what do you need to check in buying a new house?

[fairyglo]

I would be most grateful for advice from knowledgable Mumsnetters as I'm a bit afraid we are being stampeded into buying a house without having it fully checked out (solicitor doesn't seem to be doing much). Need to get this sorted before I give birth but obviously really want to get this right.

We are at the end of a long, house-buying chain. The people we are buying from are emigrating so we really need to make sure that we get everything clear before we move as once they are gone, they're gone.

We're under pressure from the other people in the chain (buyers and sellers) to get on with completion but we don't seem to have received much information and we won't move until we are sure we've checked out everything (particularly given the above situation). But what do we need to check? So far:

We've seen the survey (which said nothing and was hedged about with every possible qualification).

We have had a fixtures and fittings list which was also very uninformative. Almost every column was ticked as not applicable but as far as I can gather, they are taking light shades and curtains plus obviously all furniture - fine.

A land registry document which doesn't appear to say much

A seller's property information form which raises questions about building consents and boundaries. Solicitor is following up building consents but says these days it is impossible to know about boundaries since many deeds have been destroyed. Sellers say they don't know who owns the boundaries but they have taken shared ownership for one side (and don't know for other side and back). Is there anything more we can do to find out about boundaries?

Should we be expecting anything more? Are there other questions we should ask?

We didn't have much choice about the house since we are moving to be in a school catchment area (not in any catchment area at all in our current house ) so disagreeable surprises such as council tax and the fact they are on a water meter have to be taken on the chin. But we don't have loads of money, particularly since I'm not currently working and another baby is due shortly and I want to try and cut down on surprises and not get stung for any building consents or have any problems with neighbours etc so would be most grateful if any points to check which I have missed could be suggested.

Thanks

fairyglo

sorry, last para. should have read "disagreeable surprises like council tax increase and probably higher water bill".

The SPIF should detail disputes with neighbours.

Has the solicitor checked that any building work has planning consent/building regs approval?

sounds like rubbish re the deeds - has the solicitor got the deeds?

Your land registry search should clearly show the boundaries registered under the title of the property you are buying. If for some reason it doesn't, you can apply for a copy through the land registry, www.landregistry.gov.uk, it only costs a few pounds - although this is something you should bring up with your solicitor.

Also, you should now have your mortgage offer/mortgage in place to proceeed with the sale.

If the survey was 'clear' of any problems I can't think of what could be holding it up TBH

Searches ? Any planning applications outstanding nearby (you can check your council website for "live" ones). Could you ask solicitor to contact ajacent neighbours re boundary ownership if the deeds are unclear. Presumably all key services are laid on. Not sure about the neighbours specifcally but have you driven over there at different times of day to assess noise and parking etc.

do you mean there is doubt about where the boundaries are
or
doubt about who maintains them?
if the latter, could you not just have a good look at their condition and see what might come up.
If the former, your solicitor must sort it out.

Btw, don't worry about the water meter. We moved last year and have a meter now - it's actually cheaper and there are 5 us - bath kids every day, dh and I shower every day, washer is on constantly....

Those fixtures and fittings list always are pointless - dont' worry about that. I think I ticked ours almost all not applicable.

To me it just sounds you like you need the boundaries clarifying and any permissions for building work (though it can be hard to get these too if they weren't done by your vendor).

really helpful, thank - keep 'em coming please!

Sorry, should have made clear that boundaries are clearly marked but not who should maintain them. Solicitor claims that deeds have been being destroyed for the last few years since mortgage companies can't be bothered to store them and so there are no deeds only land registry documents which don't detail boundary ownership. I was a bit dubious that you really can't check who maintains what?

really good point about planning applications - solicitor doesn't seem to have checked this. Would this also include applications for 'phone masts?

Good point again about noise - I am worried about that with young children either side but not sure we have much choice if we want to get into catchment area (it's only an ok school - can't afford to move to a really really good one but even for this school houses rarely come up).

mortgage ok.

good news about water meter GDG (I hope).

afaik it should show all actual planning applications within a certain radius of the property. Of course there is always the risk that one is yet to be presented but then you'd have the opportunity to object. Buy a local paper where they publish a list of new ones.

anyone else had this point about not knowing who should maintain which boundaries? or any other point to beware of? Also, do 'phone masts etc need planning permission? Don't want to find one smuggled into a street light outside the house (a mast that close would be a deal breaker for me but how do you find out where the masts are?)

I think when we bought our house the deeds were silent on who was responsible for the boundaries. The seller indicated that everyone took responsibility for the boundary on their left and that certainly seems to be the reality.

If the curent tenants have built an extension since thye bought then it is possible that the council tax will be rebanded upon the sale to you.

You could phone the planning office re:phone masts but you need pp to put up an illuminated sign or lop a tree so would think so for a mast.

the previous owners (not these ones) turned a bedroom into another bathroom. do you think that would work for or against us in council tax banding? Don't like to ask council in case they put the band up!

I doubt they'd bother to reband it now but it is on the offing at some point in the future. Losing a bedroom would normally be seen as a negative effect by an EA anyway so probably won't make much difference atm.

planning permission required for phone masts.

Unless you have a nice empty farmers field outside your house which could be developed on, probably not much to worry on relating to planning in established residential area. If something looks like it needs developing or there is an empty plot, then ask questions ?

It is common that properties do not come with details of ownership of boundaries. More a case of who has maintained them? But think pratically, do the boundaries need work? If they do then it might be an issue and you should resolve it before exchanging.

the generally accepted rule is that property owners are responsible for the boundaries on the left of the property. As for the bedroom which was converted into a bathroom, was planning permission obtained for this? Planning permission is required if you are changing the use of t room in the house, i.e. specifically changing it from a bedroom to a bathroom or removing a bathroom and turning it into a bedroom. if planning permission was not obtained, then the venders may need to apply for retrospective planning permission, even though it wasn't them that did the conversion. If the council were to refuse retrospective planning permission, then it is possible they could order the bathroom to be re-converted. However, this is unlikely as it's an additional bathroom being added, they would be more likely to turn it down if the conversion had been the other way round. If the venders don't wish to apply for retrospective planning permission, as this can take time, they can take out an indemnity policy which will cover you against any action taken in the event the council come back and tell you to rip out the bathroom. I would find out first though whether the planning permission was obtained.

Thanks. How do indemnity policies work? sounds like the vendors are going to have to take out 3 (for a conservatory build in the '90s, loft conversion in the 80's and this recent change from bedroom to bathroom). How long do indemnities last and are they are total catch-all since the people we are buying from are going abroad so if council give us hassle once we move in we won't be able to get hold of them again.

Also, where do you get indemnities from? We may need an indemnity for one piece of work and our solicitor has suggested the people buying our property sort out the indemnity (but we pay). He is also suggesting the vendors for the place we want sort out their own indemnity. Shouldn't he sort out the indemnity on our property since the buyers will have no incentive to keep its cost down or doesn't it matter? Just seems odd (and lazy) that he is neither doing the indemnity required on our property nor doing the ones required on the property we are buying.

council tax

If an extension increases the value of the home the CT won't be increased/rebanded till the house is sold. It will then be rebanded. So for inastance we put a loft conversion in our las house which involved the council signing off the building regs. A note is then put by the propery so that when we sold it it went from a D to an E.

You can check on the VOC website. If there is an 'i' mark by your property then it is due to be rebanded on sale.

sorry VOA here

www.voa.gov.uk/council_tax/index.htm

Your solicitor should contact the solicitor of the venders and seak copies of the planning permission obtained for the work that was done. If the conservatory was built in the 80s, this may not require planning permission as it would fall under permitted development rights. Conservatories fall into a different category to actual extentions but this does depend on the size of the conservatory. The size of the conservatory must not exceed 15% of the downstairs of the property. The law has recently changed to include conservatories under planning permission but this doe not apply retrospectively to conservatories built in the 80s.

Planning permission would definitely be required for the loft conversion though and you should check this out very carefull as the law surrounding loft conversions is quite tight and conversions are now subject to building regs, proper staircase needs to be built up to the loft etc. If this room is not within the law then the council could legitimately make you re-convert it if planning permission had never been saught.

An indemnity policy will cover the work that has to be re-done in the event the council find out and demand the extension/conversion be returned to their former state. I’m not sure though whether the policy would cover for amendments to building work to allow it to fall within the planning laws.

If the house is potentially going to be re-banded for council tax purposes, then a council officer will visit you and look at the extention etc, and it will then very soon come to light if there was no planning permission, so chances of being found out are probably quite high.

TBH, if I was buying a property and discovered that there was no planning permission for an extention/conversion, I probably would think very hard before proceeding with the purchase.