Hi
Not sure if this is posted in the right category but I need advice
I bought my house back in December 2021 as a first time buyer. It's leasehold and the ground rent is £250 a year in two payments - so £125 in March and £125 in September.
Basically my solicitor didn't check there were no outstanding fees against the house before my purchase completed. So the previous owners didn't pay the September 2021 ground rent - they have incurred a late fee and this has now landed on me due to me being the new owner. I have been told by the leasehold company that I am responsible for the payments because the debt follows the property not the owner ... I have checked and this is true 😢
So I can't pay my March leasehold until it is all resolved as I can't just pay part of the money, it all has to be paid.
The leasehold company said this is my solicitors fault and that he should either pay the September ground rent and late fee for me or I should pay it then be reimburse me.
"It is standard practice for the solicitors to request a’ conveyancing receipt’ or ‘management pack’, which outlines if there are any outstanding arrears or breaches on the account.
I note that at no point have any solicitors been in touch with us to request this information and therefore we were not made aware of the property being sold until April 2022.
We suggest that you contact your solicitors to inform them of their negligence and hope that they can offer assistance."
^^ this is what they said to me in an email. I have forwarded to my solicitor and sent several emails and he's ignoring me. I can't afford to pay the whole lot as I am on maternity leave and struggling as it is. And I don't see why I should pay for his mistake😢I paid him almost £2000 to do his job and he's not done it properly. What should I do??