Where do I stand!!!

mummyflesh

Hi All

It’s me again!!!
Today I have found out that the house I am buying has not got a drive way even though it’s on the property details. The drive that is in front of the garage is actually owned by the council and the current owners lease it. They sellers are denning all knowledge of this!!
Surely they will have known!!
Can I claim back any of the money that I have spent etc..

Many thanks

Davesnave

They may have known, but the problem is proving what they knew. EAs just parrot what vendors tell them.



Is a rent collected, and if so, how much is it and how often is it billed?

mummyflesh

Apparently the sellers solicitor has sent my solicitor a Lease agreement. But they have advertised the house with a drive that is clearly not theirs surely that’s misrepresentation or fraud.
2o weeks since offer I have had enough.

Comms69

mummyflesh wrote: »

Apparently the sellers solicitor has sent my solicitor a Lease agreement. But they have advertised the house with a drive that is clearly not theirs surely that’s misrepresentation or fraud.
2o weeks since offer I have had enough.

Well if they’re selling the lease I don’t see what’s been misrepresented

OldMusicGuy

I'm confused - the owners lease the drive but the sellers (presumably the owners) are denying it? How do they lease it if they don;t know there's a lease.....

You need to see the terms of the lease. How long is it for, what do you have to pay, are there any restrictive covenants etc. You then need to decide if you are prepared to buy the house given that you have now found out the drive is leased, not part of the freehold.

It's certainly not very helpful of the sellers to not make you aware of this up front but you have found out prior to buying the house. The property has use of a drive and it appears you will be able to take over the use of that drive, so the property "has a drive". It would have been better to say "has use of a drive" but most estate agents' details have a disclaimer that makes it clear they are not liable for what is in the details.

So I think all you can do is decide to walk away or take over the lease. Unless they have explicitly said the drive was part of the freehold, they haven't really misrepresented anything.

We have a similar issue with our house that a strip of the front garden is not owned by us but is part of the shared areas of the estate. We always make that clear to potential buyers up front so I can understand your frustration when you only just found this out.

G_M

You've got the lease, so take a read.

What are the terms?
Is there a lease period and what is it?
Is there a payment annually? quarterly? How much?


Only you can decide if you believe the property is still worth what you offered given whatever you find out from the lease.


You could ask for a reduction in purchase price, but
* that will cause futher delay
* the sellers I suspect will refuse (I may be wrong).

Talk of 'misrepresentation' is pointless - it is what it is now decide what to do.

2o weeks since offer I have had enough.

If you've had enough, walk away.

mummyflesh

The house was listed with house with a drive there has been no mention of lease from Council and then today they produce a lease.
Surely that’s wrong

D_M_E

What's to stop them selling the house but keeping the leased drive and garage?

I would cut losses and tell my solicitor to stop work and I would find another property.

Comms69

mummyflesh wrote: »

The house was listed with house with a drive there has been no mention of lease from Council and then today they produce a lease.
Surely that’s wrong

But they are selling the lease? So you will have a driveway?

mummyflesh

The point is they knew and never said anything.
I have made an offer on a house and now I will have to pay more on top for the drive which they have advertised comes with the house. Surely that’s wrong!!

Comms69

mummyflesh wrote: »

The point is they knew and never said anything.
I have made an offer on a house and now I will have to pay more on top for the drive which they have advertised comes with the house. Surely that’s wrong!!

You say that but are you actually paying more? I would assume they've sent the lease as that's part of the purchase.


to be clear this is the first time you've mentioned an extra payment - so you cant be surprised there's confusion