Be cautious about buying McCarthy and Stone!

Disgruntled66

I would counsel caution to anyone considering buying a McCarthy and Stone apartment. The issue is not with the property itself but in the selling on of an apartment. I have been trying to sell my deceased uncle’s apartment for three - years. McCarthy and Stones resales experts are passive and as they continue to accrue ~£800pm service charge for an empty they actually have no incentive to sell. I have offered to give up the outstanding equity and transfer the property to them but their legal/transfer team have not done me the courtesy of responding…Has anyone had success in disposing of a property?

Emmia

Was the apartment purchased "new" by your uncle? How much are you attempting to sell it for, unfortunately with retirement apartments like this you're very unlikely to get the purchase price back, more likely you'll need to take a big haircut.

user1977

To be fair to M&S, I think this is the norm for all retirement apartments.

TonyMMM

user1977 said:

To be fair to M&S, I think this is the norm for all retirement apartments.

I think it is  - my late mother almost bought one, and I'm so glad she didn't. The bungalow she did buy sold in a couple of days when I dealt with her estate - apartments in the development she was looking at ( which were very nice indeed, but not McCarthy & Stone)  seem to be listed for sale virtually permanently.

Albermarle

OP - Can you say was it bought new ? At what price and when?
What is the current asking price?

Disgruntled66

Hi all - the apartment was bought new in 2016 for £190k and I’m selling for £90k. It’s a 2 bedroom which is cheaper than the single bedroom units currently for sale…It’s in Northants.

Tiglet2

It is quite well documented how these retirement homes operate.

|Of course, don't forget that they serve a very good purpose for the resident living there and can be a nice home for them when this type of accommodation/support is needed.  

Once the resident passes away, or moves to a nursing care home, the problems trying to sell then become apparent to the family trying to deal with it.  

Sorry you are having to deal with this.

Flugelhorn

agree main problem is that there is a very limited market - can be ideal property for the right person at the right time but there tend to be lots of properties and no many buyers . was looking at some built in 2005 and they still are not reselling for the original selling price 

Robinette

I was recently looking at buying a Churchill retirement flat for my step-mum as part of an interest in possession trust in my Dad's will, so this is a subject close to my heart. Much as we loved the flat and the communal facilities, we were both horrified by the resale value - and that's before you mention being offered £200k under the market value for the marital home! I can't offer you any words of wisdom or tell you about any success stories I found during my research, but I hope you manage to resolve this soon.  

HouseMartin567

Out of curiosity, is this only a problem if you buy new?

Tiglet2

HouseMartin567 said:

Out of curiosity, is this only a problem if you buy new?

No, you would still have to pay service charges on an empty second-hand apartment, but purchasers of a second-hand apartment have usually paid a lot less for the apartment than a purchaser buying brand new would have paid.  Think of how much a brand new car in a showroom would cost, compared to the sale of that same car a year later as second-hand.   This may mean that when selling the property at a future date you are not selling it at a huge loss..