Releasing equity – please help!

Reply to the comment left by "Howard Reuben" at "10/07/2014 - 09:03":

You have raised a good point regarding stamp duty fraud Howard.

It gets worse too!

If the solicitor registers the sale with HM Land Registry at the full market value, without disclosing the discounts, then that too is a fraudulent transaction. If the recorded price is then used to CGT calculations at the point of sale, then it also become tax fraud.

Scary stuff hey?

If it really worth a person spending years behind bars just to buy a property they can't really afford? Sadly, it happens!

I really hope Milena will take heed of this advice and contact Mark Smith in order to get justice and to put these scam artists out of business.

What's the betting that a property education course fits into this equation at some point too?
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Milena,

I am so relieved that you have posted here. It has (I hope) saved you from involvement in a very sticky situation.

Please contact me for a second opinion on the legality of what has been proposed to you, so I can suggest strategies to deal with it.

Reply to the comment left by "Mark Smith (Barrister-At-Law)" at "10/07/2014 - 09:42":

Dear all, thank you for the useful advice.

Mark, how can I contact you for a legal advice?

Milena

Reply to the comment left by "Milena Toncheva" at "10/07/2014 - 17:08":

Hi Milena

If you click on the link at the top of Mark's comment it will to his member profile. His contact details can be found there.
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What a great advert for the good that an internet forum can do. A brilliant resource.

Hi Mark

With all this talk of mortgage fraud and going of track a little I bought a property as a holiday home at auction that was repossessed in the legal pack was a sworn affidavit stating the property had its own septic tank that then fed to the mains sewers. This was signed by the previous owner and solicitor for the purpose of getting a mortgage I believed a solicitor could not sign such a document unless he knew this was correct. From my understanding the previous owner refinanced on a number of occasions to purchase BTL's.
It turned out that the tank is on his / mother property next door and he has said he has cut of my use of the septic tank which has been used by both property for at 40 years plus. He will not tell me where the tank is as it is on his mothers property. He wont discuss things with me and I may have to go down the legal route. He is making my property worthless due to the fact it will if as he says it has no use of septic tank. I have been using the toilets and sinks when I visit the property and it seems to be clearing so I don't think he has cut of the use as yet.

As the family owned the both properties with the second one built around 1975 My properties could be 180 years old. The boundary's where spilt then I think, it is something I will be looking into. They were no easement rights in place. The previous owner won't let me step one inch beyond the boundary line yet believes has the right to walk across my ground to enter a barn which he owns. A small part of it is built on the ground I purchased. The barn was built the same time as my house.

I have been looking into getting the property its own tank but with very little space it is proving difficult to get one the meets building control and NIEA approval.

Now the questions

1. By his actions have he committed mortgage fraud?
2. Has his solicitor been party to this by not ensuring the information was correct in affidavit.
3. Even though I have bought the property If I went back to the bank to complain they Allowed this document in the legal pack knowing it was untrue as the previous owner told them yet the still allowed it to be in the legal pack are they wrong for misrepresentation . As it was an affidavit I accepted it was a true document ?

Would the bank take action any against the previous owner for committing mortgage fraud he had in excess of twenty five properties repossessed. So the bank or banks would have took a big hit on these.

4. Do I have a legal right to continue to use the septic tank the property has been connected to for over 40 years even though it is on his mothers ground..
4. As the property is grade two listed and I am duty bound to keep it in good order is there away of working round the guidelines laid down on distance from building.

At the auction that sold the property I was told that all legal issues had now been dealt with and would make a great purchase but the previous owner had been reluctant allow the property to be sold . The auction had been trying to sell the property for a for a few years..

After the auction the previous owner told me many lies about boundaries etc and the septic tank. It turns out the only truth was the tank was indeed on his / mother property.

If anyone can give me any advice on how to proceed forward it would be really appreciated it has been over a year since I purchased and don't seem to be getting anywhere.

Reply to the comment left by "Neil Robb" at "13/07/2014 - 09:07":

Hi Neil

This looks to be a relatively straight forward dispute but may have an element of professional negligence. Accordingly, I have invited to of my colleagues from Cotswold Barristers to comment. The first being Farah Stehrenberger to comment on the dispute itself, the second being Mark Smith to comment on whether there might be a professional negligence claim or what recourse you may have against the solicitor who signed the affidavit.
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Reply to the comment left by "Neil Robb" at "13/07/2014 - 09:07":

Dear Neil,

1. Did you have a solicitor acting for you in the purchase?
2. Was the right to drain into the septic tank made part of the contract?
3. Do you still have the 'legal pack''? There must have been some dealing with various easements at the time the property was sold. We can ascertain your legal rights but we need to see the contracts and title deeds.
4. There may have been a mortgage fraud here, but that may not give you any help in the current situation. What is more relevant is if either a) you were misled when you purchased by either the owner or the bank or both or b) your solicitor did not make proper enquiries to make sure you were legally protected.

Please PM me via member profile. We have expertise in Cotswold Barristers to deal with all of this.

Many Thanks Mark I will get In contact with Mark Smith next week.

Yes Mark I had a solicitor acting for me. I don't believe she has done anything wrong as when the hammer went down I bought the property.

When I found out about the issues it was already bought at auction. When I raised them with my solicitor I was committed to purchase the property and if I did not go through with it I would lose the deposit and could still be liable for the outstanding amount. I believed these issued would have been easily sorted not realising how complicated it could get as the previous owner still part owned the other property with his mother.

As it was a repossession and the previous owner owned both properties they had no reason to have any easement agreements in place and he is not willing to try sort one out now. I am looking to see if there is a system that can be put in a small space near a building.

Yes I have a copy of the legal pack that was in the auction. It does have a statement that does say The purchaser should satisfy that all documents are correct. When I went back to query The septic tank my solicitor received from the banks solicitors the affidavit Stating the property did have its own septic tank this was in the legal pack.

Hi Milena
I agree with Mark Alexander and Mark Edwards advice.
This is fraud and you should not agree to this deal. You would be providing evidence to Nationwide that you have the deposit but in reality you don't. You would be obtaining mortgage by deception.
You should ask for the refund and/or seek second opinion as to this deal for your peace of mind.