Coach house

Hayley20013

This is a bit complicated but I will try my best to explain clearly. Back in February this year we purchased a house from our local council. It is a two bedroom house above two garages, one of which has an internal door into the house. The house is freehold, the red boundary on the title plan covers the whole house and the two garages, there is no lease in the deeds on the second garage. In fact there is no mention of any garage on any of the documents. I have since been told by the council they still own the second garage, and that the plan that I was sent when we bought the house was wrong. They have sent me an amended version that takes off a quarter of the house including my living room as it is directly above! Surely if the house is freehold it isn’t possible for them to be the owners of something I am built on top of? They have also said they have contacted land registry to get the official plan amended, this can’t be done without my consent can it? Please help I am so stressed!

Caz3121

what has your solicitor said?

Shelldean

Can't help but advise you to Google flying freehold.

Hayley20013

The solicitor thinks we have a case but it’s going to cost a hell of a lot of money that we just don’t have to fight it. Surely the title plan shows what I am buying and they can’t just change this 5 months after the sale has completed.

Hayley20013

I did look into flying freehold, would this have been brought to my attention during the sale if that was the case? And are these type of houses labelled flying freehold instead of just freehold in the deeds?

xylophone

The subject of coach houses and the "freehold/leasehold" arrangement that seems to be usual (or at least very common) in these properties has come up a number of times.

In effect there is a freehold of the whole but only one of the garages is retained for the exclusive use of the freeholder - the other garages are on long leasehold to other parties.

I don't see how the council can lay claim to your living room.

Is the real situation that one of the garages is on long leasehold to the council?

You mention the costs of litigation but surely it was your solicitor's job to investigate title?

Knowing that it was a coach house he should have been particularly careful to investigate how matters stood?

Otherwise, if the council gave erroneous information, it is up to the council to bear any costs?

https://forums.landlordzone.co.uk/forum/conveyancing-questions/9902-selling-coach-houses-leasehold-or-freehold

http://www.mynewsdesk.com/uk/blog_posts/a-closer-look-at-coach-houses-60754

PasturesNew

I strongly suspect they've made another mistake. Probably somebody who only half heard their instruction, who then made sweeping assumptions and put the document in their OUT tray.

Go back to them on the assumption they've done it wrong.

They won't have taken away your living room, somebody's made a mistake as they probably thought it was a row of terraced houses and weren't looking at a photo of it at all.

G_M

register (free) with the Land Registry alert. You'll be informed of any proposed change to your Title.


But 'd contact them anyway to ask if the council has made any application against your title. You should be given the opportunity by them to contest any change. Noneed to use a solicitor, though as suggested above you could argue your solicitor let you down so should resolve this for you at their own cost.


Good luck arguing that.......!

Hayley20013

There is no lease on the second garage, they are saying they are the owners of that garage. They’ve already admitted they made a mistake on the plan I was sent when we bought the house, even though the new plan they sent this week is also wrong as I said it takes away anything above that garage. I didn’t even know anything about coach houses, it’s listed as a two bedroom terraced house, freehold and a perfect rectangle around the whole thing on the title plan! my solicitor hasn’t seen the house and can only go by what she was sent from the council which doesn’t refer to them retaining any part of the land in the boundary. I’m tempted to just change the locks and let them pay to prove it’s theirs, I don’t see why I should have to pay to prove they made a mistake it all seems very unfair. I will set up alerts with the land registry, thank you!

getmore4less

Should your stand be you bought what they sold you not something else now they have changed their minds.

If they want to change it now they should buy it back with compensation and start again selling what they really want to sell.

Hayley20013

I wish I knew how to attach the photos from my phone so you could see the difference in the two plans. They are telling me that I shouldn’t have assumed I own that garage as it doesn’t say anywhere that I would be getting two garages with the house. But my argument with that is they aren’t disputing that one garage is mine and that isn’t mentioned anywhere either. The only time somebody has come to look at the house was when the person from the council valued it, the legal department have no clue what the house looks like. They have signed and agreed to the plan that was sent and registered at the land registry, with it being freehold. I’m sure I am right but I feel like a rabbit in the headlights without a solicitor and The council aren’t budging, the last I heard from them was an email that said if you have any further queries then you need a solicitor to contact the legal team. We are first time buyers with two children and very little money left, and I dread to think of the problems we will face when we come to eventually sell!