been acquired by long user.

What does this mean ? I've asked my solicitor to send email to vendor's solicitor asking about it. 'How in practice has this affected our use in future ?' doesn't get satisfying explaination AT ALL - they just said 'NO' (how useful ).

The parking space outside the house belongs to the property, what does the 'rights of way' really mean ? Anybody help me please !!??

2. also on the council searches shows the road is 'maintained at the public expense', seller's solictior's reply is 'we can only assume that council's made a mistake on this', and insisted that it's a 'private road'. Is it a satifying answer? what shall we do ? We're worried that private road, means , we will need to share to the expense of broken surface, drain and sewer ? Any idea ?

3. Another one, strangely, the exchange contract only comes in ONE/TWO PAGES.. besides that, we have mortgage offer paper, that's about it, is it normal ???

Sorry for so many questions, we're just panicing before the exchange. and don't know what shall we do next

gemma.zhang

pls pls pls pls... help pls...
What are we supposed to do now ?
We still need to arrange insurance etc... just have no idea what's going on next.

carli_h

Hi,

I know how frustrating it is being a FTB as we completed on our house last year.

You need to be 100% sure you are happy with everything before you exchange so I would go back to your sol for further clarification, even if it means asking the vendor additional queries.

Our current property has a right of way across the garden and to be honest I wouldn't live anywhere with a right of way on it again, but some people are not bothered by it at all. I can recommend the following website to help you understand about how the right of way may effect you.
http://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=8&sid=5385ac8d0547fa43c9fb845bbf19ba6f

With regard to you contract, I think ours was about a page, but you should also have other documents such as the land registry form and mortgage agreement to complete.

Good luck!

gemma.zhang

thanks for your reply.:-D

as for the 'right of way'. in our case, what exactly is the 'right'. it's really confusing me. Why it's only granted to the opposite neighbour rather than next door one ?

PasturesNew

If there is a right of way over what you think is your parking space ... it would imply to me that you can't park there.

"long user" seems to say to me that it was land nobody was using - except one person kept using it for over 10 years and "claimed" it

Just me guessing from what I understand of what you are describing ... and my zero knowledge of law.

A_Nice_Englishman

I agree with carli_h, don't sign until you completely understand the right of way and private road issues. You are paying your solicitor to find out about these and explain them to you.

Briefly, it sounds like the neighbour opposite has walked or driven over the land belonging to the house you are buying for many years, perhaps to reach part of his land? This has established a 'right of way'.

As I understand it, a road is either 'private' or 'adopted'. A private road has to be maintained by the owners of property alongside it. Hopefully the deeds explain how the cost is divided between the various owners. If not, there will be arguments between the owners about it. Be wary, especially if the road is in poor condition and looks like it may need to be repaired soon. An adopted road is maintained by the council. 'we can only assume' is NOT an acceptable response!

gemma.zhang

thank you for you advice, I am quite angry with my solictor. all his replies in the emails so far are just 'Yes' or 'No', and doing as least as possible. what a nice/quick way to earn 700 pounds !!!.

The road is said to be privat road, as there's been discussion about reparing the surface for months, and each house is reasonable to payment of 500 pounds ish. However, it's not explained in the deeds at all. I don't believe council will make such big mistake in searches, then, what is that 250 pounds searches for !!!!...

the road is cul-de-sac, and only houses with even door number on that street owns a little part of land outside for parking space. No idea why/how opposite neighbour has anything to do with it.

I still can't figure how could be a contract be only one page. I assume buying a house is a HUGE THING, at the least for me, ONE PAGE contract, even signing a mobile phone contract you will have N pages..

A_Nice_Englishman

Your solicitor sounds useless! Have you had a meeting with him, or just email contact?

Some more questions to ask...

Who said each owner was agreeable to paying £500?
Has a contractor quoted for the necessary work and is £500 per house enough to cover this?

Has the 'right of way' been established because the people opposite have been parking there? If so that could be a big problem that needs to be sorted and documented if you want the parking space back.

Debt_Free_Chick

gemma.zhang wrote: »

I still can't figure how could be a contract be only one page. I assume buying a house is a HUGE THING, at the least for me, ONE PAGE contract, even signing a mobile phone contract you will have N pages..

Solicitors use standard contracts and then set out the individual details on a separate page. Does this page mention things like "clause xyz does not apply in this case" or something similar?

I think you should still have the full contract, although it's standard, and not an easy read.

Right of way - the neighbours "rights" should be clearly set out in an amendment (easement) to the deeds for the property. Ask your solicitor if the deeds include the easement. If not, ask him if you & the neighbour should include something - otherwise your respective rights will never be clear and I can envisage a dispute brewing. Unfortunately, many existing owners like to assert "their rights" with new neighbours, just to "start off on the right foot" - not all but, worryingly, many :mad:

HTH

CFC

I think you should speak to your solicitor. You pay him to look after your interests. It doesn't sound to me like he is doing his job. Perhaps you should remind him in writing that you are relying on his advice and keeping all his emails for future reference in case there are any problems on any of these issues...

Richard_Webster

Quote:
Originally Posted by gemma.zhang
I still can't figure how could be a contract be only one page. I assume buying a house is a HUGE THING, at the least for me, ONE PAGE contract, even signing a mobile phone contract you will have N pages..

Solicitors use standard contracts and then set out the individual details on a separate page. Does this page mention things like "clause xyz does not apply in this case" or something similar?

That is basically right. The Standard Conditions of Sale (4th Edition) are 2 A4 pages of very small print and are usually incorporated by reference. They deal with all kinds of eventualities that rarely happen in practice, and each solicitor has to make a value judgement. Is it appropriate to show all the detailed conditions and then face a barrage of questions about rarified esoteric points that will perhaps crop up once or twice in the average conveyancer's working life when the transaction goes terribly pear shaped? Or concentrate on the more important things that people want to know? (Looks as if neither has happened here!)

Certainly I would consider the kinds of questions you are asking are legitimate ones - what is the right of way about? Is the road adopted or not?

It is difficult for me to comment on the issues you have raised about the right of way etc without going into a lot more detail. What is clear is that your solicitor should have explained the implications to you.

Did you just get some documents to sign with a letter telling you where to sign or was there a proper explanation about the contents of the Land Registry documents etc and their significance for you? Solicitors should learn by experience the kinds of questions that people commonly ask, and deal with them with proper explanations. My standard pre-contract report template contains advice about all kinds of issues a lot of people wouldn't be bothered about, but I have found some people do worry about. If you have had no proper explanation then I think you can complain about poor service.