1 barretts solicitors’ guide to buying a home barretts solicitors 107 gray’s inn road, london...
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BARRETTS SOLICITORS’ GUIDE TO BUYING A HOME
Barretts Solicitors
107 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ
T: 020 7404 0702 | [email protected]
www.barrettssolicitors.co.uk
Barretts Solicitors
107 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ
T: 020 7404 0702 | [email protected]
www.barrettssolicitors.co.uk
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Please contact us Please contact us
“We hope you will find this useful. If we can help you with your purchase in the Barbican, why not give us a call?”
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BARRETTS SOLICITORS’ GUIDE TO BUYING A HOME
The Barbican estate
How the estate is run
Choosing a building
Choosing a flat
Cost of buying
The buying process
Investigations
Flats
Exchanging contracts
Moving in
The Barbican estate
How the estate is run
Choosing a building
Choosing a flat
Cost of buying
The buying process
Investigations
Flats
Exchanging contracts
Moving in
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Topics Topics
“These are some of the topics we cover in this guide.”
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This is an overview of Barbican topics
BARBICAN
How the estate came to be built, and the design ideas behind it all.
Information about the various towers and terrace blocks in the estate.
The management of the estate.
Information on the various types of flats, and a link to the flat layout plans.
Brief historyBrief history Choosing a buildingChoosing a building
How the estate is runHow the estate is run Choosing a flatChoosing a flat
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BARBICAN – Brief history
Design and constructionDesign and construction
The estate was designed by the architects, Chamberlin, Powell & Bon.
They won the competition to design the Golden Lane Estate and then moved on to design and build the Barbican Estate.
The Barbican Estate rose from a bomb site. The City wanted to produce something prestigious and the Barbican Estate is the excellent result.
Work began in the late 1960s and the estate was completed in the 1970s.
Originally the design of the exterior of the buildings involved polished concrete or ceramic material.
The pitted surface of the concrete throughout the estate is a deliberate architectural effect. It was pick-hammered by hand as it was constructed.
The estate was designed by the architects, Chamberlin, Powell & Bon.
They won the competition to design the Golden Lane Estate and then moved on to design and build the Barbican Estate.
The Barbican Estate rose from a bomb site. The City wanted to produce something prestigious and the Barbican Estate is the excellent result.
Work began in the late 1960s and the estate was completed in the 1970s.
Originally the design of the exterior of the buildings involved polished concrete or ceramic material.
The pitted surface of the concrete throughout the estate is a deliberate architectural effect. It was pick-hammered by hand as it was constructed.
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BARBICAN – Brief history
Venice with towersVenice with towers
The design for the Barbican is based – believe it or not – on Venice, with the canals separated from the walkways. In the Barbican the roads run underneath the estate and there are lots of raised walkways.
The three towers were built partly to meet planning requirements. London County Council insisted on a certain amount of open space for each resident, so to get more flats the City had to build upwards.
When the towers were built, they were the highest residential structures in Europe.
The design for the Barbican is based – believe it or not – on Venice, with the canals separated from the walkways. In the Barbican the roads run underneath the estate and there are lots of raised walkways.
The three towers were built partly to meet planning requirements. London County Council insisted on a certain amount of open space for each resident, so to get more flats the City had to build upwards.
When the towers were built, they were the highest residential structures in Europe.
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BARBICAN – Brief history
Squares on stiltsSquares on stilts
The terraced blocks are grouped as courtyards or as ‘zig zags’. This was intended to replicate the familiar feel of London squares.
To stop the effect being claustrophobic, many of them were raised on stilts so that we can look through to the space beyond, and pass underneath.
The most dramatic instance is Gilbert House which spans the lake on huge columns, with a walkway slung underneath.
In an earlier design there was to be a road cutting right through the estate, north to south, from Fore Street to Whitecross Street, encased in a concrete box. Thank god someone killed that idea!
The terraced blocks are grouped as courtyards or as ‘zig zags’. This was intended to replicate the familiar feel of London squares.
To stop the effect being claustrophobic, many of them were raised on stilts so that we can look through to the space beyond, and pass underneath.
The most dramatic instance is Gilbert House which spans the lake on huge columns, with a walkway slung underneath.
In an earlier design there was to be a road cutting right through the estate, north to south, from Fore Street to Whitecross Street, encased in a concrete box. Thank god someone killed that idea!
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BARBICAN – Brief history
Quality of resident from past to presentQuality of resident from past to present
All the towers and terraces are named after people with local connections.
Shakespeare had lodgings nearby, and Milton lived in Aldersgate Street.
They were probably scraping the barrel with Cromwell, whose only connection to the area is that he spent one afternoon here when he got married at St Giles’ Church (and he probably insisted on breaking all the windows).
The south of the Barbican was generally for City executives. The north of the Barbican, with its concentration on small flats and bed-sits, was intended for their clerks – it was thought the two classes shouldn’t have to meet in the lifts.
All the towers and terraces are named after people with local connections.
Shakespeare had lodgings nearby, and Milton lived in Aldersgate Street.
They were probably scraping the barrel with Cromwell, whose only connection to the area is that he spent one afternoon here when he got married at St Giles’ Church (and he probably insisted on breaking all the windows).
The south of the Barbican was generally for City executives. The north of the Barbican, with its concentration on small flats and bed-sits, was intended for their clerks – it was thought the two classes shouldn’t have to meet in the lifts.
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BARBICAN – Brief history
How we were meant to liveHow we were meant to live
The original designs for the estate included quite a few pubs. In the end, there was just Crowders Well, and now even that has become a restaurant.
The entire covered corridor behind the Barbican Centre was meant to be a shopping precinct.
The forecourt in front of Lauderdale Tower was going to be an ‘al fresco’ restaurant (They’d have had to nail down the tablecloths!)
The original designs for the estate included quite a few pubs. In the end, there was just Crowders Well, and now even that has become a restaurant.
The entire covered corridor behind the Barbican Centre was meant to be a shopping precinct.
The forecourt in front of Lauderdale Tower was going to be an ‘al fresco’ restaurant (They’d have had to nail down the tablecloths!)
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BARBICAN – Attractions of living here
An oasis in the CityAn oasis in the City
There are gardens and the lake to which only residents have full access.
In the summer, residents can sit out in the gardens and many people have candle-lit picnics on the lawn.
At night you can stroll around the gardens in almost total seclusion and safety – if you don’t mind the odd fox – and, surrounded as you are by high trees and corridors of bushes, you can almost imagine yourself in the country.
Take a walk at night along the lake, with its waterfall and its secluded ‘igloos’ where you can sit at peace right in the lake, surrounded by plants and ducks.
There are gardens and the lake to which only residents have full access.
In the summer, residents can sit out in the gardens and many people have candle-lit picnics on the lawn.
At night you can stroll around the gardens in almost total seclusion and safety – if you don’t mind the odd fox – and, surrounded as you are by high trees and corridors of bushes, you can almost imagine yourself in the country.
Take a walk at night along the lake, with its waterfall and its secluded ‘igloos’ where you can sit at peace right in the lake, surrounded by plants and ducks.
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BARBICAN – How the estate is run
Management structure
The estate is managed by the Barbican Estate Office (020 7029 3953) which is a department of the City Corporation. There are various City and Barbican residents committees they report to. Each house or block has a House Group, which the City has to consult on important issues relating to building works and services. Costs of maintaining the residential buildings and various other estate costs are recovered from residents as part of the annual service charge. An estimated amount on account is billed every three months.
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Car bays are available to rent. You can buy a long lease of a car bay. When you sell your flat, you must sell your space to another resident or back to the City. You can get the current rates for buying or renting from the Barbican Estate Office. If your sellers own a space, you can buy it. But if they only rent it, you can’t take it over it; you have to join the waiting list. Similar rules apply to the baggage stores under most blocks.
BARBICAN – Parking spaces and storage lockers
Renting or buying
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BARBICAN – Choosing a building
The three towersThe three towers
Lauderdale Tower is near Barbican Tube station. It is 44 storeys high (garage level, podium level, 40 storeys of flats and 2 of penthouses). It contains 114 flats and 3 penthouse maisonettes.
Shakespeare Tower is in the middle of the estate behind the Barbican Centre. It is 44 storeys high (consisting of garage level, podium level, 40 storeys of flats and 2 of penthouses). It contains 113 large flats and 3 penthouse maisonettes. For a long time, it was in the Guinness Book of Records as the highest residential building in Europe.
Cromwell Tower is at the east end of the estate near Silk Street. It is 43 storeys high (garage level, ground level, podium level, 38 storeys of flats and 2 of penthouses). It contains 108 flats.
Lauderdale Tower is near Barbican Tube station. It is 44 storeys high (garage level, podium level, 40 storeys of flats and 2 of penthouses). It contains 114 flats and 3 penthouse maisonettes.
Shakespeare Tower is in the middle of the estate behind the Barbican Centre. It is 44 storeys high (consisting of garage level, podium level, 40 storeys of flats and 2 of penthouses). It contains 113 large flats and 3 penthouse maisonettes. For a long time, it was in the Guinness Book of Records as the highest residential building in Europe.
Cromwell Tower is at the east end of the estate near Silk Street. It is 43 storeys high (garage level, ground level, podium level, 38 storeys of flats and 2 of penthouses). It contains 108 flats.
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BARBICAN – Choosing a building
The terrace blocks in the South BarbicanThe terrace blocks in the South Barbican
These are the terrace buildings roughly grouped round the lake in front of the Barbican Centre and the adjoining gardens.
There are 'garden flats‘ or sub-podium flats at Speed, Thomas More and Defoe Houses, and Andrewes House (where they overlook the lake).
Terrace blocks have up to seven upper residential floors, from the first floor level upwards.
A particular feature of the Barbican's terraces (both south and north) is the barrel-vaulted roof where the penthouse flats are to be found.
Flats are constructed either to run through a building with windows front and back (and kitchen and bathroom in the middle) or on one or other side of a central corridor which runs the length of the building.
These are the terrace buildings roughly grouped round the lake in front of the Barbican Centre and the adjoining gardens.
There are 'garden flats‘ or sub-podium flats at Speed, Thomas More and Defoe Houses, and Andrewes House (where they overlook the lake).
Terrace blocks have up to seven upper residential floors, from the first floor level upwards.
A particular feature of the Barbican's terraces (both south and north) is the barrel-vaulted roof where the penthouse flats are to be found.
Flats are constructed either to run through a building with windows front and back (and kitchen and bathroom in the middle) or on one or other side of a central corridor which runs the length of the building.
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BARBICAN – Choosing a building
The terrace blocks in the North BarbicanThe terrace blocks in the North Barbican
The ground level of the North Barbican is higher than in the south to adjust for the land’s slope towards the Thames.
The ground plan of the buildings follows the 'grid' of the adjoining Golden Lane Estate, not that of the South Barbican.
The top three floors of Frobisher Crescent have recently been refurbished as modern flats.
John Trundle, Bunyan and Bryer Courts form three sides of a square with a small garden.
Ben Jonson House is the longest block, with Breton House off the side.
The North Barbican contains no sub-basement flats.
Most studio and small flats are in this area. It also has some larger flats and penthouses.
The ground level of the North Barbican is higher than in the south to adjust for the land’s slope towards the Thames.
The ground plan of the buildings follows the 'grid' of the adjoining Golden Lane Estate, not that of the South Barbican.
The top three floors of Frobisher Crescent have recently been refurbished as modern flats.
John Trundle, Bunyan and Bryer Courts form three sides of a square with a small garden.
Ben Jonson House is the longest block, with Breton House off the side.
The North Barbican contains no sub-basement flats.
Most studio and small flats are in this area. It also has some larger flats and penthouses.
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BARBICAN – Choosing a flat
Tower flats
There are 3 flats to each floor.
On the surface, the flats are very similar, but there are differences. Click here for the actual flat layout plans.
The towers were deliberately built not to face exactly the same way.
View and sunlight differ between towers.
“You need a bit of inside knowledge to choose between the different types of flats in the Barbican Estate ...”
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BARBICAN – Choosing a flat
Terrace flats
There are over a 100 flat 'types' or layouts. Each one has a code.
Once you know them, you’ll soon be talking about the merits of a ‘type 58’ or a ‘type F2C’.
Look at the actual flat layout plans by clicking here.
“… and particularly between the different types of flats in the terrace blocks .”
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"This is an overview of the types of costs you may incur.”
COST
You have to pay 10% deposit –more, if you are borrowing less than 90% of the purchase price.
Our fees, stamp duty, Land Registry fees, search fees – we add it all up for you.
There are lots of fees charged by mortgage lenders, but some can be added to the loan.
You may also have survey fees and other fees to pay.
Your share of the price Your share of the price Legal costsLegal costs
Mortgage costsMortgage costs Other costsOther costs
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COST – Your share of the price
10% Deposit
Rest of the purchase price
A 10% deposit is payable to the sellers at exchange of contracts. You need cash saved to pay this.
Lenders don’t necessarily lend 90% anymore, so you may need to have more than 10% saved.
The cash you need saved
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COSTS – Mortgage costs
Arrangement fees
Some mortgage lenders charge an arrangement fee for granting you a mortgage (even if the deal falls through before exchange).
Mortgage brokers fees
If you use a mortgage broker you may have to pay them fees.
Indemnity insurance
If they lend a high percentage of the price, your lenders may charge you a premium for insuring the risk of you not repaying.
Mortgage lenders charge fees for arranging the loan.
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“We’d be very happy to give you an exact quote.”
COSTS – Legal costs and expenses
Costs you may have to payCosts you may have to pay
Legal fees. That’s us. Please ask us for our quote.
Stamp duty. This is the big one. 0% up to 4%, depending on price. See next page.
Land Registry fees. This is a Government charge for recording your ownership of the property. See next page.
Local search fee and other searches. These are checks with public bodies, such as the City Corporaton, to make sure nothing bad is known about the property. See next page but one.
Legal fees. That’s us. Please ask us for our quote.
Stamp duty. This is the big one. 0% up to 4%, depending on price. See next page.
Land Registry fees. This is a Government charge for recording your ownership of the property. See next page.
Local search fee and other searches. These are checks with public bodies, such as the City Corporaton, to make sure nothing bad is known about the property. See next page but one.
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Government charges – correct as at 1/9/2010
COSTS – Legal costs and expenses
Stamp dutyStamp duty
0% - prices up to £125,000 (and first time buyers up to £250,0001% - prices from £125,001 to £250,0003% - prices from £250,001to £500,0004% - prices from £500,001 to £1,000,000[5% - prices over £1,000,000 from April 2011]
0% - prices up to £125,000 (and first time buyers up to £250,0001% - prices from £125,001 to £250,0003% - prices from £250,001to £500,0004% - prices from £500,001 to £1,000,000[5% - prices over £1,000,000 from April 2011]
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Land Registry feesLand Registry fees
£50 – prices from £0 – £50,000£80 – prices from £50,001 – £80,000£130 – prices from £80,001 – £100,000£200 – prices from £100,001 – £200,000£280 – prices from £200,001 – £500,000£550 – prices from £500,001 – £1,000,000£920 – prices from £1,000,001 and over
£50 – prices from £0 – £50,000£80 – prices from £50,001 – £80,000£130 – prices from £80,001 – £100,000£200 – prices from £100,001 – £200,000£280 – prices from £200,001 – £500,000£550 – prices from £500,001 – £1,000,000£920 – prices from £1,000,001 and over
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Search costs
COSTS – Local search fees and other search fees
Searches you may needSearches you may need
Local authority search. This is information about the property and the area from the City Corporation. More detail about this later. But it’s an essential part of buying. We can tell you the exact cost as part of our quote. Give us a ring.
Drainage and water search. Confirmation that public drainage and water services are connected.
Environmental search. A check on nearby pollution risks.
Optional searches. You can have a planning search to look for planning applications in the area.
We arrange these searches at the very start of the transaction, and it is necessary to get satisfactory results before you can safely exchange contracts to buy.
Local authority search. This is information about the property and the area from the City Corporation. More detail about this later. But it’s an essential part of buying. We can tell you the exact cost as part of our quote. Give us a ring.
Drainage and water search. Confirmation that public drainage and water services are connected.
Environmental search. A check on nearby pollution risks.
Optional searches. You can have a planning search to look for planning applications in the area.
We arrange these searches at the very start of the transaction, and it is necessary to get satisfactory results before you can safely exchange contracts to buy.
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COSTS – Survey fees
Mortgage valuation
Survey fee
This isn’t actually a survey, just an assessment of value for your lenders, which you pay for. You need to ask your lenders how much the fee will be.
Structural survey. A full-scale survey of the property. You need to ask your surveyor the cost. You may feel this is would be over the top for a Barbican flat.
Home buyers’ survey. This is a standardised, less expensive survey you can opt for if you decide to have a survey.
No survey. Many people have no survey.
Types of survey
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FINDING A FLAT AND MAKING AN OFFER
The local estate agents
Contact the following estate agents, who are the most likely to have suitable properties.
Frank Harris: 87 Long Lane London EC1A 9ET, T: 020 7600 7000 E: [email protected] Hamilton Brooks: 73 Long Lane, London EC1A 9ET T: 020 7606 8000 E: [email protected]
Scott City: 122 Newgate Street, London EC1A 7AA T: 020 7600 0026 E:[email protected]
Check with us firstHave a chat with us before finalising a deal. We may be able to help you get a better deal. 020 7404 0702.
How to find a flat to buy
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“This is what everyone has to do, once terms are agreed.”
TERMS ARE AGREED – What next?
What the agents do nextWhat the agents do next What you do nextWhat you do next
What the sellers do nextWhat the sellers do next What we do nextWhat we do next
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The estate agents have to get the transaction moving.
You have to arrange your mortgage, survey (if you are having one), and deposit.
The sellers have to provide all the information they have.
We have to check everything and make sure it’s safe for you to buy the property.
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TERMS ARE AGREED – What the agents do next
Confirming the deal
They will send out a memorandum confirming all the agreed terms, and precisely what is included.
Instructing the solicitors
They will write to the sellers’ solicitors and to us so we can make contact with each other and start the legal work.
Arranging appointments
They may need to liaise with the mortgage valuer or your surveyor to arrange access for inspection of the property.
This is what the estate agents will be doing
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TERMS ARE AGREED – What the sellers do next
What the sellers must do
Title deeds. They should give their solicitors the title deeds of the flat, so they can prepare the contract.
Information forms. They should answer a set of information forms about the property which we will want.
Contents form. They should complete a detailed list of what items in the property are staying and what they propose taking.
Additional enquiries. They should answer any additional enquiries we may ask, after seeing the title papers and the information forms.
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Instruct us. Contact us to confirm we should go ahead with the work on the purchase. Mortgage. You should make your full application for a mortgage loan as soon as possible. You can’t exchange contracts without your lenders’ formal offer. Survey. If you are having a survey, you should instruct a surveyor. (You may not feel this is necessary in the Barbican.)
TERMS ARE AGREED – What you do next
There are things you need to arrange
Your next steps
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TERMS ARE AGREED – What you do next
“You need to decide how to own the flat, if you are a couple.”
Assuming you want to own it together, you have two choices.
Joint tenancy. This means you own it in equal shares; and if one of you dies, the other inherits it automatically.
Tenancy in common. With this, the shares don’t have to be equal, and if you die, the share passes under your will or by intestacy to your family.
If you are sharers, not long-term partners, you may want to record the deal in a trust deed, which might specify that if one of you wants to sell, the other can buy the property at valuation.
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TERMS ARE AGREED – What we do next
and other relevant organisations • Looking at the sellers’ answers to questions and picking up on any problems they reveal• Going through the sellers’ proposed
We make sure it’s safe for you to buy the property. That means:• Checking through all the sellers’ paperwork• Checking with the City
contract to make sure it is fair to you, and not one-sided. We sort out any problems.
Then we report on everything to you.
Then you can exchange contracts and buy your new home!
“It’s our job to make the deal happen”
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“This is what we will be doing for you.”
INVESTIGATIONS
Sellers may know about problems. They may even have created them. We need to get to the bottom of the situation.
We need to check for you that there is nothing noted against the flat by the City Corporation.
We check that the sellers actually own the property, no one has any rights over it, and there aren’t any restrictions preventing you from using it.
The contract is meant to finalise the deal between you and the sellers. We make sure the sellers don’t slip out of their obligations in the small print.
Questioning the sellersQuestioning the sellers Carrying out searchesCarrying out searches
Checking title to the flatChecking title to the flat Checking the contractChecking the contract
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INVESTIGATIONS - Questioning the sellers
Our job is to keep you safe!
Sellers may try to brush over serious problems because all they want to do is get their sale through.
If they didn’t get the proper permissions from the Barbican Estate Office or the Planning and District Surveyors’ departments in the City for alterations, action can be taken against you.
The Barbican Estate has been a listed building since 2001 and it is a criminal offence to carry out alterations without consent.
You would be amazed how many people have done alterations in the Barbican without the proper permissions.
We will go through the information from the sellers very critically, pin down any evasions, and get to the bottom of anything which doesn’t add up.
“Things aren’t always how
they are presented by sellers.”
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Local search. The ‘local search’ is the main one. This means checking with the City of London that none of a long list of potential problems apply to your property. There should be no problems in the Barbican, but you have to check to make sure.
Costs and speed of reply can differ from time to time, so please ask us and we can tell you exactly what the cost and likely timescale is for the flat you are buying.
Other searches. Also there is a ‘drainage and water search, and an ‘environmental search’ – checking for pollution problems.
INVESTIGATIONS – Carrying out searches
“Dangers may be hidden in the City‘s files.
It‘s our job to find them.”
The searches
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INVESTIGATIONS – Checking title to the flat
What ‘title’ is
The ‘title’ of a property means what you will own in the legal sense.
The title can be subject to all sort of rights of neighbours, former owners, former lenders … and more.
You need to be confident nothing unexpected will affect your ownership, your enjoyment of the flat, and the value of the flat.
“There are good titles and there are bad titles. We make sure you don’t end up with a problem property.”
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INVESTIGATIONS – Checking the contract
Agreeing the contract
The sellers’ solicitors prepare and send us a draft contract. The contract creates all the legal commitments on you and the sellers. The contract is meant to fairly reflect each side’s interests. Just because the sellers’ solicitors produce the first draft doesn’t mean they can stuff it full of seller-biased clauses – but often they try to get away with that. We have to bring it back to a fair middle ground. So there will be a lot of to-ing and fro-ing to protect your interests in this.
Exchange of contracts
Nothing is final until exchange of contracts. We deal with that next.
“Buying a flat is a big financial commitment, so it’s important to get the contract right.”
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“This is when the deal becomes binding.”
EXCHANGE OF CONTRACTS
These are the things which have to be in place before you can exchange contracts.
This is the point when the contract becomes binding and no-one can change their mind.
This is the usual deposit paid by buyers at exchange of contracts.
Chains can be a nightmare. But they are unavoidable when people are selling as well as buying.
What has to be done firstWhat has to be done first Exchanging contractsExchanging contracts
10% Deposit10% Deposit ChainsChains
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EXCHANGE OF CONTRACTS – What has to be done first?
Items you need to tick off
Mortgage offer. You must have your mortgage offer – in writing – so you know you will definitely get the money. A promise on the phone that everything is approved is never good enough!
Report. You need to be happy with our report and any surveyor’s report.
Contract. You have to sign the contract or authorise us to do it.
Deposit. We need to receive the deposit money from you.
Your sale. Everything must also be ready to go on your sale. You can’t safely exchange on one without the other.
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10% deposit. The deposit is usually 10%. If you didn’t complete, the sellers would keep the deposit. Sending it. You send it by bank transfer to us. When contracts are exchanged, we send it to the other solicitors. Stakeholders. Usually, the deposit is held by the sellers’ solicitors as ‘stakeholders’ and they can’t release it to the sellers until completion. When the sellers can use it. But the sellers can use it as part of their own deposit on a home they are buying.
Points to note
EXCHANGE OF CONTRACTS - 10% Deposit
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EXCHANGE OF CONTRACTS – the exchange
How it happens – What is means. ‘Exchange of contracts’ means that the contract become binding.
You may have already signed the contract, but it is still not binding till you and the seller say so.
You have signed a copy and the sellers have signed another copy. The two solicitors agree on the phone to post them to each other – hence the ‘exchange’. That’s when the deal finally becomes binding on everyone.
The ‘completion date’ – when you pay the rest of the money and move in – has to be agreed and inserted in the contract at this point.
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EXCHANGE OF CONTRACTS – Chains
If you are buying from sellers who needs to buy a home to move to, they have to buy at the same time or else they could be left with no home – or two homes. Their seller may be in the same position, and so on. That’s a chain – every deal is dependent on every other deal exchanging at the same time.
You can only exchange when the very last and slowest member of the chain is ready.
This can lead to problems, if someone pulls out in the middle, and that seller or buyer has to start looking again while you wait.
It can take a lot of patience.
If you are buying from sellers who needs to buy a home to move to, they have to buy at the same time or else they could be left with no home – or two homes. Their seller may be in the same position, and so on. That’s a chain – every deal is dependent on every other deal exchanging at the same time.
You can only exchange when the very last and slowest member of the chain is ready.
This can lead to problems, if someone pulls out in the middle, and that seller or buyer has to start looking again while you wait.
It can take a lot of patience.
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Warning! Chains are hard on the nerves.Warning! Chains are hard on the nerves.
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“This is when it all becomes worthwhile.”
MOVING IN
Nearly there. But there are some documents to sign.
We handle the legal side while you move in.
A few things to bear in mind when you make your removal arrangements.
These are some things you should consider doing after you have moved in.
What you have to do firstWhat you have to do first CompletionCompletion
Arranging the moveArranging the move After completionAfter completion
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MOVING IN – What you have to do first
Paperwork
You have to sign the mortgage paperwork before the completion date.
Money
You will need to send us the rest of the money. That will be the purchase price less the deposit you have already paid, less the mortgage advance, but plus the stamp duty and other legal expenses.
And the good news …
Now you can move in and enjoy living in your new flat!
The final steps
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Keys. Find out in advance how you will collect the keys. Manuals. Make sure instruction booklets for appliances will be left Alarms. Make sure you know the alarm password Unloading. It is difficult to load and unload at the Barbican because so much of it is pedestrian only. You need to speak to the Barbican Estate Office to agree where your van can park. They will also put up a felt curtain in the lift to prevent your removers damaging the lift walls. Removal company. There are cowboys. Check yours out at www.bar.co.uk. Get a reference from a satisfied customer you can speak to. Valuables. Separate really valuable or fragile items and consider taking them in your car yourself.
MOVING IN – Arranging the move
These are a few suggestions
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MOVING IN - Completion
The sellers’ solicitors send us the document transferring ownership to you.
We pay the remaining money to the sellers’ solicitors by bank transfer.
We ensure the keys are available for you, so you can move in.
We then pay the stamp duty for you and register your ownership of the property at the Land Registry.
This is what we will be doing at completion.
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MOVING IN – After the move
A few things you may want to do.
Notify people of the change of address. Try www.iammoving.com.
Update your driving licence, car tax and car ownership details.
Register with the City Corporation for council tax.
Ensure that your details have been added to the electoral roll.
Notifying the change
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“If you found this presentation helpful, we can help you even more by acting for you as your solicitors in the purchase.
Do give us a call to chat about it.
We hope everything goes well, and you will enjoy living in your new home.”
THE END
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How to contact us How to contact us
Barretts Solicitors
107 Grays Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ
T: 020 7404 0702 | [email protected]
www.barrettssolicitors.co.uk
Barretts Solicitors
107 Grays Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ
T: 020 7404 0702 | [email protected]
www.barrettssolicitors.co.uk