People’s stories
Real life tales of triumphs and difficulties from the world of homeownership
Granny Flats and Council Tax
Oliver’s miffed by the double council tax charge. What’s your view?
Secretive Estate Agent Charges
Linda was shocked to hear her estate agents charge the man next to her £1200+VAT less for their service
Bridging loans
James almost lost his dream home due to a chain and had to take out an expensive bridging loan
Over-cautious survey
Nick ended up threatening legal action against his surveyor after an over-cautious survey meant he lost a mortgage offer – and nearly lost the house he was trying to buy
Aggressive estate-agents
Peter ended up taping his estate agent admitting she had been lying to him, in a bid to stop the agent’s lawyers suing him for disputed fees
Mortgage Companies Insisting On Using Particular Solicitors
Susan was unaware that her mortgage company insisted on using a select panel of solicitors for conveyancing causing her unnecessary hassle and expense
Researching your surveyor
Claire benefited from researching her surveyor, ensuring she got an in depth, quality service
Try before you buy
Geoff and Sarah were told by their estate agent that a home they wanted to buy had good transport links – but not all was as it seemed
Check your architects credentials
Lucy and Steve wasted tens of thousands of pounds on repair costs and had years of building headaches, because they used an “architect” who turned out not to be an architect at all
Beware of cowboy builders
Patti and Alan’s cowboy builders leave them with a home riddled with problems
Unnecessary surveys
Emma’s purchase is substantially delayed due to unnecessary surveys
Dispute with a neighbour
Jessica and David’s neighbours discover parquet flooring under carpets and cause a racket
A professional estate agent
Mr and Mrs H were struggling to sell their home till a switch in estate agents brought fresh enthusiasm and quickly the perfect buyers emerged
Kitchen installation problems
Rupert and Mary’s new kitchen becomes problematic when an independent installer is forced upon them
Mortgage broker has terrible customer service
High street bank repeatedly loses documents, delays process, and is generally unhelpful
Difficult estate agents
Lotti finds estate agents to be unhelpful, and rude
Sell you home yourself!
You know it best. And you could save £hundreds on estate agent fees! Read how Sam did it…
Huge VAT on extensions
Harrison is amazed when told he should rebuild completely rather than extend due to VAT charges
