The Ups and Downs ...mainly Downs..of selling a flat.

[RogerS]

So due to this c**t, my sister and I are down about £5k between us in aforementioned fees and charges. My wife and I are now not able to clear off the mortgage that we had. It was for a short fixed two-year rate but that has now timed out. Our options are to move over to the variable rate...horrendous monthly payment with the advantage we can clear it at any time. Or take out another fixed term knowing full well that we will, when the flat is finally sold, take out a suitcase of £2000 of fivers and effectively set fire to it as that is the early redemption fee.

All plans on hold. No further work on the house. No further purchases. Full stop.

It is all I can do not to get on a train, go down to his house (I know where he lives) and shove his bloody fez down his effing throat. Then toddle round to his solicitor and rip him a new one. :twisted:

 

[Richard_C]

Sorry to hear.

I worked in HR, did lots of work on remuneration. If I were to design a pay and bonus scheme almost guaranteed to deliver a fair chunk of unethical sales-at-any-cost even if porkies have to be told behavior it would be like the Foxton's one of a few years back, may have changed I suppose. Presumably your solicitor has not handed over any estate agents fees from the non-proceeds of the non-sale? It's no comfort to you, but Foxtons seem to be in a mess with shareholders challenging the exec bonuses, the chair resigning suddenly and revenues falling.

Sounds like you have a decent solicitor, it's at times like this you realise the value of a 'proper one' not an online only mass conveyancing firm. No particular thoughts on mortgage but if this coronavirus* thing carries on much longer the central banks might lower interest rates.

Good luck, keep us posted.

* Should be called Brit-Vic virus really, Brit Vic bought the Corona brand from Beechams back in 1987. Or is it a different Corona?

 

[Jake]

So due to this c**t, my sister and I are down about £5k between us in aforementioned fees and charges. My wife and I are now not able to clear off the mortgage that we had. It was for a short fixed two-year rate but that has now timed out. Our options are to move over to the variable rate...horrendous monthly payment with the advantage we can clear it at any time. Or take out another fixed term knowing full well that we will, when the flat is finally sold, take out a suitcase of £2000 of fivers and effectively set fire to it as that is the early redemption fee.

All plans on hold. No further work on the house. No further purchases. Full stop.

It is all I can do not to get on a train, go down to his house (I know where he lives) and shove his bloody fez down his effing throat. Then toddle round to his solicitor and rip him a new one. :twisted:

As said I am not a property lawyer but from first principles the deposit retention is not the sole remedy. It's not nice going at your intermediate buyer chain person, but if she has trousered £85k of Problem's money, she can afford to pass some on right?

 

[RogerS]

So due to this c**t, my sister and I are down about £5k between us in aforementioned fees and charges. My wife and I are now not able to clear off the mortgage that we had. It was for a short fixed two-year rate but that has now timed out. Our options are to move over to the variable rate...horrendous monthly payment with the advantage we can clear it at any time. Or take out another fixed term knowing full well that we will, when the flat is finally sold, take out a suitcase of £2000 of fivers and effectively set fire to it as that is the early redemption fee.

All plans on hold. No further work on the house. No further purchases. Full stop.

It is all I can do not to get on a train, go down to his house (I know where he lives) and shove his bloody fez down his effing throat. Then toddle round to his solicitor and rip him a new one. :twisted:

As said I am not a property lawyer but from first principles the deposit retention is not the sole remedy. It's not nice going at your intermediate buyer chain person, but if she has trousered £85k of Problem's money, she can afford to pass some on right?

She still would like to buy the flat and we'd still like her to have it. I know that if that does happen then I can add the £5k to the purchase price (she'd already agreed to pay that prior to the **** screwing up his funding).

 

[Blackswanwood]

Bear in mind that if you add £5k to the purchase price it means the stamp duty payable will also increase.

 

[RogerS]

Bear in mind that if you add £5k to the purchase price it means the stamp duty payable will also increase.

That's her problem ! I don't think there is a way around that.

 

[Trainee neophyte]

[
That's her problem ! I don't think there is a way around that.

That is why God created cash in brown envelopes.

 

[Trevanion]

That is why God created cash in brown envelopes.

Just make sure they're all tens :wink:

 

[Blackswanwood]

Bear in mind that if you add £5k to the purchase price it means the stamp duty payable will also increase.

That's her problem ! I don't think there is a way around that.

I think there is (and it doesn’t involve brown envelopes). Worth checking with your solicitor but I am pretty sure that you will be entitled to compensation for your loss ie a separate payment that does not form part of the purchase price.

 

[RogerS]

Bear in mind that if you add £5k to the purchase price it means the stamp duty payable will also increase.

That's her problem ! I don't think there is a way around that.

I think there is (and it doesn’t involve brown envelopes). Worth checking with your solicitor but I am pretty sure that you will be entitled to compensation for your loss ie a separate payment that does not form part of the purchase price.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll check on that

 

[Jake]

[
That's her problem ! I don't think there is a way around that.

That is why God created cash in brown envelopes.

Was someone somewhere saying something about dishonesty?

 

[Rorschach]

[
That's her problem ! I don't think there is a way around that.

That is why God created cash in brown envelopes.

Can tell you live in Greece :twisted:

 

[Trainee neophyte]

[
That's her problem ! I don't think there is a way around that.

That is why God created cash in brown envelopes.

Was someone somewhere saying something about dishonesty?

At the risk of getting political, it depends on your view of government and tax. If you believe that all taxes are fair and reasonable, and the government has a valid right to extract as much of your life (work=time =hours of your life you will never get back) as it wants, then by all means give as much money as you feel appropriate to the authorities, who will make carefully considered and sensible use of your hard-earned money.

If, on the other hand, you see government as a Mafia who demand money with menaces, (try not paying tax and see what happens), and who are morally bankrupt, murdering psychopathic lunatics, then you may want to try to limit their ability to commit murder all around the globe. Most people are somewhere on the scale from one extreme to the other. Brown envelopes are merely an expression of the desire to limit government, and therefore save lives. It's actually a humane, rational and entirely moral choice.

In the interests of not upsetting anyone, feel free to add a [/sarc] tag wherever you feel appropriate.

 

[RogerS]

Discovered that the poor lady wanting to buy the flat had, back in January, already contacted the local council to indicate change of ownership as our mothers' account is now closed. Unfortunately the outstanding debt (find it immoral that a council will charge council tax on an empty flat - one being actively marketed for sale and empty due to a death ) is still there.

I don't have the will/energy/inclination to try and unravel that with the Stasi...sorry, council. We'll just see how the situation develops and make sure she's not out of pocket. Jeez, that itch to go down South to meet him face-to-face gets stronger by the day.

 

[eezageeza]

I did the probate for an aunt who died a couple of years ago, and the local council allowed a 9 month council tax holiday following her death. We managed to sell her house just before the end of that period! I don't know whether that is a universal policy, or even still current policy there, but it might be worth checking out.

 

[RogerS]

I did the probate for an aunt who died a couple of years ago, and the local council allowed a 9 month council tax holiday following her death. We managed to sell her house just before the end of that period! I don't know whether that is a universal policy, or even still current policy there, but it might be worth checking out.

Each council is different.

 

[RogerS]

Pure schadenfreude.

The muppet solicitor who failed to carry out any due diligence into the availability of the buyers' funds and thus causing four failed completion dates and a final rescinding of the contract.

He's gone. Booted out. 'De-partnerised'.

 

[Richard_C]

He's gone. Booted out. 'De-partnerised'. Norweigian blue perhaps? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZw35VUBdzo

Could you argue that in booting him out the partnership has implicitly recognised that he was incompetent, bent or both and must therefore have failed in their duty of care to everyone in the chain?

I wonder if he is still a solicitor. You can look him up if you want to stoke your schadenfreude some more.

https://www.sra.org.uk/consumers/register/

You can find 'strikings off' here:

https://www.solicitorstribunal.org.uk/j ... lts#search

Its worth opening a couple of pdfs just to see what they get up to, these are of course the ones who don't get away with it.

 

[Trainee neophyte]

Pure schadenfreude.

The muppet solicitor who failed to carry out any due diligence into the availability of the buyers' funds and thus causing four failed completion dates and a final rescinding of the contract.

He's gone. Booted out. 'De-partnerised'.

Do the remaining partners have a good professional indemnity policy? Worth looking in to it.

 

[Richard_C]

If they are Solicitors in UK practice, the SRA rules are:

The Sum Insured for any one Claim (exclusive of Defence Costs) must be,
where the Firm is a Relevant Recognised Body, at least £3 million, and in all
other cases, at least £2 million.