Trying to sell my home in London! Help!

Post reply   Start new thread
:: New - Old :: Old - New

Pages: 1 |

Forum home :: Latest threads :: Search forums
The Comments
08 Jan 2010 12:00 AM by mymovetospain Star rating. 2 posts Send private message

I'm starting to panic!  Looking for help (please).  Was supposed to be in Malaga in August last year  I've "sold" my flat in London  five times, that is I've had five offers from my estate agent but they've all fallen through becuase the buyer couldnt get a mortgage.  My flat has a 52 year lease on it so the banks won't lend on it.  Just before Christmas I contacted a few of these homebuyer companies, so far i've only heard back from decisionhomebuyers but they haven't done thier survey yet.  They say the offfer will be below market value but not sure by how much.  the problem is my mortgage is quite high and not sure if the offer will be high enough.  i think my only option will be to rent the property but am reluctant to do that becuase it will be a headache... reason i want to go to spain is to get away from all that. 

can anyone give me any advice about selling a flat with a short lease?  is renting a property out realy a nightmare, espcially if i'm not going to be in the country?  any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks, Sammy





Like 0      
08 Jan 2010 3:57 PM by suemac Star rating in Jumilla, Murcia. 1001 posts Send private message

Hi

Have you looked at the cost of extending the lease to 99 years?  John had to do this, as the lease on his flat was about 60 years.  The good news is that he negotiated it so that he didn´t have to actually pay the money for the extension until completion!  This enabled John to sell his property fairly quickly, even though he was living in Spain so not on the scene to chase things up!

Sue



_______________________

 Sue Walker

Author of "Retiring the Ole Way", now available on Amazon

See my blog about our life in Spain: www.spainuncovered.com




Like 0      
08 Jan 2010 11:34 PM by Candyfloss Star rating in Cardiff / Mar Menor. 1605 posts Send private message

Candyfloss´s avatar

Hi Sammy

Sue is right about extending the lease if possible. Can't believe your agent didn't advise you when they valued it for you especially as a short lease would affect the valuation as well as make it virtually unmortgageable.  Still, they didn't so what to do next. You need to contact the freeholders firstly to find out how much an extended lease would cost. Also if the freeholder will agree to an extension individually and not insist that it can only be done as a block. Sometimes this happens when you, as owners, run your own management company for the block. When you have done this, as Sue says, you can incorporate the cost of the extended lease in with the price and advertise it as however many years you extend for to be available on completion. Otherwise you will find that unless you get a cash buyer (and with such a short lease will want to knock you right down on the price) you will be stuck with it I'm afraid. The legal work can usually be done quite quickly to enable you to complete within the normal time scale.

Hope this helps, let us know how you get on.

Also a word of advice, stay away from the homebuyer companies.

Good Luck





Like 0      
09 Jan 2010 4:15 PM by mymovetospain Star rating. 2 posts Send private message

thanks very much sue and candyfloss,  i looked into this before but was told i hadn;t lived there long enough so gave up on the idea, not sure whether that's right or not? i've only lived here for about 2 years





Like 0      
10 Jan 2010 10:33 AM by AJB1 Star rating in Benahavis, Costa del.... 63 posts Send private message

Hi mymovetospain

Renting your property out can be a nightmare but it can also be beneficial financially.

I would suggest that you approach your local council and see if they are looking for properties like yours to rent out (as you're in London I would assume they will be).

The council will usually take your property on for 3 to 5 years and the rent is guaranteed for this time - you just need to make sure that if there are any maintenance issues they are completed - you can usually get the council to complete these jobs for you with an admin charge, but it's well worth it for peace of mind.

The only issue with renting to the council is the initial outlay of sorting all the health and safety jobs that will need doing, such as fitting a fire door on the kitchen, having a wired up smoke alarm etc. What they do is come to your house and tell you what needs to be done and you just get it done.

You will also find that there are other agencies that rent properties to the council under a similar scheme.

I know they are always looking for properties in West London and I think the scheme is great, especially if you're not planning to move back to the property - and the rent they pay is very good too. I highly recommend it. I'm sure they must be looking for properties in all parts of London.

 





Like 0      
10 Jan 2010 11:18 AM by suemac Star rating in Jumilla, Murcia. 1001 posts Send private message

Hi Sammy

We're not experts, but I don't think the length of time you have lived there should stop you extending the lease to make it easier to sell the property.  As you have already had a reasonable amount of interest, I would definitely approach the landlord about the lease.  John had to extend the lease on his flat, as I said before.  He had one offer, a bit less than he would have liked, but it was a cash offer and so he snapped it up. 

Good luck, and do let us know what happens!

Sue



_______________________

 Sue Walker

Author of "Retiring the Ole Way", now available on Amazon

See my blog about our life in Spain: www.spainuncovered.com




Like 0      

Pages: 1 |

Post reply    Start new thread


Previous Threads

Good News Property on the up! - 34 posts
Holiday autos car hire.. worth a look - 0 posts
Thanks! - 2 posts
Working the summer..NIE ???? - 2 posts
Legal tip 209. A tip if you are still interested on buying in Spain - 1 posts
Due to move back to UK.....Items for sale - 0 posts
for sale - 0 posts
Legal tip 208. Official credit Institute and Banks supporting companies in 2010 - 0 posts
Potential electrical / teaching work in Spain - 5 posts
Cajasur - account charges for dormant account - 2 posts
Andalusian Cinemas - films in English - 11 posts
Spanish car on sale in Cambridge - 0 posts
Cheap gym membership in Spain - 0 posts
Flights out of the UK (Bristol actually) to Murcia tomorrow... re the snow - 17 posts
Payment of Ryan Air flights with Prepaid Mastercard - 12 posts
covers for mattresses - 3 posts
Re-registering English Car in Spain - 6 posts
Nead a cleaner? - 0 posts
Reyes Fuengirola - 2 posts
Free 6 Week Self-Defence Course - 0 posts
Bits of paper required to obtain Padron ? - 3 posts
Spanish Tax - 8 posts
work - 5 posts
IVA to go up to 18% - 22 posts
Wrong colour paper NIE number - 17 posts

Number of posts in this thread: 6

DISCLAIMER:  All opinions posted on these message boards are the opinion solely of the poster and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Eye on Spain, its servants or agents.


1 |
Our Weekly Email Digest
Name:
Email:


This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse you are agreeing to our use of cookies. More information here. x